A seasoned reporter and gifted story teller, Goldberg offers a rare insider's portrait of the people, the institutions, the money, and the ideas that make up Jewish political influence in the United States, from the Anti-Defamation League to the United Jewish Appeal, to The New York Times, to the informal Jewish caucus in the House of Representatives. Blunt and unsentimental, Goldberg confronts some of the toughest issues raised by this influence.

He details the absolutely vital role Jews play in Democratic party politics and fund-raising. He describes the inner workings of the feared pro-Israel lobby, its stormy relations with other Jewish groups, and its surprising role in shaping American foreign policy.

And he tackles the thorny questions of Jewish media influence, starting with the thorniest: Why do the media so often appear to non-Jews as a base of Jewish influence, and to Jews as an anti-Jewish force? "They cannot both be true," he writes, "And yet, to a great degree, they are.".

With a mixture of anecdote and analysis, Goldberg shows how the Jewish establishment operates, names its players, and describes the political and religious feuds that divide it. He details its agenda, from foreign aid to affirmative action and school prayer, and describes the Jewish leaders' shifting alliances with other groups; the black community, the Republican right, the state of Israel.

And he warns of a growing alienation between the Jewish establishment and the six million American Jews who are its "presumed constituency."