One of our most controversial economic prognosticators offers a critical expose of the "revolutionary" economic ideas on both sides of the political aisle

In 1987, Ravi Batra held a mirror up to the American economy and predicted financial doom in The Great Depression of 1990. The book spurred national debate and sold one and half million copies, spending a full year on The New York Times Bestseller List. Surviving the Great Depression of 1990 came a year later and met with similar success. Now, in Quiet Crisis in America, Batra is at his most controversial best once again.

In a book sure to spark media scrutiny, Batra takes on the latest economic ideas of Bill Clinton, Newt Gingrich, Bob Dole, Dick Armey, Jack Kemp, and others. Caught up in the fever of election year rhetoric, this group offers the American public a wide range of ideas meant to address the economic concerns of the day. Batra tackles their ideas one by one, arguing that they claim no historical backing, are often based on flimsy logic, and not only won't solve the problem but might make it worse.

From the failed notion of trickle down economics to the dangerous consequences of our shift from a manufacturing to a service economy, Batra unravels the mysteries and failed logic behind today's economic ideas and probes the reason why a majority of Americans still feel the pinch of making ends meet even in light of the most promising economic numbers in decades. He then makes a strong case for a plan that stimulates the economy by restricting imports and increasing tariffs.

• Charts the drastic effects of NAFTA on wage decline and job loss



• Shows how imposing higher taxes on the wealthy will stimulate not stifle the economy



• Reveals why the flat tax will not work

RAVI BATRA (Dallas, Texas) is a professor of international economics at Southern Methodist University. Batra has built a reputation for plain speaking analysis of our economy and its successes and failures.