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Why has it been so long since an American president has effectively and consistently presented well-crafted, intellectually substantive arguments to the American public? Why have presidential utterances fallen from the rousing speeches of Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Wilson, and FDR to a series of robotic repetitions of talking points and sixty-second soundbites, largely designed to obfuscate rather than illuminate?

In The Anti-Intellectual Presidency, Elvin Lim draws on interviews with more than 40 presidential speechwriters to investigate this relentless qualitative decline, over the course of 200 years, in our presidents' ability to communicate with the public. Lim argues that the ever-increasing pressure for presidents to manage public opinion and perception has created a "pathology of vacuous rhetoric and imagery" where gesture and appearance matter more than accomplishment and fact. Lim tracks the campaign to simplify presidential discourse through presidential and speechwriting decisions made from the Truman to the present administration, explaining how and why presidents have embraced anti-intellectualism and vague platitudes as a public relations strategy. Lim sees this anti-intellectual stance as a deliberate choice rather than a reflection of presidents' intellectual limitations. Only the smart, he suggests, know how to dumb down. The result, he shows, is a dangerous debasement of our political discourse and a quality of rhetoric which has been described, charitably, as "a linguistic struggle" and, perhaps more accurately, as "dogs barking idiotically through endless nights."

Sharply written and incisively argued, The Anti-Intellectual Presidency sheds new light on the murky depths of presidential oratory, illuminating both the causes and consequences of this substantive impoverishment. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

A stomach for opposing views and appreciation for the complexities of people and events can enrich the human experience.
If the hallmarks of the intellectual are tolerance and acknowledgment of opposing views, then not many of us have these traits, or dare to show them. The complexities of one's views, or of one's person, do make good sound-bites.Indeed, one can get in trouble merely for discussing opposing viewpoints, since only those might be reported.
But the media is a mirror of ourselves, and should not be blamed for our preferences. It is us then who have become lethargic.We have neither the time nor the energy to be bothered with all the facts:"I haven't got all day, you know."
How about 15 minutes, as it might take just that long to appreciating what went on. Human affairs are not simple - notwithstanding our relentless efforts to make them so.It is only by appreciating their underlying complexity that we can understand them, and ultimately ourselves.
If as Alexander Pope said "the proper study of man is man," then it will require our lifelong effort.And there are no shortcuts to studying, as Aristotle told us long ago.

Very informative and worth your time!
I actually had the honor of being in Professor Lim's class at the University of Tulsa while he was still writing this book.He does an amazing job of pulling every argument together in a way that thoroughly explains what is going on in the political world today.Where before I read this book I knew little to nothing about politics, I was able to watch the elections in November and identify certain characteristics of each candidate that Lim explains in his book.It is a slightly difficult read to those who are not politically minded, but definitely worth your time.This book is an excellent investment.

Lim provides the proof
This book offers compelling proof that presidents have dumbed down their public speech in the last two centuries. It is one of the very few political books I've read that is not at all partisan - Lim places equal blame on Clinton as he does on Bush. Lim nevertheless makes it clear that because presidents now tell us what we want to hear rather than what we need to hear, we are headed for trouble.

Lim offers a fascinating account of how the very people who write presidential speeches also call these speeches "rose garden garbage." I especially enjoyed the chapter on speechwriters, all of whom - Republican or Democratic - complain about the fact that, as Peggy Noonan says, America's only "unstimulated organ (is) the brain." If even speechwriters complain of dumbing down, then Houston, we got a problem.

Lim does a good job of defending his case against the accusation of elitism, reminding us that when presidents dumb down, they are the ones who are being cynical. The American people deserve, and can handle better, he argues. Lim offers a particularly poignant account of President Bush's speeches on Iraq in the early months of the war, and argues that the country would have been better served if the president had been pushed to specify and demonstrate the evidence that Saddam Hussein had indeed possessed weapons of mass destruction. Instead, we allowed the president to talk us into war with such rousing, but meaningless catch-phrases as the "axis of evil." Thinking back on those years, Lim's explanation for how we were persuaded to go to war rings more true than any account I have read.

A short book that packs a lot of punch, this is a no-holds barred book on the dangers of a White House perpetually concerned with public relations. While the statistical analysis can be dry at times, Lim's wry, engaging prose (which reminds me of Christopher Hitchen's style) more than makes up for it.

