Delirium: The Politics of Sex in America

by Nancy L. Cohen

“An insightful look at the history of sexual mores and politics and how we got to such a contentious place.” ― Booklist Perhaps if the Pill had never been invented, American politics would be very different today, Nancy L. Cohen writes, as she takes us on a gripping journey through the confounding and mysterious episodes of our recent politics to explain how and why we got to this place. Along the way she explores such topics why Bill Clinton was impeached over a private sexual affair; how George W. Bush won the presidency by stealth; why Hillary lost to Obama; why John McCain chose Sarah Palin to be his running mate; and what the 2012 presidential contest indicated about America today. She exposes the surprising role of right-wing women in undermining women’s rights, and explains how liberal men were complicit in letting it happen. Cohen uncovers the hidden history of an orchestrated, well-financed, ideologically powered shadow movement to turn back the clock on matters of gender equality and sexual freedom and how it has played a leading role in fueling America’s political wars―and explains how we can restore common sense and sanity in our nation’s politics. “In her critique of bipartisan extremism, historian Cohen expertly details its rise within the Democratic and Republican parties by mining seven presidential elections . . . an impressive contribution to the political dialogue.” ― Publishers Weekly

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, History, Gender, Feminism, Sociology, Gender and Sexuality

356 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Nancy L. Cohen is an author, historian, and leading national expert on women and American politics. She is the author of four books, including the acclaimed Delirium: The Politics of Sex in America (2012). Nancy's writing has appeared in the Guardian, the Los Angeles Times, Rolling Stone, Playboy, the New Republic, and elsewhere. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, her two daughters, and near her four stepchildren.

Reviews

[Melki · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The feminist agenda is not about equal rights for women. It is about a socialist, anti-family political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbians."
Pat Robertson, televangelist and 1988 Republican Presidential candidate

While there's nothing really new in this book, it does offer a good review of how a small group of sexual counterrevolutionaries born to battle the "Free Love" movement of the sixties, came to hold such sway over the political powers of the United States. Their goal? ...to lead the GOP on a forced march backward toward a mythical time, circa 1950, when traditional Christian morality ruled the nation and the sexual revolution had not yet destroyed the true and good America.

The harm they have done to this country is almost incalculable.

Six years had passed since AIDS had been identified. The delay in federal action, caused largely by Reagan's deference to the sexual fundamentalists, had powerfully affected the course of AIDS in America. In Britain, where the government had acted quickly to implement a public health campaign, the rate of infection was one-tenth of what it was in the United States. By the end of Reagan's presidency, nearly 50,000 Americans had died of AIDS.

Now they want to remove references to evolution and Thomas Jefferson from textbooks. (Thomas Jefferson? Wha? Yup. He advocated separating church and state.) Most schools are already teaching "abstinence-only" sex education.

For decades, the Christian Right has been running stealth campaigns right under our noses, where candidates do not reveal their ties to the extremists until AFTER they are in office. That's how they get ya!

The book covers a great deal of recent "history," including the 2008 and 2012 elections. We, of course, have the far right to thank for inflicting Sarah Palin on the world. After their insistence that all Republican candidates pass an "extreme antiabortion litmus test," McCain's advisors chose her over the slightly more rational Joe Lieberman as the ideal running mate for their Maverick. I had a great laugh when I learned that Palin's nomination was praised by ancient, hypocritical loon, Phyllis Schlafly, an ardent supporter of keeping women IN THE HOME, not THE WHITE HOUSE. BUT, then again, this is a party that is KNOWN for hypocrisy. What else do you call a group of people who want "a government small enough to drown in a bathtub" EXCEPT when it comes to S-E-X. Then they want MORE LAWS and LESS FREEDOM.

But, I digress...

You have cause to be concerned. These people are slowly and stealthily getting their way.

Fifty years after the Equal Pay Act, forty years after the feminist movement, and more than two decades after women started taking home the majority of college degrees, women workers still make only 77 cents for every dollar earned by male workers. We are one of only three countries in the world that does not provide universal paid maternity leave; almost every other advanced nation generously subsidizes the cost of parenting preschool aged children. We have the highest teen pregnancy, teen abortion, and teen motherhood rate among advanced nations, not because our teenagers have more sex, but because they have less access to birth control, and medically accurate sex education.

