E.J. Dionne, Jr.

Harvard Book Store welcomes E.J. DIONNE, JR.—Washington Post columnist and professor in the Foundations of Democracy and Culture at Georgetown University—for a discussion of his latest book, Code Red: How Progressives and Moderates Can Unite to Save Our Country. He will be joined in conversation by renowned legal scholar MARTHA MINOW.

About Code Red

Will progressives and moderates feud while America burns? Or will these natural allies take advantage of the greatest opportunity since the New Deal Era to strengthen American democracy, foster social justice, and turn back the threats of the Trump Era?

The United States stands at a crossroads. Broad and principled opposition to Donald Trump’s presidency has drawn millions of previously disengaged citizens to the public square and to the ballot boxes. This inspired and growing activism for social and political change hasn’t been seen since the days of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal policies and the Progressive and Civil Rights movements. But if progressives and moderates are unable—and unwilling—to overcome their differences, they could not only enable Trump to prevail again but also squander an occasion for launching a new era of reform.

In Code Red, award-winning journalist E. J. Dionne, Jr., calls for a shared commitment to decency and a politics focused on freedom, fairness, and the future, encouraging progressives and moderates to explore common ground and expand the unity that brought about Democrat victories in the 2018 elections. He offers a unifying model for furthering progress with a Politics of Remedy, Dignity, and More: one that solves problems, resolve disputes, and moves forward; that sits at the heart of the demands for justice by both long-marginalized and recently-displaced groups; and that posits a positive future for Americans with more covered by health insurance, more with decent wages, more with good schools, more security from gun violence, more action to roll back climate change.

Breaking through the partisan noise and cutting against conventional wisdom to provide a realistic look at political possibilities, Dionne offers a strategy for progressives and moderates to think more clearly and accept the responsibilities that history now imposes on them. Because at this point in our national story, change can’t wait.

Praise for Code Red

“The Washington Post columnist and NPR commentator offers a passionately reasoned argument for why both progressive and moderate wings of the Democratic Party must put aside differences to defeat Donald Trump in 2020.… A well-argued and persuasive treatise by a deeply concerned journalist and citizen.” ―Kirkus Reviews

“American political discourse is perhaps more divided than it has been at any time in the country’s history. Republicans versus Democrats, alt-right versus far left: the chasm runs wide and deep… Dionne urges progressives and moderates to find common, rather than shaky, ground for the good of the country and their party’s survival.” ―Booklist