Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) examines the state of U.S. politics, culture, and life in his latest book, released Tuesday, becoming the latest possible 2028 presidential hopeful to unveil his vision for the country. Murphy’s book, Crisis of the Common Good, argues the common good is currently missing in the country because there is an emphasis on living for oneself while lacking strength in community. “I think for all the focus on Donald Trump and the news of the day, people in this country know there is a deeper story in this country, and that is we are a less connected culture today,” Murphy said on ABC’s Good Morning America. “We are a less happy nation than we’ve been in for a long time, and that is because we have lost, what I call in the book, a common good.”
The book uses history and political philosophy to examine how six different “cults” contributed to the nation’s current problems.
The six “cults” Murphy names are profit that punishes workers, globalism that weakens communities, technology that turns us against one another and poisons our young, consumption that undermines citizenship, credentialism that devalues those without degrees, and corruption that threatens democracy.
Based on these troubles, Murphy argues that Americans lost a sense of “daily purpose” and connection, leading them to become anxious and adrift. Murphy accuses President Donald Trump of “feeding off” this “emptiness” to get power.