If you're like me, you're getting really sick of a bunch of chinless, elderly white men who look like they've never had sex telling you what and (who) you can do in your bedroom, who you can marry and what you must do with your uterus.

Reading this book will make you righteously angry, and it sounds like that's exactly what we need right now.

[Terra · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book traces recent US political history starting with the 1972 Democratic convention when groups outside the traditional mainstream of the party--women, young voters, gays and lesbians--were blamed (unjustly, she argues) for the candidate's loss and given the unflattering label "McGoverniks." The focus of the book is the rise of the sexual counterrevolution, starting with the effort by women's groups led by Phyllis Schlafly, to defeat the ERA. From there, they went after reproductive rights, child care funding, equal pay and other policies opposed by the right because of the threat they represented to traditional family structures and gender roles.

Since 1972, Cohen demonstrates with polling data and other sources, Democrats have fought an internal battle over whether to embrace progressive values and these new constituencies within the party, or stick to their economic populism, and run to the center on social issues, effectively competing for the blue collar white males they lost to Reagan in 1980. She also shows that even when national security or the economy are seemingly driving the election, behind the scenes, the sexual counterrevolutionaries and the religious right are driving the GOP further and further to the right, chasing out the last remaining moderates in teh process.

"Delirium" is the author's term for the seemingly crazy tendency on the part of Democratic consultants advising their clients to move to the middle, avoiding "social issues", and, in effect, offering the choice between Republicans and Republicans lite. Given that choice, the real thing almost always wins.

In discussing the results of Barack Obama's winning strategy in 2008, she points out that he demonstrated Democrats can win by embracing progressivism, and bringing in new voters, particularly the young, Latinos and unmarried women. She warns that consultants will start to say Obama should move to the center, but shows through recent polling data, that the American electorate, and independent voters in particular, are increasingly pro-choice, in favor of gay marriage and against the influence of religion in politics.

[Catherine Read · Rating 5 out of 5]

This really is a "must read" for those interested in understanding how a shrinking minority of ultra religious conservatives has hijacked the political process to press an agenda focused on an evangelical interpretation of "traditional" American values. Phyllis Schlafly has spent decades organizing a small number of highly focused individuals in such an effective way that she barely leaves fingerprints on all she has touched. The GOP has ceded control of its party and candidate selection to various iterations of the far right, which is currently operating under the "Tea Party" brand since 2009. The Democrats have an uncanny way of regularly squandering whatever advantages they may have and the result is legislation at the federal and state level that has rolled back women's rights and stymied progress on issues from equal pay to the ERA. While we have turned a corner on same sex marriage in this country, we still have not secured other types of rights and non-discrimination protection for the LGBT community. And the Supreme Court still has yet to rule on the most recent marriage case that could potentially affect same sex marriage across the country.

To understand how it has gone so horribly wrong on so many fronts, you have to understand the history of the religious right's political agenda going back to the Nixon years. Nancy Cohen has done very credible research and put it in an engaging and interesting format that truly connects the dots over many decades, election cycles and presidential races.

This book is one of the most illuminating treatments of the "politics of sex" in this country that I have ever read. I highly recommend it.

[Zach Brandt · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you’re a conservative who feels icky about the partnership of Trump and evangelicalism, this is a scary book. Cohen shows how the ickiness didn’t start in 2015, but rather in the late 70’s when social conservatism entered the political arena on the right and began a 50 year history of deception, overreach, oppression, and even violence—all in the name of promoting moral values. This is an important story, especially for conservative Christians.

The book focuses on the political players of the sexual fundamentalists, so I didn’t recognize many of the names. I would be interested to know how deeply these players were tied to the ecclesial institutions and movements I am a part of and am more familiar with.

