Undeniably, the public-interest movement fundamentally altered American politics, but calibrating its precise impact is difficult given all the cross-currents and complexities of the U.S. system of government. Such is the challenge that Sabin accepts in this book. His primary focus is on Ralph Nader since Naderism catalyzed the larger movement. With the publicity surrounding his 1965 auto safety expose, Unsafe at Any Speed: The Designed-In Dangers of the American Automobile (New York, 1965), Nader brilliantly crafted for himself the image of a selfless ascetic speaking out on behalf of ordinary Americans. He capitalized on his expanding notoriety by mobilizing resources that he used to commission reports about the incompetence and pro-business biases of the administrative state. His unique style of advocacy inspired a generation of political activists. Indeed, in 1970, one-third of the students at Harvard Law School applied to work as summer interns on Nader’s projects.
Despite Nader’s centrality,...