Right Moves

“[A] diligently researched book [that] offers readers an informative account of the origins and rise of conservative think tanks in American politics.” — Washington Times

“[A] provocative theory of recent policy debates.” — Washington Monthly

“Offers a chilling analysis that rings true in diagnosing the current cast of routine political talk, the sphere in which devastating decisions are made.” — Journal of American History

“Illuminates a larger social trend, which was the decline of faith in the ideals of ‘objectivity’ and ‘disinterestedness’ from the early 1960s through the early 1970s.” — H-Net Reviews

“Right Moves is the right book for anyone hoping to understand how America’s political discourse has been influenced by private think tanks funded by corporate money. It’s fair minded, well documented, and fills an important gap in scholarly research.” — Jane Mayer, staff writer, New Yorker magazine

“Compelling and convincing, Jason Stahl’s Right Moves is the first history of the rise of the conservative think tank in American political culture. Not only is this book original in terms of subject and argument, it’s also fresh in terms of research. An important book!” — Andrew Hartman, Illinois State University

“A rich and engaging project that is likely to stimulate spirited discussion and debate. Clearly argued and engagingly written, Stahl’s book provides for the first time a focused, book-length historical treatment of conservative think tanks — a subject of great fascination and ongoing controversy in Washington political circles as well as within the politically informed general public.” — Alice O'Connor, University of California, Santa Barbara

“From supply-side economics to the War on Terror, conservative think tanks have played a central role in the ascendancy of the right’s core political projects. Yet historians have done little research on these enigmatic institutions. Finally, with Jason Stahl’s essential Right Moves, we have the necessary history to better understand how the ideas we still live with are created and disseminated.” — Mike Konczal, Roosevelt Institute fellow

“Jason Stahl’s book is not only the best available account of evolution of the world of right-wing think tanks, it provides a crucial intellectual history of how conservatives manipulated the rhetoric of 'balance' in order to move America’s ideological center to the right. Highly recommended.” — Rick Perlstein, author of The Invisible Bridge: the Fall of Nixon and the Rise of Reagan