America as a symbol
To Americans, America often represents the American dream of opportunity and growth, the principles of democracy and freedom. When times of war arise, the symbolism seems like an attack on virtue, but this kind of "good guys versus bad guys" approach only leads so far because in many cases, the militants cite American involvement in foreign affairs, often for the interests of esoteric capitalists (that is the most conspiracy-theorist slant available; another way of saying that is just that the US has economic interests abroad). The question of the book is how is America being symbolized in the rest of the world.
Effective checks and balances
The motif of checking government power is a major part of this book's argument. The checks and balances installed in the government were an attempt to shape the behavior of the government both domestically and abroad, because people had to collaborate, disagree, vote, and then implement legislation to do much of anything. However, the government has top secret operations which often go over all those checks and balances, meaning that at the top levels of power, foreign affairs are often "act first, explain things later."
The cycle
The symbol which most clearly represents Johnson's political argument is the cycle. The circular fate goes like this: The US decides (often esoterically) that there is something to be gained by committing some interference in foreign governments. That interference is remembered by hostile zealots who spread a hatred of America which has the ominous flavor of "doom." The cycle is worsened by the way attacks against America lead to more powers being given to the government to commit acts of war or espionage without oversight. The feeling of victimhood makes the public likely to support the government even when the facts suggest that something inappropriate has been done by the government. That is the argument of the book at least.
Structure and corruption
This book criticizes the structural failures of the American government to prevent esoteric military agendas being accomplished through legal loopholes in the checks and balances of the government. Also, the book paints a portrait for how economic gain often seems suspiciously linked to government actions, especially at the individual level. That suggests that politicians are accepting money from companies to further specific capitalist interests. If that kind of corruption exists, there is no doubt that it has the seeds of destruction sewn into it; Johnson fears the fall of America will come from this kind of corruption.
Paranoia as a motif
This book is an argument. That means that it has a specific agenda which is seeks to suggest, but again and again, the reader will see that Johnson is accomplishing this argument through the invocation of paranoia. By being paranoid, a person begins theorizing about conspiracies which sound reasonable, to be honest. The paranoia is a tool for speculating threat; it is threat detection and imagination together, and in this case, Johnson reminds his reader that although his claims seem paranoid, the historical data about American foreign policy speaks for itself.
