Master Plan: The Hidden Plot To Legalize Corruption In America

For decades, a shadowy network of corporate elites, political operatives, and Supreme Court justices has worked behind the scenes to dismantle campaign finance laws and rig the system in favor of the ultra-wealthy. Master Plan uncovers the hidden history of how unrestrained money and influence have transformed the United States into a full-fledged kleptocracy — where policy is bought, elections are manipulated, and corruption operates in plain sight.

Based on the award-winning investigative podcast from The Lever, journalist David Sirota and producer Jared Jacang Maher trace this blueprint back to a little-known memo written by future Supreme Court Justice Lewis Powell. With newly unearthed documents and gripping storytelling, they reveal how this manifesto became a roadmap for dismantling democracy — one that corporate leaders implemented at secret meetings in places like Disney World, that inspired wealthy anti-government radicals like Joseph Coors to fund the Heritage Foundation, and that paved the way for operatives like Roger Ailes to build Fox News. From Nixon’s Watergate cover-up to the Citizens United ruling and today’s dark-money super PACs, Master Plan exposes the calculated efforts to use wealth to control political leaders and legalize corruption at every level of government.

With the 2024 election marking the most expensive in U.S. history, the Supreme Court enabling corruption, and Elon Musk openly seizing government functions, this book arrives at a crucial moment — just as Project 2025 and a second Trump presidency aim to enact the final phase of this 50-year plan.

With expanded reporting and exclusive materials not included in the podcast, Master Plan is the definitive history of how America’s democracy was hijacked — and what can still be done to reclaim it.

David Sirota is a journalist and bestselling author based in Colorado. He is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Lever, a reader-supported investigative news outlet. Sirota served as a senior adviser and speechwriter for Bernie Sanders's 2020 presidential campaign. His collaboration with director Adam McKay on Netflix's Don't Look Up earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Screenplay and a 2022 Writers Guild Award. Sirota has written three previous books: Hostile Takeover, The Uprising, and Back to Our Future. He lives in Denver with his wife, Emily, and their two children.

Jared Jacang Maher is a writer and producer specializing in long-form storytelling and investigative reporting across print, video, and audio. His work has earned an Emmy for documentary filmmaking, multiple James Beard Awards, and a 2024 National Press Club Award for excellence in audio journalism. He is currently a producer at The Lever and lives in Denver with his wife and four children. Master Plan is his first book.