"Unmaking America: The Secret Blueprint": How a Secret Memo Unleashed Corporate Power, Divided the Nation, and Endangers Our Future Paperback – June 1, 2025

UnMaking America: How a Secret Memo Unleashed Corporate Power, Divided the Nation, and Endangers Our FutureIn "UnMaking America," Vale Foster presents a compelling argument that America's current political and social divisions stem from a deliberate, decades-long campaign initiated by a confidential 1971 memo. Written by Lewis Powell Jr. to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce shortly before his Supreme Court appointment, this "secret blueprint" catalyzed a comprehensive strategy to reshape American society in favor of corporate interests.Foster meticulously traces how Powell's memo inspired the systematic transformation of key American institutions. The judiciary was strategically captured through organizations like the Federalist Society and the "law and economics" movement. Universities and think tanks were funded to promote pro-business perspectives, while a comprehensive deregulatory wave swept across multiple sectors. Tax policies redistributed wealth upward, and corporate interests actively shaped globalization rules to enhance their power and mobility.The book further explores how these corporate strategies found allies in Christian nationalism and the emerging neoreactionary movement in Silicon Valley. Foster connects these historical developments directly to contemporary threats like Project 2025, which aims to consolidate executive power and dismantle independent agencies. The administrative dismantling of government institutions, particularly environmental and justice departments, serves as evidence of the memo's enduring influence."UnMaking America" ultimately warns that the cumulative effect of these developments poses a fundamental threat to American democracy, echoing FDR's caution that "the liberty of a democracy is not safe if the people tolerate the growth of private power to a point where it becomes stronger than the democratic state itself." Despite this sobering assessment, Foster identifies emerging signs of democratic resistance that may yet counter the Powell-inspired transformation of American society. Read more