The Longest Con: How Grifters, Swindlers, and Frauds Hijacked American Conservatism

by Joe Conason, Steve Marvel (reader)

A sardonic chronicle of how conservatism turned into a racketeering enterprise – and why Donald Trump became the living emblem of the American right’s moral decay. The Longest Con tells the fascinating story of the partisan con artists who have corrupted conservative politics in our time, creating a toxic phenomenon that culminated in the election of Donald Trump, a bumptious fraud whose checkered career and tawdry retinue, including his presidential cabinet, have featured almost every variety of scam. But long before he appeared, Trump’s path to power was blazed by the motley horde of swindlers and quacks who preceded him. From the “professional anti-communists” (whose tactics even J. Edgar Hoover despised) to the “populist” grifters of the Tea Party movement and the religious charlatans of the “prosperity gospel” (who provided a pious front for Trump), the right-wing ripoff has remained remarkably consistent, even as personalities change and new technologies Stir up anger and resentment, demonize political opponents, promise vengeance, and collect donations from the gullible. It’s a highly lucrative game that any unscrupulous charlatan can play, as many have – and they are named in these pages. In an unsparing and often comic narrative, Joe Conason explores the right’s long, steep descent into a movement whose principal aim is not to protect freedom or defend the Constitution, but merely to line the pockets of pretenders and blowhards whose malevolent tactics now endanger the nation.

Genres: Politics, History, Nonfiction, Theory, World History, Social Justice, Philosophy

1 pages, Audio CD

First published July 9, 2024

About the author

Joe Conason is an award winning political journalist and author. His best-selling titles illuminate the mendacity and malice in American Politics.

Reviews

[Scott Rhee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Donald Trump, sad to say, isn't the first con man to sit in the seat of the U.S. presidency. He is, however, the first to be re-elected after being outed as a con man. Oh, and he's the first to be a convicted felon.

That elected officials and their political lackies have been pulling fast ones and bilking millions out of their constituents for as long as there has been elected officials shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. Aristotle warned about the dangers of oligarchies thousands of years ago, so this isn't a new problem.


The Devil's lawyer (and trump's mentor), Roy Cohn has a list of diabolical deeds and moral failures that could fill another book.

Anyone with a decent dose of cynicism and smarts knows that politicians lie, cheat, and swindle their way to the top. The problem now is that the Republican party---once the party of Lincoln, with some semblance of respectability---has lost any sense of pretense and shame about it. That, and a good chunk of Republican voters seem to have two things in abundance that corrupt politicians love: gullibility and lots of money.

Joe Conason's "The Longest Con: How Grifters, Swindlers, and Frauds Hijacked American Conservatism" is a detailed and entertaining (albeit distressing) account of how gullible and generous a large percentage of Republican voters are, starting with the McCarthy Era to the Nixon years to the Moral Majority to January 6.


Don't let the fact that he's a triple amputee and an Iraq veteran fool you: this guy is a piece of shit. Brian Kolfage, still serving prison time, bilked millions from donors to a fake organization that was trying to get trump's wall built.

With crooks and con men like Roy Cohn, Dan Smoot, Richard Viguerie, Richard Nixon, Jerry Falwell, Jerry Falwell Jr., Ronald Reagan, Roger Stone, Paul Manafort, Steve Bannon, Timothy Shea, Andrew Badolato, Brian Kolfage, Jared Kushner, Eric Trump, Don Trump Jr., and Donald Trump (just to name a few) pulling the wool over voter's eyes, the party of Lincoln has become the party of Liars.

[Tom Walsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well done connecting of dots.

Conason does a good job of exposing the network of Grift that the Far Right has initially tolerated but is now embracing. I have followed the brazen hypocrisy of the Christian Nationalists since the Eighties and the Long Con that the book documents but I had hoped its damage was limited to the poor deluded folks who filled its collection plates. Now that its Marriage to the MAGA Fascists has been consummated in Drumpf’s Rise it is a Danger to all of us Americans.

Hopefully The Longest Con, by naming names and exposing relationships, will awaken voters in time to prevent calamity. Four Stars. Well done, Joe! ****

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anti-communist crusaders and televangelists primed conservatives to be trusting, send money, and believe in a conspiracy laden nightmare that should never be questioned. We are so fucked. Good writing.

[Sabrina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a lot of new information here but when you read it from beginning to end it is dizzying. I find it absolutely mind boggling that so called Christian evangelicals can still justify voting for Trump and his maga cronies.

[Mr. Book · Rating 5 out of 5]

You can also see this review, along with others I have written, at my new blog, Mr. Book's Book Reviews.

