With the election of George W. Bush and the tragedy of September 11, 2001, a new vision of America arose. America would now use its military power to reshape world politics, crush tyrannical regimes, and establish “democracies” in their place. On the domestic front, there would no longer be any question of reducing the size of the federal government. The only question now was whether government growth would be merely big or gigantic. When traditional conservatives like myself voted for Bush in 2000, we had no idea that this policy agenda would be in effect just two years into the Bush administration. Many of us who had lived abroad had a growing concern about the anti-American feeling around the world. It was therefore with delight that we heard candidate Bush speak of a “humbler” foreign policy and of reducing U.S. forces overseas. We also anticipated that the new administration would embrace conservative objectives such as tax cuts, smaller government, fiscal responsibility, a balanced budget, protection of individual rights, and support for state and local governments. None of this has happened. In a book that challenges both liberal and conservative philosophies, author David Alan Black reveals how Bush’s religious convictions fail to justify his unconstitutional vision of government and argues that only by seceding from “compassionate conservatism” can Americans staunch the nation’s slide into totalitarianism.