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"Hurd has the biography and the charisma and the God-given political chops to put the Republican Party—and the rest of the country—on notice." —THE ATLANTIC
It's getting harder to get big things done in America. The gears of our democracy have been mucked up by political nonsense. To meet the era-defining challenges of the 21st century, our country needs a reboot.
In American Reboot, Hurd, called "the future of the GOP" by Politico, provides a "detailed blueprint" (Robert M. Gates, Secretary of Defense, 2006–2011) for America grounded by what Hurd calls pragmatic idealism—a concept forged from enduring American values to achieve what is actually achievable.
Hurd takes on five seismic problems facing a country in crisis: the Republican Party's failure to present a principled vision for the future; the lack of honest leadership in Washington, DC; income inequality that threatens the livelihood of millions of Americans; US economic and military dominance that is no longer guaranteed; and how technological change in the next thirty years will make the advancements of the last thirty years look trivial.
Hurd has seen these challenges up close. A child of interracial parents in South Texas, Hurd survived the back alleys of dangerous places as a CIA officer. He carried that experience into three terms in Congress, where he was, for a time, the House's only Black Republican, representing a seventy-one percent Latino swing district in Texas that runs along 820 miles of the US-Mexico border. As a cyber security executive and innovation crusader, Hurd has worked with entrepreneurs on the cutting edge of technology to anticipate the shockwaves of the future.
Hurd, who the Houston Chronicles calls "a refreshing contract to the panderers, petty demagogues, and political provocateurs who reign these days," draws on his remarkable experience to present "a call to Americans to consider the most contentious issues of our times more holistically" (The Atlantic). He outlines how the Republican party can look like America by appealing to the middle, not the edges. He maps out how leaders should inspire rather than fearmonger. He forges a domestic policy based on the idea that prosperity should be a product of empowering people, not the government. He articulates a foreign policy where our enemies fear us and our friends love us. And lastly, he charts a forceful path forward for America's technological future.
We all know we can do better. It's time to hit "ctrl alt del" and start the American Reboot.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
March 29, 2022 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781982160814
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781982160814
- File size: 4927 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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September 1, 2021
Dubbed "the future of the GOP" by Politico, Hurd grew up biracial in Texas with a black father and white mother, then worked as an undercover CIA agent and served three terms in the House of Representatives, sometimes as its only Black Republican. In 2020, he decided not to run for reelection so that he could address the issues concerning him in a different way. Those issues include income inequality, rapid technological change, the need to assure U.S. economic and military power, the search for honest political leadership, and the Republican Party's failure to present a principled vision for the future. With a 75,000-copy first printing.
Copyright 2021 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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January 3, 2022
Hurd, an ex-CIA officer and former Republican congressman from Texas, calls for the Republican Party to turn away from Trumpism in this sensible if somewhat predictable account. Calling for party leaders to “appeal to people of color, female voters, and younger voters”; rebuke conspiratorial thinking; and re-embrace bipartisanship, Hurd emphasizes his own record of building political consensus by listening to constituents, no matter their party affiliation. He also critiques “bureaucratic red tape that prevents innovation”; contends that people “should move up the economic ladder through free markets, not some flavor of socialism”; and calls for a strong national defense and collaboration between the U.S. government and private sector to win the “New Cold War” with China. Though the Bush wing of the Republican Party will find much to agree with, Hurd underplays the appeal of populism among the party’s base and doesn’t fully reckon with how the electoral system helps to keep Republicans in power even without broadening their message. This well-intentioned call for change is unlikely to change minds on either the right or the left. -
January 1, 2022
Control, alt, delete: A former Texas congressman and CIA officer urges the GOP to start afresh. "When you are troubleshooting a computer problem and you can't figure out why the computer is acting weirdly," writes Hurd, "the best thing you can do is reboot." The author may have left Congress to work in artificial intelligence--a topic that occupies a big chunk of his book--but he hasn't left a Republican Party that doesn't have much room for people like him, of mixed race and moderate tendencies. Hurd believes that Trump lost the 2020 presidential race, that supporters of the Jan. 6 mob represent a clear and present danger to democracy, that climate change must be addressed, and that "our government must treat all people humanely, even ones who come here illegally." For all that, he is an orthodox Republican in thinking that the Democratic Party is furthering socialism and that the free market is sacrosanct. Hurd holds that given the former, the GOP has a fighting chance to win future elections (never mind gerrymandering and voter suppression), if only it becomes more closely attuned to the realities of a country that is steadily becoming browner, younger, and greener. That would presuppose losing its fealty to Trump, for whom he has little use (and who returned the favor). Hurd, who represented a huge district, reports on the secrets of his success among an electorate that had traditionally voted Democratic: He won by listening and being on the ground, traveling constantly from one ranch and little town to the next. He also reveals a few useful lessons of spycraft from his days in the CIA: Know where the safe places are, and know your friends and enemies--of which there are many, including China, Russia, and North Korea. Hurd's plea for a kinder, gentler GOP is well reasoned but quixotic given the party's current rabidity.COPYRIGHT(2022) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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