最新杏吧原创

But it鈥檚 difficult. Five years ago he was the deputy national security adviser to former President Barack Obama. Now he鈥檚 just another American trying to understand what went wrong in the Trump years, and how the world鈥檚 beacon of democracy turned toward authoritarianism.

We spoke recently about the launch of his second book: 鈥�,鈥� for a on Monday sponsored by the 最新杏吧原创 County Library and HEC Media. Rhodes鈥� book is a challenging and important read for those of us struggling with the current state of the Republican Party, and how it has changed the dynamics of what it means to be an American.

As it happens, our discussion came the day before Republicans in the Senate of a bipartisan commission to investigate the attack on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, an unprecedented insurrection against the very seat of U.S. government, based on the Big Lie that the election had been stolen from Trump.

In the bill that was before the Senate, Republicans got virtually everything they wanted from Democrats to make sure the power on the commission was equally shared. And despite 35 Republicans in the House voting for the measure, the GOP declined to give the bill the votes it needed to overcome a filibuster.

It was a further sign of the broken democracy that some days has Rhodes feeling like 鈥渁n exile in my own country.鈥� It鈥檚 a personal struggle that Rhodes shares with his readers in a palpable way, talking about his inner rage through the Trump years, manifesting itself mostly through the decisions that tried to undo everything Obama accomplished, and continued after the election of President Joe Biden with a GOP fealty to everything Trump says and does, even if it means backing wacky conspiracy theories.

鈥淚f you look at the Republican Party and the direction it鈥檚 going, it feels divorced from even objective reality itself,鈥� Rhodes says. Indeed, the party jettisons Rep. Liz Cheney from its leadership ranks because she calls out Trump鈥檚 Big Lie, and yet gives a wide berth to Rep. Matt Gaetz while he鈥檚 being investigated for possible sex trafficking and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, who hasn鈥檛 found a conspiracy theory yet that she can鈥檛 find a way to embrace if she believes it will ingratiate her in Trumpland.

What scared Rhodes as he traveled the world in the past few years is how similar what has happened in the U.S. in the recent past is to authoritarian movements in other countries, including Hungary, Russia and China. What scared me more as a reader was that the path forward that Rhodes sees 鈥� America regaining its place as the world鈥檚 most functioning Democracy 鈥� seems out of reach at the moment.

鈥淭he best thing America can do for the world is be a healthy democracy,鈥� Rhodes told me, a day before the GOP blocked the bipartisan commission to investigate the insurrection supported by some members of its party.

The vote sparked anger among Democrats in the Senate, who were witnesses to the insurrection along with their friends from the other side of the aisle, and couldn鈥檛 believe that Republicans wouldn鈥檛 find common ground on this one issue of shared patriotism.

鈥淲e鈥檝e got to get to the bottom of this 鈥�,鈥澛燤ontana Sen. Jon Tester, a conservative Democrat, in an angry rant, adding a bit more colorful language. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a nonpartisan investigation of what happened. And if it鈥檚 because they鈥檙e afraid of Trump then they need to get out of office.鈥�

Anger isn鈥檛 necessarily a bad thing, Rhodes writes in his book. It drives some of the dissident movements in other countries facing the sort of cults of personality that have now taken root in America.

鈥淚 had lots of feelings, complicated feelings, of being angry at my own country,鈥� as he was writing the book, Rhodes told me. 鈥淚 still love this country, and love what it鈥檚 supposed to be 鈥� I can see what鈥檚 wrong and be angry about it, but I can鈥檛 let that stop me from loving the good 鈥� America has been able to figure stuff out before, but only because people didn鈥檛 give up.鈥