A self-proclaimed intellectual demands Presidential love
So many academics consider themselves to be "intellectuals" - and most express bafflement at why they are so rejected by the public at large as well as national leaderships. The answer, of course, is that most intellectuals have nothing of value to offer. Lim quotes Lyndon Johnson, unarguably one of the great political manipulators to ever prowl the Senate halls, as saying of intellectuals: " They are "more concerned with style than they are with mortar, brick and concrete. They are more concerned with the trivia and the superficial than they are with the things that have really built America." It should be remembered that Johnson was not only college educated, but a former teacher as well. Golly, a different turn or two and he could have been a genuine intellectual!

As you can probably tell, I have little sympathy for Lim's argument. Contrary to Lim, Presidential rhetoric has never been "intellectual", but rather practical and political. Intellectual influence in Washington resulted in disasters like Wilson's Presidency, Kennedy's involving us in Vietnam and the Cuban missile fiasco. Needless to say, Wilson is one of Lim's paragons of presidential rhetoric along with FDR, whose intellectual advisors argues Amity Shales delayed recovery from the Great Depression by years. Obviously I am not in agreement with Lim's models.

Lim's self-professed "aim" is to "provide a measure of [the] decline of [Presidential discourse] beyond the anecdotal accounts already offered by demonstrating the relentless simplification of presidential rhetoric in the last two centuries and the increasing substitution ocf arguments and applause-rendering platitudes, partisan punch lines, and emotional and human interest appeals. I characterize these rhetoricval trends as manifestations of the anti-intellectual presidency."

Central to Lim's argument is the claimed exceptionalism of intellectuals. If you don't agree with Lim's strawman, you are, de facto, anti-intellectual. In other words, if you don't intrinsically believe that an intellectual knows more about living your life than you do, you are anti-intellectual. The hollowness of the argument is both apparent and revealing: this is a book for unappreciated intellectuals written by an aspiring intellectual. (Lim is an assistant professor.)

Of course, in Lim's view, "presidential anti-intellectualism is a threat to our democracy." Again, intellectuals are smarter than you and if you don't listen to them, democracy is in danger, a hypothesis I do not agree with.

Lim dates presidential anti-intellectualism as beginning in 1969, heaping yet another burden on the much maligned Nixon.

Among the many rhetorical outrages in this book is Lim's attempt to cast an obvious jocular portion of a speech delivered by George W. Bush to a Yale graduating class as "one of the best remembered episodes of anti-intellectualism in recent history". We normal folks thought it was a good joke, but "intellectuals" were obviously offended. Or perhaps they simply have no sense of humor? In this same section, Lim makes it clear that common people with their "simple locution" just don't get it. They're anti-intellectuals too.

Presidential rhetoric was never as good as Lim pretends it was. The Presidency, like every other elective office, is above all first a battle to get elected. To get elected, it takes the votes of the common people, not the self-proclaimed intellectuals - and our democracy is better for that in many ways.

Few in politics listen seriously to the intellectuals because they really don't have much of practical value to say. This book is proof of that. That said, Lim's research and his "linguistical analysis" are interesting.

Jerry ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (18)

A fantastic historical perspective wrapped into serious legal analysis
Crisis and Command is a fantastic book, I loved it. The book has 3 distinct phases: a) The Washington, Jefferson and Jackson, b) Lincoln and Roosevelt, and c) the Cold war presidents. The first few presidents had a constitution and very little legal precedent, hence the author provides an excellent historical context and addresses presidential decision making within that scope, spicing it up with whatever legal analysis behooves it; it is important to note that the author strives to keep the analysis within the historical context, avoiding revisionism. Lincoln and Roosevelt had to face huge challenges including historical and legal precedent; the author shifts the focus to provide balanced historical and legal perspective; the balance is good enough to keep a person without a strong legal background flipping the pages with interest. The cold war treatment is fundamentally legal; since most of us understand the historical context pretty well, the author shifts the focus to a very dense legal assessment of the presidents's decision making; it is not easy to follow, but an inquisitive mind will derive immense pleasure from subtleties of the arguments. The conclusion, as in most books of this nature, is necessary but by them I had lost interest.