[Toni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cohen's central thesis is that, despite what many would believe, the majority American political and moral ethos has not moved to a more conservative base but has, rather, been disproportionately affected by a fundamentalist minority. In a very thorough rendering, she traces the rise of the fundamentalist, sexual counterrevolutionaries from the McGovern/Nixon race to the present day battles in both the Executive branch and Congress. Along the way, the sexual counterrevolutionaries have managed to highjack the Republican party, endowing it with current ultra-conservative and sexually fundamentalist tenor that seems to be given among any potential nominees. The Democratic party, Cohen argues, has made major missteps along the way by kow-towing to the fundamentalists and losing sight of its potential power base in progressive voters. She cites both Clinton and Obama as examples of candidates who reached out to progressive voters during their campaigns, thereby increasing the voting numbers and winning their respective elections.

I will say that there is some obvious bias, particularly surrounding Clinton. Cohen talked a great deal of his appeal to progressives, but made cursory mention of his concessions on DOMA and DADT. She also failed to mention that he was the president who dismantled federal welfare in favor of state welfare that provides much less security, particularly for women, and has led to states enacting fairly sexist and detrimental laws regarding women on welfare.

All in all, I enjoyed this book and consider it a very well researched insight on the rise of a rather scary set of beliefs that has impacted politics in such a negative way. (Her accounts of the near-violent enmity of the populace stoked by Tea Party candidates is chilling. And it forever reminded that I will never fathom how Phyllis Schlafly ever rose to such prominence in this country.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have a few faults with this book - the easy ones first. It was not well edited, the grammar mistakes are kind of unforgivable, and she uses the word 'delirium' far too often. The not so easy critique is that she speaks of Obama as though he were the second coming. It gets a little old after awhile.

That said, this book was eye opening. While it is no secret how closely tied the Republican party and the Christian Right are, I honestly did not know how that came about and how subversive the relationship was. I feel naive about not having done my homework and understanding that relationship. I am grateful that I have always voted my conscience, but I am ashamed of my party and how easily they were wiled into a covenant with the devil.

Reading this book leaves me feeling two disparate ways - one, it is very, very tempting to just go apolitical. Both parties and the people that represent them are just idiotic. It is baffling at how easily panicked the Democrats became with each loss. It is disheartening how so many Republicans candidates succumbed to the pressure of the Christian Right. It is insulting that both parties have changed their tunes time and time again, at the clear detriment of the voter and the American public.

Two, and this will be my chosen path, I feel that my voice is needed now, more than ever before. Not necessarily in support of the left. I cannot in good conscience abandon my fiscally conservative ways. But I will vow to do my homework, and look for the stealth and subversiveness of legislature and candidates that I might normally support. I will continue to vote my conscience, but it will be with a far more educated bent.

[Blane · Rating 5 out of 5]

When, when, when will the Democrats learn? From 1972 & McGovern's loss to Tricky Dick through Obama, they have consistently capitulated to the center & the right, only to be rebuffed each time. As Cohen so clearly points out, the sexual counterrevolutionaries--you know, those freaks (yes, I said freaks) who simply cannot stand that women should be able to make their own decisions about their bodies and lives and that gays are, in fact, citizens of the United States & deserve the exact same civil rights as their heterosexual counterparts--have been working for over forty years to turn back the clock to the 1950s & the Ozzy & Harriet-style nuclear family, which never really existed (except in their warped minds) anyway.

They are a minority of Americans, predominantly older (way older...what a shame), & Republican, yet the Democrats continue to think that by playing by their rules, they somehow will fall into their good graces. They won't. In a paraphrase of Keith Olbermann's single best Special Comment a few years ago, They (the counterrevolutionaries) are still going to call you (the Democrats) bad names. Therefore, Dems, take control of the game before its too late...your values ARE the values of the majority of Americans, despite the lies spewed by the right.

[Kirsten · Rating 4 out of 5]

I heard this author speak on NPR and was fascinated by her premise. This is a really interesting book (although I found that the second half dragged a bit - maybe because I remembered plenty of those things from when they happened). And I found that echoes of what she was writing about were popping up in the news around me all week - I had a little bit of a feminist re-awakening, maybe.

