Inside the Movement to Destroy American Democracy

Why have so many Americans turned against democracy? Katherine Stewart explores the interlocking roles of religious nationalism, big-money donors, and the proliferation of conspiracism and propaganda in this compelling analysis of the authoritarian reaction in the United States. Her comprehensive political analysis reframes the conversation about the moral collapse of conservatism in America and points the way toward a democratic future.

Katherine Stewart is an investigative journalist and the author of the New York Times bestselling Money, Lies, and God: Inside the Movement to Destroy American Democracy (Bloomsbury, 2025). Her previous book, The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism (Bloomsbury, 2020) formed the basis of the documentary feature God & Country, produced by Rob Reiner and Michele Reiner, and won the Religion News Association’s First Place award in the Nonfiction Books category, among other prizes. In 2012 Stewart published The Good News Club, a book about the religious right’s efforts to infiltrate and undermine public education. Stewart’s work appears in The New York Times op ed, New Republic, Religion News Service and others.