Explores the history of presidential power
CRISIS AND COMMAND: A HISTORY OF EXECUTIVE POWER FROM GEORGE WASHINGTON TO GEORGE W. BUSH explores the history of presidential power from the Founding of the Republic to modern debates on the war on terror. His approach considers political science, history and law to examine how the Presidency was created and run over the decades, and chooses five great Presidents who served during times of war to consider changing presidency routines and issues. Yoo presents a case for a link between executive power and how it expands with each crisis and emergency.

Yoo Trash Commands Who Crisis
DON'T waste your time or, especially your money, supporting the author or the publisher of this ridiculous book.

Consider the source:I found this author's perspectives to be worse than useless, tedious, and tiresome.

If you want to learn about the way that former government bureaucrats have historically accounted for doing things in a horrifically wrong way, go to the library or to the National Archives or presidential libraries for primary sources; do not bother to rely on this text.If you do read it at the library, you may find that the biased assessments do not meet your standards for credibility and that the conclusions do not meet your minimum criteria of objectivity.As you know, the personal history of authors can cloud their judgments about national historical events.

Do NOT trust this author's assessment about anything as important as an accurate historical review of Executive Power for our country's self-examination.

HaHaHa!
I read that the Patriot Act was just renewed by the Democratic-controlled Congress and signed by Mr. Obama. So now it should be clear that all those deranged criticisms directed at Bush were exactly what Glen Greenwald recently admitted: poseur morality put forward simply for temporary political opportunity. What hypocrites!
And speaking of hypocrites - and naifs - look at the crazed vision of Bush and Cheney which so many of the posters here have running around in their enraged minds. What would these poor fools do if faced with a real dictator, a Josef Stalin perhaps, rather than a calm and civil man like Bush, whose diffidence in pursuing the WOT are well-known.
It reminds me of the "Real Last Episode of M.A.S.H.," the one never shown on TV. Hawkeye and BJ, after years of running down the military they were ostensibly part of, and gainsaying the mission of preserving the South Korean people and of war in general, are about to leave Korea. Suddenly, Chinese Communist soldiers overrun the American front and storm into the medical compound. Hawkeye, BJ and the other doctors and nurses are methodically tortured to death by the sadistic Reds before the US Army can counter-attack.
Credits. The End.

Yoo's Love Letter to Totalitarianism
John Yoo's Crisis and Command is a turgid, 524-page love letter to an all-powerful presidency generally and to dictatorship specifically. His theme? More Caesar, less Senate. Infamous for penning the "Torture Memos" under the Bush administration where he justified Bush administration torture by virtually defining torture out of existence, Yoo's book contends presidential powers are unlimited: "The executive was, rather, the servant of necessity, bound to act in accordance with, in the absence of, or in extraordinary emergencies, in defense of the republic, even contrary to regularly constituted law." Yes, you read that right. Yoo says the President is above the law.
Yoo criticizes Thomas Jefferson and all who say that the power of the presidency has limits under the U.S. Constitution. The "great" Presidents, Yoo contends, are those who recognize they possess unlimited power, use it, and get away with it politically. Thus he applauds all of the worst excesses of the "great" presidents Lincoln and Roosevelt, from Roosevelt's court-packing scheme and internment of Japanese during World War Two to Lincoln's arrest of congressmen and newspaper editors who disagreed with him during the Civil War.
If this pretty much defines the concept of dictatorship, Yoo claims he's got Founding Fathers who will back him up. He doesn't, but it is a bit of fun to look a little further into his blatant dishonesty. Even Alexander Hamilton - that great lover of executive power - explicitly acknowledged that only Congress could bring the nation to war.Hamilton states unequivocally "war is a question, under our Constitution, not of executive, but of legislative cognizance. It belongs to Congress to say--whether the nation shall of choice dismiss the olive branch and unfurl the banners of war." Since Yoo quoted liberally from this same anonymous correspondence between Hamilton and James Madison over Washington's neutrality proclamation in Crisis and Command, he can't claim to be ignorant of Hamilton's views on the lack of presidential power to bring the nation to war. George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison also each wrote explicitly that only Congress can bring the nation to war.
Yoo explains his view of what those "political developments" were at the time of the founding. The Natural Law? No, Yoo fails to mention it entirely. Inalienable rights of man as "endowed by their Creator"? Nah, the whole concept of individual rights is only discussed in the context of privileges that the President can suspend when he deems it necessary. And forget about any role God has on those rights. God makes no appearance in Crisis and Command, not even a cameo.
Enlightenment writers such as Locke, Montesquieu and Blackstone are mentioned in Crisis and Command, but Yoo acts as if they had nothing to say about individual rights or God. After all, if you have an unlimited executive, you can't have inalienable rights. An all-powerful President can't tolerate an all-powerful God giving out inalienable rights to everyone willy-nilly. The all-powerful presidency is a jealous god. The real lesson of the Enlightenment era, Yoo implies, is a clarion call for the same old unlimited executive power that has existed in every dictatorship in most of the governments throughout world history.
A God who gives out rights to all people by nature of their births and which are inalienable - inseparable - from those people is anathema to Yoo. "It is naïve to say, as Obama did in his inaugural speech, that we can 'reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals.' That high-flying rhetoric means that we must give al Qaeda - a hardened enemy committed to our destruction - the same rights as garden-variety criminals at the cost of losing critical intelligence about real, future threats." Once again, Yoo claims that government gives out rights, though he implies that it ought not do so. Every freedom-loving American should have cheered Obama's statement quoted above, even if most experienced patriots had good cause to doubt Obama's follow-through.
Yoo's statements would be regarded as the rantings of a deranged post-communist apparatchik in a better time. ... Read more

