Norman Podhoretz and Commentary Magazine The Rise and Fall of the Neocons

What does the term "neoconservative" mean? Who are we talking about and where did they come from? Abrams answers those very questions through a detailed and critical study of neoconservatism's leading thinker, Norman Podhoretz, and the magazine he edited for 35 years, Commentary. Podhoretz has been described as "the conductor of the neocon orchestra" and through Commentary Podhoretz powerfully shaped neoconservatism. Rich in research, the book is based upon a wide range of sources, including archival and other material never before published in the context of Commentary magazine, including Podhoretz's private papers. It argues that much of what has been said about neoconservatism is the product of willful distortion and exaggeration both by the neoconservatives themselves and their many enemies. From this unique perspective, Abrams examines the origins, rise, and fall of neoconservatism. In understanding Podhoretz, a figure often overlooked, this book sheds light on the origins, ideas, and intellectual pedigree of neoconservatism.

Introduction Chapter One: Taking OverExamines Podhoretz's early life and career from 1930 to the 1960s, with a special focus on how he sought to change Commentary after taking on its editorship in 1960.Chapter Two: The Revised Standard Version Looks at the inaccurate evaluations of both Podhoretz and Commentary and how the events of the 60s helped neoconservatism to emerge. Argues that in the 60s, Podhoretz turned the magazine into a source of anti-liberal and anti-black conservatism, but did not change key fundamentals about the magazine.Chapter Three: War Examines Podhoretz's shift in the 1970s toward neoconservatism in his war against the New Left and the counterculture, which he collectively called "the movement."Chapter Four: ResurrectionLooks at how Podhoretz, as a result of his fight with "the movement," recycled ideas from the past, returning Commentary to a very similar position as when he took it over.Chapter Five: EmpireFocuses on Podhoretz and Commentary's zenith, when the magazine featured the major ideologues of the "Reagan Revolution." Demonstrates the influence of the magazine on the Reaganite agenda.Chapter Six: DeclineTraces the crumbling of Podhoretz's influence.Chapter Seven: FallLooks at the decline, in terms of influence and readership, of both Podhoretz and neoconservatism, a process capped by the election of President Clinton in 1992. Examines how neoconservatism became a mild variant of the more orthodox and familiar conservative mainstream, which has been called ‘paleoconservatism,' and which differs markedly from the original neoconservatism of the 1970s and 1980s.  Chapter Eight: After the FallLooks at Podhoretz, the movement, and the magazine after Podhoretz left Commentary in 1995. Since then, Podhoretz has acted as the Republican Presidential candidate Rudolph Giuliani's foreign policy advisor, and is now editor-at-large at Commentary. Examines the neocons' influence on George W. Bush's policies since 2001, and prospects for the future.Conclusion Summarizes Podhoretz's career and its impact on our understanding of neoconservatism.