You think 2020 is momentous? Before there was Coronavirus, before there was even a whisper of a Trump presidency, there was a turning point year. That year was 2000, the last year of America’s unchallenged geopolitical dominance. It marked the high point of the first internet boom, the beginning of the real estate bubble, and the year Mark Burnett created Survivor. But the year 2000 is also the moment when the authority of the political system was undermined by technical malfunctions and the ruthless maneuvers that allowed the Bush operation to pull off an electoral heist. The authority of the legal system was compromised by the justices of the Supreme Court, who revealed themselves to be naked partisans beneath their robes. The authority of the Department of Justice was attacked by conservatives, who saw it as a corrupted tool of President Clinton. The authority of the financial system was devalued by deregulation, speculation, creative securitization and scam artistry. The authority of the mainstream news media was destabilized by the propaganda power of Fox News and the supercharged speed of the Internet. The authority of tastemakers, gatekeepers and cultural elites—all the components of the nebulous institution known as the Establishment—was diminished by a dawning recognition of its irrelevance. The authority of American economic and military power, as represented by the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, was about to be toppled by 19 men with an unthinkable plan. Expertly synthesizing many hours of interviews, court records, FOIA requests, and original archival research, Rice marshals an impressive cast of dupes, schmucks, superstars, politicians, and scoundrels. THE YEAR 2000 is the definitive chronicle of a cultural watershed. Back at the start of the new millennium it was easy to roll our eyes about Florida’s role in determining the future of America. But the joke was on us – we all live in Florida now.