Now, America finds itself cash poor, and to a great extent power follows money. In The End of Influence, renowned economic analysts Stephen S. Cohen and J. Bradford DeLong explore the grave consequences this loss will have for America's place in the world. America, Cohen and DeLong argue, will no longer be the world's hyperpower. It will no longer wield soft cultural power or dictate a monolithic foreign policy. More damaging, though, is the blow to the world's ability to innovate economically, financially, and politically. Cohen and DeLong also explore American's complicated relationship with China, the misunderstood role of sovereign wealth funds, and the return of state-led capitalism. An essential read for anyone interested in how global economics and finance interact with national policy, The End of Influence explains the far-reaching and potentially long-lasting but little-noted consequences of our great fiscal crisis.

    During the campaign, not only dreams but also principles, careers & personal relationships are dashed or strengthened. The candidate who survives may be the fittest, or merely the most durable, the most pliable or the luckiest. To a country scarred by scandal, disillusioned by unkept promises & wearied of politics, the '76 presidential election seemed no different from previous ones. But Witcover makes it clear, in this vivid account, that this time it was very different. On the Democratic side the field was wide open. On the Republican side an unelected incumbent faced a strongly partisan challenger in a demoralized & fragmented party. There were more volatile issues, new rules, new influences. In this 1st post-Watergate race it couldn't be politics as usual. The campaign proceeded with a new awareness of the effects of mass-media techniques of propaganda & manipulation, & the role money plays. Marathon is the story of what political life was like from the time the '76 campaign began--for the Democrats in late '72 & for the Republicans within months of Nixon's fall in '74. It's the story of the army of people who took part in the marathon--the chief competitors, the behind-the-scenes enthusiasts, the party pols who organized the race, the people who sustained or tripped up the runners. It's also the story of life on the stump for both candidates & reporters. Morris Udall, Ronald Reagan, Frank Church, Gerald Ford, Henry Jackson & dozens of others--this is the story of their day-to-day experiences fighting for political control & survival. Most important, it's the story of Jimmy Carter--who he is, where he came from & how he reached the finish line. Witcover covered the presidential campaign from start to finish--in interviews with all the candidates (during the primaries, the campaign proper & after the election), scores of campaign aides & key politicians, pollsters, reporters on the trail & voters. His is a detailed account of the major events in politics during the past four years, the issues & nonissues, the personality clashes, the policy debates, the technicalities (His analysis of the new election-finance laws & their effect on politics & the media is essential), &, above all, the participation & response of the voter. Never before was there a presidential race like this one. Never before has there been a book that has told the story so comprehensively & accurately.