Author, journalist, and Wall Street expert Nomi Prins examines the effects of Republican policies, scandals, and blunders by conducting a guided tour of a typical American wallet. Each chapter matches a wallet item to a set of political topics.

The driver’s license leads to a discussion of gasoline prices, energy policy, and Iraq; the Social Security card leads out to the administration’s efforts to “reform” Social Security by weakening it; the credit card points to bankruptcy legislation and credit card company profits; the health insurance card is a reminder of soaring medical and insurance costs, and the cutting of Medicaid and Medicare, and so on.

Crisscrossing the country to gather the personal experiences of a wide variety of Americans, Prins tells their stories, shows them trying to make ends meet, and questions why the government is failing them. Taken together, these lively, accessible chapters link the “conservative” record to its disastrous effects on ordinary people and tell us what we can do about it.

Nomi Prins is a journalist and a senior fellow at Demos, a public policy think tank based in New York City. Before becoming a journalist, she served as a managing director for Goldman Sachs in New York and ran the analytics group at Bear Stearns in London.

Her previous book, Other People’s Money: The Corporate Mugging of America, was chosen as a Best Book of 2004 by The Economist, Barron’s, Library Journal, and The Progressive. Her articles have appeared in the New York Times, Newsday, Fortune, The Guardian, and The Left Business Observer. Her bi-weekly column appears in La Vanguardia, a Spanish newspaper. She has appeared as a television commentator on CNBC and the BBC, and she is a frequent guest on Marketplace Radio, Air America, CNN Radio, and many NPR affiliates. She lives in New York City.

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“This is the first book I have read that sees the effects of Republican incompetence and meanness through the eyes of ordinary Americans. The people in this book are our thoughtful, hardworking neighbors who are not political, and who do not, for the most part, rail against Bush. They are simply trying to get through the day. Jacked is, in an odd way, uplifting. The real message here is that America is indeed a great country whose major malady is bad leadership.”
—Howard Dean, chairman, Democratic National Committee

“Nomi Prins is my favorite economic hit woman. Jacked is a lesson in economic realpolitik that, if citizens take it to heart, will empower us to grab our country back before the rightwing wrecking crew destroys not just the American dream but America itself.”
—John Nichols, author of The Genius of Impeachment

“Taking us on a compelling journey deep into Bush’s America, Nomi Prins shows that for many Americans, the devastating reality of the Administration’s policies is a life full of indignities and soaring debt-without pensions, medical care, or adequate housing. This is what happens when America’s safety net is replaced by massive tax cuts for the rich.”
—Craig Unger, author of House of Bush, House of Saud

“In this highly acessible and eye-opening book, Prins exposes the hidden political battle being waged in our wallets. Jacked revives the notion of pocketbook politics–and we’re all the better for it.”
—Tamara Drault, author of Strapped