But I had two quibbles - she explains a lot of HOW the sexual counter-revolutionaries took over the Republican party, but not so much WHY they were so obsessed with sex and so passionate about their cause. (And I suppose that part is beyond the scope of the book - but still, that's what I wanted.) The other quibble was that the author's political bias was clear. I am sympathetic to her bias (and indeed, I suspect our voting records would be pretty similar), but found myself wondering how much she was cherry-picking her evidence to prove her thesis. And if a sympathetic reader like me is thinking that, then a hostile reader would never get through this book. In that case, she is only preaching to the choir, which is a little bit annoying. In short - I did like it, even if it got a little long.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating. Dr. Cohen traces how, starting in the 1970s, the anti-feminist movement (which expanded into the sexual counterrevolution, currently on display as the Tea Party) has influenced and shaped the American political system. Those who study either political science or the women’s movement will be familiar with much of what Dr. Cohen discusses, but her analysis – and her deft use of several studies that disprove commonly recited beliefs about American politics – takes the subjects a step farther. She’s equally critical of both parties, which leads me to believe that (most) women in America would enjoy this book (I lean left, and I greatly enjoyed how unwilling she was to let the Democrats off the hook – just because they are less bad doesn’t make them good). My two quibbles are the number of typos and a wish that she had not been quite so keen to keep using the word delirium. Her analysis was strong enough without the cutesy wordplay. She does simplify some of the issues – I think she underplays the role of race at some points – but in a way that keeps the book a tidy length and focused on the central subject, so, taken as a whole, I don’t consider it a problem. Highly recommended.

[Barbara]

Premise: The sexual revolution that took place in the 1960s has driven America's plunge into political anarchy and obstruction.

From the book flap:
"In Delirium, Nancy L. Cohen tells the story of a little known shadow movement that has fueled America's political wars for forty years. She traces our current political crisis back to the rise of a well-organized, ideologically driven opposition movement to turn back the sexual revolution, feminism, and gay rights. This sexual counterrevolution, Cohen shows, has played a leading role in shattering both political parties, dividing Americans into irreconcilable warring camps, and polarized the nation. Presenting an original, deeply research, and historical take on the American political landscape, Delirium charts the path that led Americans into irreconcilable camps, polarized national politics, split and remade our political parties, and unhinged the nation."

[Rene' · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nancy Cohen charts the birth of the sexual counterrevolution : how conflicts about sex, women's rights and women's roles, gay civil rights, and family values, drove Americans into irreconcilable camps, polarized national politics, split and remade our political parties, and unhinged the nation...from the age of Nixon to the age of Obama.


Fascinating, educational, upsetting and eye-opening. I think everyone, man or woman, should read this. So many American cultural questions are answered with this book.

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a great journey through recent history - it explores angles of past presidential elections I hadn't read about before. I would have liked the book even better if it delved into the reasons WHY so many men and women feel the need to bear witness to the sexual counterrevolution.

[Glen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating! Lots of good stories of the Clinton years. Pretty even handed and easy to read.

[Casey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This ebook covers the rise of the Christian Nationalists’ “sexual fundamentalists” who want to stamp out the cultural changes of the 60s and 70s, especially women’s rights, gay rights, and sexual freedom. The movement gained force during the Reagan presidency, under Newt Gingrich in the 1990s, and with the Tea Party in the 2000s. The Tea Party opposed taxes and the federal government in order to attract supporters, but most of their actions were focused on stamping out sex.

One lawmaker in New Hampshire was so against sex and birth control that he railed against sex even in marriage. He argued that “married couples should abstain from sex until they are ready to have a child.” Gee… I wonder what that honeymoon would look like, or their life together after she reaches menopause. (“Sorry, hon. My brood-mare days are over.”)

I lived through the political events in this book, voting for the first time in 1973. However, I didn’t know all these fascinating details or follow the events as a continuous story, as this author laid out.

The main drawback of this book is that it was published during President Obama’s term in 2013, when it seemed the Christian Nationalists were losing. I wish the author had updated the book to address the recent rise of MAGA. The latest video I could find of the author was five years ago.

For an excellent review, see Melki’s, dated August 28, 2013.

Highly recommended!

[Chris Hitchcock · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some interesting ideas, but I got bogged down midway into the book with too much detail and not enough overview.

Date finished is when I finally took it off my list because I doubt I will ever get back to it.