Includes bibliographical references (p. 351-421) and index.

Part I. 1770-1880 : the struggle for natural liberty. A philosophical primer ; A constitutional overview of the duty to defend and the power to wage successful war ; National security in the Revolutionary War era ; The Civil War and Reconstruction eras -- Part II. 1900-1946 : the noble liars. Turn-of-the-century America : the Wilson administration and World War I ; The World War II era : the freedom of speech and power over property ; The World War II era : Quirin and the Japanese cases -- Part III. 1947-present : the long wars. The Cold War : the Truman years, the Korean conflict, and the second Red Scare ; The Cold War : the civil war in Vietnam ; Before 9/11 : America and global terror from 1980-2001 ; The George W. Bush administration : the Global War on Terror and privacy in the post-9/11 world ; The George W. Bush administration : render and torture ; The George W. Bush administration : the right to trial ; The Obama administration : a midterm review of the Middle East, torture, and trials ; The Obama administration : a midterm review of exponentially expanded drone intervention and privacy attacks.

Argues that America has been transformed into a surveillance state with an increasing loss of personal freedoms and traces this decline through history, beginning with colonial rule all the way to the current war on terrorism. --Publisher's description.