"John Perkins's books have helped me better understand why so many resource-rich countries in the developing world have remained steadfastly poor."Sting
The Art of the Steal
Trump and the Economic Hit Man Presidency
The sequel to Confessions of an Economic Hit Man reveals how the playbook came home.
Why It Matters
A field guide to how power sells the deal
Since World War II, US presidents of both parties have used economic hit man strategies - fear, debt, anxiety over insufficiency, and divide and conquer tactics - to amass resources, control other nations, and enrich a growing oligarchy. In The Art of the Steal, John Perkins reveals its most dangerous evolution.
Donald Trump is the first US president to turn economic hit man strategies into a personal brand and governing style. He brought the playbook home and reversed America's march toward liberty, equality, justice, and democracy, forcing what was hidden into the open.
Both warning and blueprint, this book shows how it happened, why it matters, and what each of us can do to renew the American Ideal and shape a new global one.
The Playbook
The four pillars
In The Art of the Steal, Perkins describes in detail four reinforcing strategies that economic hit men use to build dependency and control.
- 01Fear
- Fear is leverage. It convinces leaders to sign predatory deals and binds populations to the systems that exploit them.
- 02Debt
- Debt is not only financial. It is perception and a state of mind: a person in debt is a person controlled.
- 03Anxiety over insufficiency
- Anxiety begins with language. Convince people or nations they lack enough, then sell dependency as rescue.
- 04Divide and conquer
- A united population asks questions and organizes resistance. A divided population creates dependency.
Praise for John's books
"Resonates with my experiences of the brutish methods and gross economic irrationality guiding powerful institutions in their bid to undermine democratic control over economic power."Yanis Varoufakis, former Minister of Finance, Greece
"Perkins's engaging narrative draws us into a brilliant analysis of capitalism's shadow side and points us to a hopeful path to a better future."Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence
"John Perkins has been in and out of the world of high finance and low ethics... He not only illuminates that world with dramatic stories and keen insights, but suggests what we might do to create a better society."Howard Zinn, author of A People's History of the United States
Pre-Order
Order before release
Pre-order now from your preferred bookseller and read the follow-up to Confessions of an Economic Hit Man as soon as it is released.
For readers of Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
This is the follow-up for readers who want the next question answered: what happens when the machinery Perkins described overseas starts shaping life at home?
Explore supporting themes and references