One Nation Under Sex: How The Private Lives Of Presidents, First Ladies And Their Lovers Changed The Course Of American History

Description

Ben Franklin saved the American Revolution by seducing French women. A gay love affair between President James Buchanan and Senator William King aided the secession movement. And lesbian relationships inspired Eleanor Roosevelt to become a revolutionary crusader for equal rights. The sex lives of America's leaders have influenced social movements, government policies, elections, and even wars, yet they are so whitewashed by historians that people think Thomas Jefferson and Abe Lincoln were made of marble, not flesh and blood. But the truth is about to come out. In One Nation Under Sex, free speech activist and notorious Hustler magazine publisher Larry Flynt teams up with Columbia University history professor David Eisenbach to peek behind the White House bedroom curtains and document how hidden passions have shaped public life. They unpack salacious rumors and outright scandals, showing how private affairs have driven pivotal decisions--often with horrific consequences. Along the way, they explore the origins of America's fascination with sex scandals and explain how we can put aside our political moralism and begin focusing on the real problems that threaten our nation.

Reviews

"Well reasoned, well written, and well documented."--"Booklist"

"Those looking for salacious details will find them, but Flynt and Eisenbach favor analysis over sensationalism, providing a new perspective of the men and women who have shaped our nation."--"Publishers Weekly"

"Dig into the unwholesome side of American history to uncover how the sexual peccadilloes of the men we elect have transformed the world for good and ill."--"The Stranger""Only liars will pretend that this book isn't absolutely fascinating."--"Buffalo News" "Presidential hanky-panky is as old as the nation itself. But no one can bring it to life quite like Larry Flynt."--Steven E. Levingston, "Washington Post"

"The book is unapologetic, assertive, and sure to be controversial."--"The Philadelphia Inquirer""" "It is amazing that this inherently salacious subject could be treated in such a thoughtful and documented fashion, scholarly even, and yet be such a great read."--Robert Scheer, author of "The Great American Stickup"

"Americans often like to think that extramarital sex - or even a strong libido - is somehow a sign of poor character in our presidents. "One Nation Under Sex" explodes that myth. From Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson onward, our most respected leaders have always engaged in bedroom behavior that would outrage the cultural commissars--at no harm to the republic. You don't have to agree with all of Larry Flynt's and David Eisenbach's readings of history to enjoy this sex-filled tour through more than 200 years of scandal."--David Greenberg, presidential historian, Rutgers University, and author of "Nixon's Shadow"

"Larry Flynt has waged a lifelong battle against hypocrisy and prudery: shattering every propriety and slaughtering every sacred cow. The political classes have never been safe from his special brand of satire. Now he turns his rabble-rousing sensibility backwards with a similar imperative. No more whitewashing! Smash decorum! Bring down the elites!"--La

Author description

LARRY FLYNT is the legendary publisher of Hustler magazine and has been a famous crusader for First Amendment and privacy rights for over three decades. His landmark Supreme Court case, Hustler Magazine v. Falwell, is taught in law schools throughout the United States. He lives in Los Angeles, USA. DAVID EISENBACH, PHD, is Professor of American History at Columbia University, USA, as well as the creator, writer, and host of the two-hour History Channel special, The Beltway Unbuckled, about how presidential sex shaped American history. His first book, Gay Power: An American Revolution, won the ALA 2007 Stonewall Honor Book award. He lives in New York City.

Table of contents

Introduction Founding Flirts and Fornicators Sex and the Civil War Affairs of State The Ballad of Franklin and Eleanor America's Sex Czar The Nude Frontier Sex, Death and the Kennedys The Full Bill Clinton Conclusion: Fulfilling the Pledge