Thank you St. Martin’s Press for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own. No review was required in return for an advance reading copy and no review was promised.

Mr. Book just finished The Longest Con: How Grifters, Swindlers, and Frauds Hijacked American Conservatism by Joe Conason.

I’ve been a fan of Conason’s writing ever since I originally found his work during the George W. Bush administration. So, I was very excited to see that he is having a new book come out. I came into reading this with very high expectations and the book definitely lived up to them.

The thesis of this book is how the conservative movement, and the Republican party, has turned into one big con game. As Conason does a great job showing, it didn’t just start with Trump. Trump is just another datapoint, albeit a very huge one, in an ongoing tale that has lasted decades.

The Longest Con traces it all back to the early 1950s, with Roy Cohen: the infamous lawyer who also became Trump’s mentor.

One of the highlights of the book was the discussion anticommunism movement and it shows its connections to profit motives and religious groups. As one state Attorney General noted, “No wonder this whole movement has been called ‘Patriotism for Profit.’”

One of the most fascinating revelations of the book was how the exposure of Richard Nixon’s corruptions actually made him more popular among many right-wingers and authorities. Ass veteran activist said “If I’d known he’d been up to all that stuff, I’d have been for Nixon all along. I didn’t like Nixon until Watergate.”

Another big highlight of the book was the discussion of the Reagan years, especially the focus on all of the corruption. More than 200 members of the Reagan administration came under ethical or criminal investigation, with 38 indictments. By comparison: 28 members of the Nixon administration were indicted for Watergate, while Clinton’s administration resulted in just two, with none under Obama. And, as Conason points out, while Iran-Contra was the biggest scandal of the administration, there were others that cost the American taxpayers a lot more money. As P.J. O’Rourke summed up the Reagan years, “Republicans are the party that says government doesn’t work—and then they get elected and prove it.” But, what Conason adds is this is al of their plan to enrich personal profit and power.

The discussion of the infamous Bush 43 administration, as well as the conservative movement during those years was also one of the highlights of the book. While he’s been overshadowed by the scandals and crimes of his successor, George W. Bush had been our worst president prior to Bush.

And, then when the discussion turned to Trump, it was a series of even more excellent chapters. The book was focused not only on the president himself, but also the many corrupt people he surrounded himself with in his administration.

I gave this book an A+, which results in its induction into my Hall of Fame. NetGalley, Goodreads and Amazon require grades on a 1-5 star system. In my personal conversion system, an A+ equates to 5 stars. (A or A+: 5 stars, B+: 4 stars, B: 3 stars, C: 2 stars, D or F: 1 star).

I just hope that it is also released in Audible format, so I can enjoy it again.

This review has been posted at NetGalley, Goodreads and my blog, Mr. Book’s Book Reviews. It will be posted at Amazon when it is released on July 9.

Mr. Book originally finished reading this on May 29, 2024.

[Dottie Resnick · Rating 5 out of 5]

What is surprising to me is the extent of corruption that has occurred and the fact that it has occurred for so many decades. It is disgraceful and disgusting that people who are supposedly “respectable public servants” have chosen to be so concerned with their own interests rather than the people they represent. It has become clear that hoodwinking is the norm and not the exception. Truly an eye opening book, extensively researched and written in a clear and comprehensive manner.

[Marjorie · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Carmen Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tbh I’m sad because the people who need to read this either can’t or won’t. Seeing that DJT is rinsing and repeating almost to a T what has been going on for decades is honestly wild though. Whew 😮‍💨

[Amanda Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

My brain got caught up on the emollient words and the vision of Newt Gingrich being defenestrated. Nazi is the new commie. Bottom line: stop giving money to grifters, and stop using the automatic synonym generator.

[John Schorg · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a well-researched book that provides ample detail about the changes in a political movement that have made it a feeding ground for those who care only about gaining power and, above all, lining their own pockets. If it generates less than the highest praise, well...
This is part of the growing number of books about our political climate that seems content to preach to the already converted. Those who do provide their money to support these dubious causes are routinely described in these pages as rubes, marks, and suckers, and that's it. The author doesn't seem the slightest bit interested in talking to these rubes, marks, and suckers, which means this is an incomplete portrait of a serious problem.

[Kyle Jamison · Rating 1 out of 5]

Was hoping for an outside prospective. Thought some of it may have been valuable... but the author is so incredibly biased I can't trust anything he writes without further inspection. In fact, derived from his bias hypocrisy becomes prevalent. He then mimics the very thing he seeks to idealistically despise.

