It's Time to Fight Dirty: How Democrats Can Build a Lasting Majority in American Politics

An accessible, actionable blueprint for how Democrats can build lasting, durable change—without having to amend the Constitution.

“American democracy could disappear altogether within our own lifetimes. Everyone who wants to avoid that catastrophe must read his book.​” —Guardian
 
The American electoral system is clearly falling apart—more than one recent presidential race has resulted in the clear winner of the popular vote losing the electoral college vote, and Trump’s refusal to concede in 2020 broke with all precedents…at least for now. Practical solutions need to be implemented as soon as possible. And so in It’s Time to Fight Dirty, political scientist David Faris outlines accessible, actionable strategies for American institutional reform which don’t require a constitutional amendment, and would have a lasting impact on our future.
 
With equal amounts of playful irreverence and persuasive reasoning, Faris describes how the Constitution’s deep democratic flaws constantly put progressives at a disadvantage, and lays out strategies for “fighting dirty” though obstructionism and procedural warfare: establishing statehood for DC and Puerto Rico; breaking California into several states; creating a larger House of Representatives; passing a new voting rights act; and expanding the Supreme Court.
 
The Constitution may be the world’s most difficult document to amend, but Faris argues that many of America’s democratic failures can be fixed within its rigid confines—and, at a time when the stakes have never been higher, he outlines a path for long-term, progressive change in the United States so that the electoral gains of 2020 aren’t lost again.

David Faris is the author of Dissent and Revolution in a Digital Age: Social Media, Blogging and Activism in Egypt, the co-editor of Social Media in Iran: Politics and Society after 2009, and a regular contributor to The Week. He is associate professor of political science at Roosevelt University in Chicago.