let me give perlstein and "newsweek," you know, something. the something is this. the gist of the article, bill, was about the split in the republican party over sarah palin. i think it's more than a split by the way. i think it's a civil war. on one side you have a conservatives who think that anything sarah palin does is great. she does a bad interview with katie couric, that must be katie couric's fault. she delivers a resignation speech that you would need the rosetta stone, you know, to figure out what she was talking about, and they compare it to the gettysburg address. and, on the other side, you have the intellectual conservatives. and these two sides better figure out. they better come to some. bill: they are butting heads over sarah palin. peggy noonan leading the charge. charles krauthammer. >> krauthammer, right. bill: i understand it. that's a legitimate story to cover. >> that's all i'm saying. let me mention the illegitimate part because it's what you suggested. the illegitimate part and it's what liberals do, how they caricature conservatives. they

let me give perlstein and "newsweek," you know, something. the something is this.the gist of the article, bill, was about the split in the republican party over sarah palin. i think it's more than a split by the way. i think it's a civil war. on one side you have a conservatives who think that anything sarah palin does is great. she does a bad interview with katie couric, that must be katie couric's fault. she delivers a resignation speech that you would need the rosetta stone, you know, to figure out what she was talking about, and they compare it to the gettysburg address. and, on the other side, you have the intellectual conservatives. and these two sides better figure out. they better come to some. bill: they are butting heads over sarah palin. peggy noonan leading the charge. charles krauthammer. >> krauthammer, right. bill: i understand it. that's a legitimate story to cover. >> that's all i'm saying. let me mention the illegitimate part because it's what you suggested. the illegitimate part and it's what liberals do, how they caricature conservatives. they p

. >> rick perlstein, author of nixonland. >> thank you. >> coming up next, book tv presents afterward, an hour-long program where we invite guest host to interview authors. this week pulitzer prize winning author of "monkey girl," edward humes discusses his latest book, "eco barons." mr. humes greatly acclaimed story reveals the unique efforts of a few individuals who he says are trying to help save the planet. mr. humes discusses his book with ucla environmental economics professor, matthew kahn. >> hello. i matthew kahn, and we are here today to talk about "eco barons: the dreamers, schemers, and millionaires who are saving our planet." i'm delighted to be here today with edward humes. welcome. >> thank you very much. >> start by not. why did you write this book? >> well, i think i share this with a lot of people i know that the news about our environment, the very crises we face from global warming, dying oceans and fossil fuel dependence has become overwhelming. even paralyzed. if you saw any convenient truth i sort of walk with my shoulder slumped in my head down and wondering wh

. >> rick perlstein, author of "nixonland," what he reading? >> i am reading the culture of narcissism, which is a classic book that came out in 1979, a surprise bestseller even though it is a very piece of intellectual argumentation, supposedly read by president carter and supposedly in formed a speech he gave in which argued that america was suffering from this crisis of confidence, and i am reading it because i'm doing research on the 1970's for my next book. >> what are you learning from it? >> a lot about psychoanalysis and object relations theory and there is like melody klein. it is a very tense and difficult work. even though with a bestseller i can imagine too many people read it. >> for descriptions of our programs log on to booktv.org. you can click on the viewer input tab and e-mail us, tell us what you are reading and what you think of our programs. >> elizabeth and michael norman recount the conflict of the bataan peninsula in the philippines. america's first large-scale land battle of world war ii from january to april of 1942. 7

i think he is a better man on that 27 rick perlstein author of it "nixonland". >>host: and donald critchlow the author of the "the conservative ascendency" are conservative still in the ascendancy? >>guest: you have probably heard about this. i think this is the worst time for conservatives at least since watergate and i think maybe compared to the republican of the new deal with so there are very tough stakes right now. >>host: as a conservative, what is your prescription to get out of that rut? >> one thing that i discuss in "the conservative ascendency" is the fortunes of conservatives in the republican party. what we learn is every time the left is primarily within the democratic party has counted out the conservatives they come roaring back often through the misfortune of democrats. i don't think conservatives should be given up hope. they may still have the opportunity. >>host: when you hear the term modern conservative movement what do you think and who do think of? >>guest: it is a movement that is really quite diverse within its own grouping and i think

perlstein, i read nixonland it was a great pleasure despite the subject matter.t was not without a sense of humor, black humor of course but anyway, i was muhlstock by reading the book, there were many references to liberal republicans, conservative democrats. those are not phrases you hear any more. >> like the seiberg elephant. >> it is just kind of like, if you can maybe clarify kind of what, how again you don't hear these words and are these people just cynical opportunists, are they true believers? your conservative conservatives, your liberal liberals but like you said-- it is very fascinating and the whole structure understood ideology and has shifted over basically the period of richard nixon and ronald reagan. the way people were terrified, pundits and experts, people wrote editorials. i like to say the david berger's of the day but of course they were david broder. [laughter] we are terrified of the idea of passions running away with us and the reason for that was because they had known the experience of fascism and they had known the experience of your