An example of this from a high level. He calls out several people as conspiracy theorists for connecting dots between deaths of individuals and "Theorized" perpetrators. He then directly does the exact same thing. He alludes to the death of an individual as suspicious and calls out individuals by name. Never directly saying they were responsible but alluding to it all the same. What is the difference here?

He is so very quick to point out the faults and flaws of the republican party. Grouping all republicans into one nice, neat basic basket of idiots ready to throw their money away. Providing no nuanced perspective at all. No growth, no thought. This is just a book built around pushing the exact same thought process of whomever is most likely to read it. And to confirm any of their thoughts, feeling and desires. Ironically, this is probably one of the most polarizing and divisive perspectives a person can take in politics. One, in which only one party can win and the rest are bumbling idiots destined to destroy all ways of life. This certainly makes it easier to justify any wrong doing of their own party or leaders. Or justify the active silencing of said idiots through government intervention. Idk something like putting an FBI office in twitter to reduce conservative media.

[Craig McGraw · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book should be read by all Americans but won’t because people will say it is prejudiced against conservatives and Republicans. It is frightening the extent of the cons run on people. Barnum was right- a sucker is born every minute!

[Girard Bowe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Details how some conservatives and religious figures have weaponized anti-communism, anti-semitism, anti-government hatred, racial hatred, and xenophobia to prey on the fears of the ignorant to get them to part with their money, not to mention enacting self-serving legislation. Conason begins in the 50s, with McCarthy's Red Scare and ends, of course, with Donald Trump. The through-lines runs from Roy Cohn to Roger Stone and Trump.

Nothing really new here, although I learned more about some of the lesser-known cons and grifters. A worthy read for those who want to know how the Republican party has devolved.

My biggest complaint is about the notes and sourcing. Each chapter has its set of endnotes, but there are no footnotes, so none of the citations is linked to a particular part of the text, which makes the endnotes maddeningly useless. Also, there are persons in the text who are not listed in the index. I don't understand why, in 2024, some books don't do a better job of footnoting and indexing. The technology should make this easy.

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did not like this book. It was just too sensational-feeling to me. The author seems to be a good journalist from what I can tell, and I have great respect for George Conway, who wrote the forward, but whether there were just too many facts thrown out or the lack of references to where the facts were found, it just threw me off. I don’t disagree agree with the author’s conclusions, but just felt like it was too cursory in its presentation to feel truly credible.

[Pat Herndon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gives a very good overview of 70 years of grifting and conniving on the national stage. America is certainly not better because of it. Innocent people have been swindled and lost everything due to greedy people who besides wanting fame & fortune also want to peddle influence. They are so very despicable.

[Lori · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s hopeful to learn that many con artists and grifters get caught in the end. But many don’t. Would have preferred less focus on religious grifters and more on Bush 1 and Bush 2 who look like choirboys next to Trump. Lies about nuclear weapons, Halliburton isn’t even mentioned. Disappointing

[Stephanie Turner · Rating 5 out of 5]

This made me so mad because it was so good. There are definitely other books and podcasts about most of the grifters mentioned in here that would go into more lengthly detail, but this truly covered everyone you can think of with relevance to the happenings of today despite being published nearly a year ago.

[J.J. Lair · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve read so many books like this in the past year. I even went back to ensure that I haven’t read this before. That can be the most disappointing or annoying thing about this. The information is already out there and yet, here we are.
Give the book time because when it gets into the people, the author gets clearer and better.
We start decades ago. The story of Roy Cohn was interesting. I didn’t know the name Viguerie before. The influence of Goldwater and Billy James Hargis was a revelation for me. The Falwell family are all disgusting. I knew that, but how do they continue to have followers and people that send them money?
It’s a wonder that Republicans aren’t enraged by the grifters that used them. Most of the most vile were Republicans that ripped off other Republicans.
The author describes grifters like we all know it. Whatever reason, media, resources, gossip, people don’t realize what sleezebags are in politics.

And then we get to Donald Trump and his many scams. I didn’t understand the NFT scams as told by Nightly News and here he describes it. He explains why Truth Social isn’t a thing. Again Nightly News dropped the ball on that.
The author makes it sound like this is obvious, but no media, Congress or anything calls these grifters out for what they are.