Product Description
Through the lens of more than forty speeches from his presidency, George H. W. Bush takes a special look back on the momentous global events of 1989-1992 -- the fall of the Berlin Wall, the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the liberation of Kuwait, to name a few -- and reminisces about what it was like to be president through such unprecedented times. Choosing from among the hundreds of speeches he gave while in office, former president Bush selects those that meant the most to him and introduces each one with candid comments recalling the circumstances and events leading up to it.

"Although now in hindsight it seems that the end results were almost preordained, at the time no one knew what would happen next. Nothing was 'inevitable' at all. We learned quickly that words mattered," he writes in the opening pages of Speaking of Freedom. Selections throughout the book bring back the fascinating times of Lech Walesa, Mikhail Gorbachev, Václav Havel, and even Saddam Hussein -- when we watched as the idea of freedom seemed to spread all over the world. It was a stunning time in world history, and in these speeches the forty-first president observes it from his perspective as commander in chief, diplomat, politician, navy pilot, and grandfather.

While many of the speeches deal with foreign affairs, others cover freedom's spread within the United States, including the signing of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act and the historic Clean Air Act of 1990. President Bush's voice comes across perhaps most clearly when he is calling young people to lead a life of meaning and adventure that results only from serving others.

Showcasing President Bush's usual charm, self-deprecating wit, and sharp perception, these speeches mark the moments -- large and small -- that defined his presidency. Through his words that motivated people all around the world to become involved in ideas that were bigger than themselves, George H. W. Bush shows us what it means to be "speaking of freedom." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Filling a Gap
This is a much needed book for any student of the history of our 41st President's time in office.Until this book appeared, George Bush's most important speeches were not easily available in one place.From the pivotal 1988 convention speech through the Inaugural address, Desert Storm the key speeches are all here in one place with introductions that provide great setting and context. ... Read more

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This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery. ... Read more

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Currently, there are many books which have been written documenting the issues of the Bush Presidency; A Letter to America draws the reader a clearer more concise picture of major policies of this White House. The author, a trauma surgeon, uses multiple forms of data to analyze and treat an injured patient. He uses those same skills to dissect the policies of Bush's White House. Written in a fluid, crisp style, the author draws on his experience as a surgeon and an American to examine the White House from many angles. He leads one to the conclusion that the only prescription for America is that President Bush needs a vacation. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Important Issues Presented Clear and Concise
After reading this well-written letter to all Americans you finish the last page and close the book with a feeling that you have been nourished by the truth.Using his analytical skills learned as a surgeon, Dr. Thompson present 10 important issues in a clear, concise manner surrounding the 43rd President. The information presented in this book provide an excellent foundation for those seeking information on current political issues.

