Invisible Hands: The Making of the Conservative Movement from the New Deal to Reagan

Kimberly Phillips-Fein
(W.W. Norton & Co., 2009)

      In response to implementation of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal, a handful of prominent American businessmen forged alliances with the aim of rolling back FDR’s initiatives, launching the American conservative movement in the process. In Invisible Hands: The Making of the Conservative Movement from the New Deal to Reagan, Kimberly Phillips-Fein chronicles how American conservatism began long before the rise of the “culture wars” in the 1960s.
      Phillips-Fein identifies these business executives, including General Electric’s Lemuel Ricketts Boulware and Jasper Crane of DuPont, as well as the key economists and think tanks that articulated a clear message that convinced large segments of voters to shift from liberal to conservative.
      Phillips-Fein is an assistant professor at NYU’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study and a 2008-09 NYU Humanities Initiative fellow.