[Charles Wagner · Rating 4 out of 5]

A massive rogues gallery of suspects so multitudinous I cannot, nor do I want to, remember them all. As always, hatred of jews, people “of color,” homosexuals, communist, Democrats, non-Pentecostals, and the like fuels the fires of “conservatism,” and money grabbing.
Hatred is just an excellent tool for trolling in conservatives voters… and their money. Doncha just love hatred in politics? And, the media: Isn’t it great that most of the media is owned by billionaires who do not like real people at all? Thanks to Reagan’s dumping of the Fairness Act, so they can say anything they want.
“The penchant for stoking distrust of traditional American institutions proved to be an enduring moneymaker and remains a pervasive theme on the right, which today targets not just Democrats , diplomats, and academics but schoolteachers, scientists, doctors, Hollywood stars, Girl Scouts, and ultimately even FBI agents.” P. 34
The really big questions is why America is not more f@@@@d up than it is after the insidious grifting hard labors of so many whackos for such a long time. Yes, that’s correct. It could be worse.
To be perfectly blunt, fundraisers, the rich, the rich’s media, organized cults, and campaign scalawags don’t got no sense of responsibility. The path to victory is paved with slander. (p. 80)
This book gives me little reason to respect humanity, either those who do it, those who believe them forever regardless of honest revelations and send them money, or those who do not pay attention or care. .
Moral of the story: Do not trust any fundraiser unless you are personally cognizant of their balance sheet.

[Dan Downing · Rating 4 out of 5]

Remember Roy Cohn? Or Richard Nixon declaring "I am not a crook"?

Mr. Conason brings back memories of those thieves, con men, and grifters, as they were. He goes on through the decades and scammers, liars, and con artists up to the present day. If, like me, you lived through those years, then this book will bring back memories for you, too. If you are a bit younger, then some of this will be new material for you. But whatever your age, eventually the narrative will reach crooks whose names you will recognize.
This is a work of history, not investigating reporting. It relates well-documented activity, much of it already enshrined in court records, all too little attested by prison time. It wraps up discussing The Big Lie, the ridiculous claim by Donald J. that he won the election.

There are many traditional Republican values, and Conservative tenants, which we would do well to be living by. None of them are evident in today's Republican Party. For instance, honesty and courage. Practically all officials of the Party have knelt to kiss Trump's feet (at least) even though they know full well he represents the antithesis of America. This is the kind of book some reviewers will say "Every citizen who cares about the country needs to read this". Today's voters, sadly, will not read it. Tomorrow's historians will find it a delightful guide.
Recommended.

[Catherine Davison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had no idea the rot had started to set in so long ago, way before I was even born the fraudsters and conmen have been laying down the groundwork that has brought us to the shocking situation we are in now. A balanced and informative read.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

A disturbing read. Joe Conason wrote a book about the grifting and cons from American conservatism. Since Trump becoming president in 2016, I have been interested in the right wing. I have read Rick Perelstein, The Right by Matthew Continetti, and Steve Kornacki's book about the politics of the 90s. This book provides more information that I lacked than the other books, not that those books are bad, but Conason's book provides more. Unfortunately, people will not read this book or not believe it. I hear from average Americans state their agreement with conservative talking points, yet they seem to not know about the scandals within the conservative movement. People fondly remember Ronald Reagan, which perplexes me, but his cabinet was full of scandals. Since he had a nice smile and was articulate, we all just forgot and looked the other way. Conason also discusses the religious right. A lot of tactics conservatives used in the past are still being used today.

I know my review is basic, but this is one you must read.

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well-researched book that details and supports EVERYTHING we’ve heard about right wing Christians, Trump, and the rest of the self entered money hungry liars who want to control the country.

[Jay · Rating 5 out of 5]

This investigation chronicles the long lamentable history of fraud and the politics of paranoia in the American right-wing movement. Since the moment Trump rode down his golden escalator and announced his candidacy (before a lobby full of paid extras posing as fans), those of us outside the conservative media bubble wondered at his appeal and how he could so completely capture the Republican party. Trump may go down in history as the greatest con man of all time, supplanting P. T. Barnum, Charles Ponzi and Bernie Madoff. Joe Conason's book tells the story of how we got here. It wasn't an overnight takeover but a long steady march over decades that finally and inevitable lead to the pinnacle of corruption and rot that is the MAGA culture.

[Don Watkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must-read! It's well-documented and an unabashed look at the depravity of the American conservative movement, which is no longer conservative in any sense of the word. I suspected much of what is documented in the book, but this is the first time I've read a thorough investigation of the unabashed mendacity of the American right wing.

[Elisabeth Watts · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book if you want to understand how we got here politically in the US.

[Gerry Welsch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well researched, well written.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

A disturbing but not surprising review of the long history of hypocrisy and manipulation by conservatives of social and moral hot buttons to gain wealth rather than create promised change.

[Kristine · Rating 5 out of 5]

For our Country and a Democracy to flourish, there needs to be room for different viewpoints. This is why we often hear of Liberal, Progressive, Moderate, or Conservative Democrats or Moderate, Conservative, or Religious Right for Republicans. If the people running under those platforms believe in their philosophy, even if others vehemently oppose that viewpoint, we are working as a Country should.