Political review at its FINEST
It has been said that this is the most important presidential election ever, and if that is indeed the case, then this book by Dr. Thompson is the most important book to read prior to the election.This book is extremely well written and flows nicely.You will be astounded by the information that you learn about the Bush Presidency, information that you can use to determine your vote.
Please read this book prior to the election...it will be money and time well spent. ... Read more

Product Description
- Both authors are well known and have appeared on the Today show, Larry King, Oprah, The Tonight Show, The Daily Show, Book Notes, Charlie Rose, Crossfire, Nightline, and NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, as well as on NPR's Fresh Air and All Things Considered- Mark Green's Who Runs Congress? was a #1 New York Times bestseller- Alterman's most recent book, What Liberal Media?, appeared on The New York Times extended bestseller listAmazon.com Review
While other liberal-minded books, written by everyone from documentary filmmakers to political strategists to comedians, have been broadly critical of the entire early 21st-century conservative universe, Eric Alterman and Mark J. Green have narrowed their focus to the man living at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. And unlike some of their contemporaries, they choose to largely eschew the clever metaphors and whimsical storytelling to get right at their pointed criticisms of George W. Bush, whom they accuse of being less than honest with the American people while serving the interests of large corporations, the religious right, and neoconservative ideologues. Such charges, by themselves, are so commonplace by this point as to be unremarkable but Alterman and Green provide voluminous, detailed research and come at the case with the vigor of prosecuting attorneys certain of a defendant's guilt or maybe a pair of exceptionally ambitious graduate students ready to present a final dissertation. They contrast sections of Bush's public statements, especially campaign rhetoric, that seem to strike a centrist, conciliatory tone with evidence of his actions that veer hard right and contradict the very things he had said. Some of Bush's words come off more as simple talking points on complex issues than outright deception, and the authors do stop short of calling Bush a liar, but even in these situations, the president still comes off as either out of touch or disingenuous. And though some of their supporting material comes from opinion pieces in publications like the New Republic, serving more to echo the authors' perspective than document it, there's plenty more from objective sources and raw factual data. Liberals will find plenty in The Book on Bush to arm them in arguments against conservatives and they'll have the evidence to make their case. --John Moe ... Read more

Customer Reviews (44)

The left trying to lie about the best President in 5 decades...
This author should research the Clintons if he wants to find liars and numerous accounts of misleading the American public... All Bill ever did was lie, from day one to the very end, and he left the White House laughing in the faces of all Americans...
The loosing left should leave this man alone, he is the most incredible President that this country has seen in the last 50 years...
Liberals are the seeds of Socialists, and Socialists are the roots of Communists... If you do not like living in the RIGHT country... then leave...
Make the change today: THINK RIGHT, GO RIGHT and BE RIGHT...

Our Son In White House is an Honor Student
This book is written by two progressive authors with a report card on different subjects for President Bush who advocated NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND.The subjects affect all Americans in economics, environment, civil liberty, healthcare and education.Despite his grades, he managed to have White House lease extended for four more years.That must be democracy and politics.

This book showed George came from the right wing with a prayer to serve the trinity of religious right, corporate business and neocons.George is a tough cowboy not to mess with.He shows America is no paper tiger to the Axis of evil.His top gun Mission Accomplished show was impressive after the shock and awe.

As Commander in Chief, George's policy affects rich & poor, faithful & secular, war & peace.This book helps you decide on the bumper sticker MY SON IN THE WHITE HOUSE DOES NOT DO HIS HOMEWORK IS AN HONOR STUDENT.

An Insult to Minorities that is chilling in many other ways
I read this in passing at the new San Jose Main Public Library the other day.
These coauthors' writing is as harsh as Ann Coulter's but of an opposite persuasion.However, their use of citations and supporting documentation is lacking.It is mostly up to the reader to guess which points are supported by which references in the bibliography.There are no footnotes, just mere page number references.A great number of references are simply for the sprinklings of quotations used.The fact, that Alterman and Green are employed by any journal, is chilling and an insult for that employer.
Alterman, intending to attack "neocons," uses an example of voter intimidation in places like Baltimore where the "Get out the Vote" advertisments also say "...and take care of your oustanding warrants, overdue rent, etc..."Another example is one that persuades people to show up at the polls days after election day.[Incidentally, the book's issues like this are debatably related to the topic of President Bush...]
So much for the idea of a "well-informed electorate!"
Such voter intimidation is not just sad but almost laughable.
First, does anyone want to admit depending on a voter base of individuals who fall for intimidation like this?This was an insult to liberal causes!To think this was a great book, you too would probably fall for voter intimidations like these examples given by Alterman and Green.
Second, are these guys trying to tell us that a qualification, to be considered a minority, consists of being duped by garbage like this?What an insult to minorities!
Third, if these guys are responsible journalists, can they report on anybody of their own polity that might be doing something about the state of the electorate's information?

