By JAMES BARESEL
The War for America’s Soul by Sebastian Gorka (2019); 255 pages. Available in Kindle and hardcover editions at amazon.com.
Longtime readers of The Wanderer are likely to be encouraged by publication of The War for America’s Soul, the latest book from the pen of Sebastian Gorka, a strategic analyst and former member of the Trump administration who now works as a political pundit.
But since the book is meant to be no more than a summary introduction to a variety of topics of importance in contemporary American political life (rather than a thorough, let alone groundbreaking, work of scholarly research of political philosophizing), they are also likely to find little in it which they have not already read or heard. This is not to say that the book is lacking in value, just that it is necessary to be clear about what it is and is not for.
Perhaps the most obvious use which can be made of The War for America’s Soul those already reasonably knowledgeable about political affairs is as a book to suggest to swing-voter friends who are unlikely to study more thorough works but would be receptive to the facts which prove the nefariousness of Barack Obama and other leading Democrats, and to those which demonstrate the way in which American life has declined in consequence of the policies pursued both by Democrats and by “establishment Republicans.”
The most encouraging thing about The War for America’s Soul is not its useful (if largely ephemeral) contents. It is the way in which the book serves as a barometer of the current political climate in the United States, exemplifying as it does both the strengths (though admittedly also the weaknesses) of the currents which have coalesced into the so-called “Trumpism” which has rapidly replaced both establishment neo-conservatism and the now defunct anti-establishment TEA Party as the dominant force of America’s political right.
On the positive side of this movement is an instinctive traditionalism, one which, for most practical purposes, is largely grounded in a desire to preserve national culture, identity, and way of life rather than in such political ideologies as neo-conservatism, classical liberalism, or libertarianism. Its attempt, on the negative side, to justify itself on the basis of the (in the broadest sense) liberal concepts which pervade American political life is the result not so much of thought out philosophical commitment as it is of the shortcoming implied by the word “instinctive” — its failure to intellectualize in the way necessary to make the theoretical shift to a more formal, philosophical traditionalism.
It supports government-led efforts in favor of morality rather than leaving moral questions to the “free marketplace of ideas.” In economic matters it is moderately pro-market, supportive of protectionist measures and defense of small business. In foreign policy it rejects interventionist attempts to refashion the world and take on the defense related responsibilities of European nations without falling into the opposite extreme of radical isolationism, and is interested in actively cooperating with foreign politics movements (such as that in support of Brexit) which wish to be an ally of the American right rather than dependents of the United States government.
Gorka himself models this sort of positive internationalism. He was born in Britain to Hungarian parents who were living in exile after escaping from their homeland’s Communist regime. Educated in Britain (including by the Benedictine monks of Ealing Abbey) he moved to Hungary shortly after the fall of the Iron Curtain, where he worked for the ministry of defense and served as an adviser to Viktor Orban.
His work as an expert in counterterrorism led to his employment by the United States Department of Defense (teaching in its European-based Program for Terrorism and Security Studies, at the Joint Special Operations University and at the Marine Corps University) and his move to the United States. In 2017 he briefly served in the Trump administration.
The War for America’s Soul also has considerable potential as a “go to” reference work. Need an exhaustive, easily perused list of Donald Trump’s accomplishments as president? Gorka provides one. Want a quick refresher on the basic names and facts behind the accusations that Trump collaborated with Russia? Gorka has a chapter on that. Looking for a summary of the economic impact which the policies of both the Democrats and the “establishment Republicans” have had on the American people? Crack open Gorka’s book. Worried that Trump might be defeated in the next presidential election? The reasons why and the ways how Trump can win, and some suggestions as to what we can do, will be found in the book’s pages.
But do you want solid classic and Catholic political philosophy rather than the false clichés and erroneous assumptions often put forward by people who are on the right side of the political divide due to common sense and decent instincts rather than an advanced education in such matters? For that you will have to go elsewhere.
Powered by WPtouch Mobile Suite for WordPress