The focus of this book is on the Conservative Republican Movement. It is very well researched. If some of us are left wondering how we are at this point in our country, this book does a wonderful job lying out the facts of those who were never really tied to ideology, but were flexible as long as Money and Power came to them. Joe Conason documents that this did not start with the Trump Presidency. It shows how starting in the 1950’s, Fear Tactics mostly about Communism were severe threats to our democracy. Using Threats to Safety is quite an effective strategy and beginning with Direct Mail, there was always someone to ask for money stopping the threat. Sadly, most of the time it never went to the causes it promised. Then with the Internet it became even easier to Swindle people out of their money. Since, the Conservative Party tends to be more anti-government, it made it easier to target these individuals. As the decades go by, The Religious Right comes into play, but this is the time when Mega Church Leaders who used Their own Charisma and Charm promoted a New Religion that promised Wealth. The targeting to Working Class People and the Tea Party begins to form. It is founded on Anti-Intellectualism and a Distaste for Politicians. Common Sense Politics start taking hold. The Point here is whatever held a little truth and conjured Terror among people willing to give money, many Unscrupulous People were happy to exploit that and get rich. Further, Entertainment News and Serious Journalism were crossing over more frequently.

Trump was on the Apprentice, a Reality TV Show, so not a Real Politician, but someone people remembered. He didn’t follow Conservative Ideology. Neither did the people he had work for him. Yet, that TV Fame and Showmanship Mirrored the TV Evangelicalism certain Born Again Christians knew well. Even as their leaders fell from grace, there were those who stepped in and offered Donald Trump as a New Savior.

He would Make America Great Again. Except, sadly he has not. He and most of the individuals around him will lie, cheat, steal, or go along with whatever provides huge payoffs for themselves. So, we are left with millions of Americans who feel the entire government operates like this and this spreads more cynicism and distrust. Decency, Honesty, and Integrity are seen as Naive. Greedy Individuals are running the Republican Party without even basic guidelines, let alone a Moral Ideology. This is quite dangerous. It has already led to unconscionable acts. This will continue unless our nation starts to really look at the facts. Joe Conason certainly lays those out here. Certainly, made me think and hope to see a return to expectations of decency to prevail.

Thank you NetGalley, Joe Conason, and St. Martin’s Press for a copy of this book. I always leave reviews of books I read.

[Darryle B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book that is timely, relevant and spot on. As I went through this book, it sparked a lot of memories and issues I've known for some time when I used to be a member of this party (until I educated myself about the truth about the party and left to become an independent voter).

The Republican Party not only died in 2015 with the nomination of the con man convict Cheeto Boy, but took its own life along with any morals, ethics, values and principles it pretended to stand on with a round right in the mouth and exploded out the backside of the Republican Party's head. What exactly is "conservatism" and what exactly do they supposedly "conserve"? Are those merely empty words that make it easy for con men to pitch their grifting of the American people by pretending to be something they're not?

Truth be told, the Republican Party had been eroding for quite some time throughout its history. When looking at its overall history as the so-called "Party of Lincoln", there is not really much it can hang its hat on with regards to doing much that have benefitted the American people as a whole. Perhaps whatever it was supposed to stand for died with Lincoln and his successor Andrew Johnson who reversed any progress made by Lincoln following his assassination. The Republican compromise of 1877 ending reconstruction following the Civil War and allowing the South to enact Jim Crow/Segregation laws make that abundantly clear.

It raises the question that Lincoln ending the Civil War the atrocities of human enslavement in America are the only contributions of the Republican Party this entire time? No wonder it was so easy for the "Dixiecrats", white supremacists, domestic terrorists like the Klan, religious cultists and religious nationalist nutjobs disguised as "Christian" and hate groups to migrate to the party after the dismantling of Jim Crow/Segregation and the passing of the Civil Right Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Anyone who takes the time to heavily scrutinize the history of the Republican Party after Lincoln's assassination would quickly realize that the GOP made itself vulnerable to grifters, swindlers, frauds and the aforementioned hate groups throughout the course of its history. They had just as much of an opportunity to lead the way toward initiatives and progress to benefit ALL Americans but chose not to.

With the rise of the convicted felon returning to power and escaping justice for his crimes by hiding behind the presidency (something that normal, thinking people will never understand) the Republican Party has become seat of enabled criminality and grifting for him comes natural as he continues to con America.

Sadly, the story of the longest con does not end here. It's ongoing as we have another four years of grifting to come with "conservatism" and all of those other empty labels they use. This book is highly recommended.