While Alterman and Green make this point on their own voter base being so inadequate with any base of knowledge, they are trying to make a point, by begging the question from the first page, that President Bush himself has a very inadequate base of knowledge.Worse yet, Alterman and Green propose that a bad state of knowledge is further demonstrated by President Bush's tendency to ask "stupid" questions.Perhaps all readers should reflect on whether it is better to have stupid questions asked than to have stupid results occur when nobody has the courage to ask stupid questions.And back to the concept of a "well-informed electorate," real education begins with real questions.It is too bad that Alterman and Green have evidently been too proud to ask any questions, starting with "Why did so and so ask such and such question?" instead of jumping to their conclusions.

Another example of Alterman and Green's points is that President Bush's tendency to leave the "details" to others is a weakness.It would have been more useful to their point to expound on how this balances one's own core competencies with those of others.It's an effective corporate strategy.Maybe journalists know nothing about that.

Alterman and Green's publication is a strike out for journalism.
If you are a proponent of progressiveness or of the idea of a "well-informed electorate," this book does not help either of these causes.

I love this....
This was one of the books I have read to understand what my opinion is about Bush.I puts into print the concepts, ideas and realities of the dichotomy of Bush.Politics to the fullest.No wonder this nation is so full of apathy.I love books like this that make you look deeper into subjects....

And (Mis)leads the world: a view from the UK
American audiences might be forgiven for wondering what benefit a UK citizen could obtain from reading such a thorough and exhaustive dissection of the failures of Bush's domestic and foreign policy.But the fact remains that citzens of the world are in many respects the disenfranchised electorate of the United States.For as this book makes abundantly clear, as the world's only hyperpower, the US is in a position to dictate terms to every single person alive on the planet today.What the President says and does will impact everybody, whether we like it or not - and mostly, we do not.

The exposing of foreign policy flaws in the Middle East comes as no surprise; indeed the situation in Iraq today is exactly that predicted by the authors and their sources, only worse.But the revelation for a foreign reader such as myself was the extent to which the Bush administration is systematically asset stripping the nation of its entitlement in terms of education, health care, social services and the environment, whilst annexing yet more wealth for the top tier of American society and a cadre of handpicked cronies.The meticulous examination of federal tax policy and who really benefits was very informative and shocking in its audacity.

In spite of the measured and forceful arguments proposed by the authors, George W Bush was re-elected in November 2004.As an outsider, I find this completely perplexing since in my own country, the overwhelming majority of voters (had we been able) would have chosen the other candidate.But if you are an American beginning to see through the cracks in the surface and wish to know more about the motives and intentions of your government, I strongly recommend this book.In spite of its failure to prevent the re-election of this President it may still have a powerful influence over who gets to be the next one. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (219)

good read, but too one sided
My dad bought me the book and i actually read it in 2 days.

It's an easy read, but it's also completely one-sided.

The author, Vincent Bugliosi, states that he isn't really Republican or Democrat, but rather that he's anti Right-Wing Republican. Throughout the whole book, Bugliosi always tears apart the Republican party on the tactics and arguments used when they in fact were against such arguments. For example, Bugliosi states that the Republican Party is against the Federal Government impeding on state rights, yet they filed with the Supreme Court to rule on the Florida's Supreme Court decision to allow for manual recounts in Florida.

He calls the 5 Justices that voted to stop the recount criminals and even brings forward a story of how Chief Justice Rehnquist committed perjury, while at the same time, he defends President Clinton's own perjury before a Federal Grand Jury by attacking Ken Starr instead.

Over and over, the tone of the book is, "Republicans are bad, crybabies, hypocrities, and stole the 2000 election", and after a while, you start to lose track of the story because of his mad man ramblings. Democrats aren't innocent or pure, and if the situation was reversed, they would have done exactly what the Republicans did.

The Florida Supreme Court voted in favor of Gore and even went so far as to allow for a complete hand recount of every county in the state of Florida (machine recount was automatic because of the Florida Law when the winner wins by .5% or less), this despite the fact that Gore only wanted full hand recounts in the 4 most Democratic counties in Florida.

