The New American Story

Deeply thoughtful and wonderfully wise, Mr. Bradley leads us through the major issues facing the United States in the 21st century with clarity, an engaging style, and the kindness/gentleness that we were taught to expect from our leadership. He proposes solutions that are sensible. I pray that his wisdom will be used to change our domestic and foreign policies in the coming years, for the sake of our great nation and its future citizens.

Bill Bradley's earnestness has always been appealing. This book is another expression of his earnest concern about the United States. He begins by noting that (page xiii): "I call this book `The New American Story' because I believe we've been told a story about American that simply isn't true. . .It's a story of no possibility--of too few resources and no political will; of fear and lack of compassion; of individual consumerist values at home and `America only' policies abroad." He begins by writing of what he sees as a dreary story continually sold to the American people (very briefly summarized in the previous quotation; for more detail, see pages 8-13). Bradley goes back to Thomas Jefferson for the fountainhead of his "New American History." Chapters 3-8 explore what a new vision might look at, in policy arenas such as America's role in the world, the economy, oil and the environment, pensions, health care (where he sort of waffles between a couple different positions), and education. It would be too tedious to run through these various proposals. However, the reader can get a punchy summary of his proposals and--perhaps as important--how to pay for these in a summary, running from pages 179-183. he calculates that the policies he would like to see enacted (e.g., increasing research investment, protecting pensions [including Social Security], establishing a federal institute to determine cost-effectiveness of medical advances, to increase teachers' salaries in areas which are hard-pressed to deliver top quality education, and so on). How to pay for these initiatives (which Bradley calculates to cost $540 billion to $740 billion, depending on which health care option is selected [with single-payer as one of those]? Some suggestions: extend Social Security taxes higher income levels of the wealthy than is currently the case; cut farm subsidies for the wealthiest farmers; raise income tax progressively, which also reforming the tax code; create a tax on carbon/gasoline. He calculates that such measures as he suggests would raise $807 to $907 billion in additional revenue, thereby paying for his new proposals. One key aspect of his argument in this book is the importance and value of politics, including the importance of discussion and compromise. He begins to close with an interesting brace of chapters--one on why Republicans cannot produce a new story for the future. More poignantly, given his long record as a Democrat, he contends that Democrats "don't" produce a viable and coherent alternative (e.g., Democrats are terrified of being labeled soft on defense; Democrats are too secular and find it hard to take religious Americans seriously--especially evangelicals and fundamentalists; being too wedded to certain interest groups). Nonetheless, in the end, he remains optimistic that a new story can reenergize American politics. Will readers be convinced? That will have to be addressed reader by reader. But this is an interesting bo

Others have their own reasons for admiring Bill Bradley and, more specifically, this book. Here are three of mine. First, with all due respect to his credentials (e.g. All-American, All-Pro, and Hall of Fame basketball player, Rhodes Scholar, and U.S. Senator), what has most impressed me about him over the years is that he has what John McPhee once characterized (in 1965) as a "sense of where you are." That was and continues to be true of Bradley as, in this volume, he shares his thoughts about a wide range of subjects which include the challenges of public service and what he learned from his own involvement, his concern about unmet social needs and wasted opportunities to respond effectively to them, and yet his remarkably durable faith in what can yet be accomplished if (huge "if") enough people can agree to work together despite their ethnic, economic, political, and religious differences. Bradley candidly acknowledges regret about his own errors of both omission and commission throughout his years of public service even as he offers forceful, indeed eloquent reassurances that "the new American story" can be written only by reaffirming certain traditional ("old") values which are too often compromised by political expediency. In this book, he reveals a strong sense of where the American society is now and an even stronger strong sense of where it can - and should -- be. For decades, I have been concerned about political labels such as "liberal" and "conservative" and, more recently, about catch phrases such as "social liberal" and "fiscal conservative." In this book, Bradley calls upon us to focus on the most important issues and then make decisions about them that are guided and informed by the core principles in the Declaration of Independence, in the Constitution, and (especially) in the Bill of Rights. Bradley offers a convincing and eloquent explanation of why a commitment to these principles in public policies and in personal conduct seems more imperative now than at any previous time in U.S. history.

Too bad Bill Bradley has ruled out a run for the presidency, because the plan for America he outlines in this book could easily get him elected. We must therefore hope that the actual candidates, together with the 535 members of the U.S. House and Senate -- and the President, vice president and other members of the Executive Branch -- all read this and heed it. Bradley, a Democrat, outlines the pictures of America that the Bush administration and its allies have been selling to our citizens since January of 2001. Then he reframes them to reflect what's actually in place. And finally, he calmly and reasonably suggests how those problems can best be addressed in his view of "The New American Story." To solve the Social Security problem, for example, he suggests raising the minimum eligibility age from 67, where it will be in 2027, by one month every two years until it reaches 70 in 2099. He also calls for levying a 2 percent Social Security tax on all income above $94,200, the present ceiling on which we levy the universal 6.5 percent retirement tax. He calls for adding all new state and local employees into the system over a five-year period. Finally, Bradley suggests adjusting how we calculate annual cost-of-living raises by tying them to a slightly different consumer price index than the one now used. Those four provisions would keep Social Security solvent for at least 75 more years, he says. Many more problems are addressed in the same no-nonsense, easy-to-understand fashion, with plenty of facts to back up what he's saying. The difference between Bradley and many of today's politicians is that he's interested in building consensus to solve problems, not in getting elected or re-elected and not in attacking the opposite party or strengthening his own party. This book contains more "straight talk" and makes more sense than most of the utterances of the nation's top politicians. It's refreshing to find a book that focuses on issues and solutions instead of personality or ideology. Bradley has written that book.

Bill Bradley's journey has been extraordinary indeed: U.S. Olympian; Rhodes Scholar; NBA Hall of Famer; distinguished 3-term senator from NJ; candidate for president. Written with intellect, insight and authority, The New American story speaks to ALL Americans in a voice that is at once reassuring and urgent. Bradley knows politics from surface to core. More than that, he knows the American people. From a lifetime on the road, he understands who we are, how we got got into the trouble we're in, and what we can do, together, in order to make this country closer to the one our Founders envisioned, and of which we all dream. Perhaps the dominant theme of this wonderful treatise is, despite what the politicians and media continually assert, we are NOT divided Red and Blue; time and again, Bradley cites examples that remind us of the many fundamental needs and values we all share, regardless of the so-called color of our states or the actual color of our skin. I am proud to have worked for Senator Bradley in 2000, and from where we now find ourselves, both here and abroad, I can only wonder with a sad and heavy heart what might have been. And yet, it is refreshing to read these words, and to know that they come from the heart and mind of a very great American, and one who has been liberated from the shackles of future campaigns and elections. I cannot recommend this book more highly. Read it soon, for the clock is ticking...