The recounts ordered by the Florida Supreme Court was for votes where no Presidental vote was recorded by the machines (dimpled and hanging chads). Since the Supreme Court ruled that the voters right had been violated, on December 9 they stopped the recount until a hearing was done on December 11. On December 12, they ruled 5-4 to stop the recount since it wouldn't meet the December 12 deadline to choose electors from the state for the Presidental election. (The "electors" were the total number of votes won by each candidate for each state.) The safeguard date of December 12 ensured that the Congress would not impede on the state's right to chose their electors. The electors were set to meet on December 18, and according to the law, the electors were given 6 days prior to resolve any disputes, hence the December 12 deadline.

What was really at issue was the issue of voting itself, and the right to vote. During the election, people's votes were being judged by individuals deciding on hanging and dimpled chads. Also, while one county was counting dimpled chads, another was not, and this was a violation of "the right to vote", in which no vote may be denied.

Judging the Supreme Court Decision
This book developed from a magazine article ('Preface'). Molly Ivins says recounts by hand happen in every election in Texas with punched cards. Gerry Spence says the law is like a religion where judges are the most powerful. Lawyers can be punished for attacking the judiciary. Bugliosi has exposed the Supreme Court as acting for political reasons ('Foreword'). [That has been going on since Marbury vs. Madison created a judicial veto.] The 'Introduction' claims that some voters erroneously voted for Pat Buchanan instead of Al Gore (p.15). Could the reverse have also happened? Did five Supreme Court Justices steal the election for George W. Bush? No, Al Gore lost the election because he lost his home state of Tennessee. If he won Tennessee he would've been President. The conflict over the votes from Republican Florida was the only way for Gore to win a victory from his electoral defeat.

Bugliosi criticizes the Corporate Media for assuming a "black cotton robe" elevates a politician and lawyer to a position of honor and respect (p.24). Judges are either politically connected or have a rich patron who can buy their position; examples are on pages 24 to 27. [Bugliosi will never be appointed a judge for telling these facts!] As for erasing votes (p.28) just wait until he hears about the "Amar Plan"! The Electoral College was created to decide elections by states and not by votes alone, which would give undue weight to the largest states in a Federal system. If people don't understand the Electoral College that shows what a poor job the educational system is doing. The winner of a state gets all the electoral votes, even if it goes into the House of Representatives as in 1824. Most countries use a paper ballot for counting votes. It is faster for voters and cheaper to run (no expensive machines to be maintained). Machines are overly complicated for voters who have little experience with them.

Bugliosi admits the vast majority of Americans doubt that Oswald acted alone (p.32) even if few read the Warren Report. I'll bet most people who read the Summary Report doubt its conclusions. The House Select Committee on Assassinations disproved the Warren Report in 1979. Bugliosi says that if a person takes the property of another under a mistaken belief that he owns it then he is not guilty of a crime (p.38). OJ Simpson said that too.

The Federalist Party created the Supreme Court as a power to overrule Congress in order to benefit the wealthy and crooked (the Yazoo Land Fraud). It concocted powers for a corporation that makes it above state laws. This continues to this day (p.42). The Sherman Anti-Trust Act was interpreted as a weapon against labor unions instead of corporations! The number of the Supreme Court hasn't changed since Andrew Jackson was President of 24 states and 30 million people. There is still no age limit or term of office, they are not elected by popular vote. So I am not shocked by their fixing the 2000 election by banning a partial recount due to the equal protection clause (p.43). The Supreme Court always chooses the policies desired by the wealthy. Why else would they allow the 1968 Gun Control Act to overturn the Second Amendment? The attacks on the Second Amendment date back to 1877 Pittsburgh. Any good history book will explain that.
Full disclosure: I voted for Gore rather than Bush. His presidency was a disaster for all Americans but a huge success for wealthy aristocrats. Would Gore have been much different? Why?

Never Knew Before
Bugliose, Vincent is a very repatable author.This book is backed up by facts supplies.I agree with him. Something has to be done

A cause for civil disobedience
What happened in 2000 was, in my humble opinion, a cause for civil disobedience on a national scale.Riots, demonstrations, surrounding buildings and keeping the occupants inside until they came to their senses, even more.Had we the bravery that, say, Lithuanians had in 1990, or that lone figure in Tienanmen Square showed so long ago, we might have spared ourselves the ignominy and disgrace of this petulant, recalcitrant, intellectually underemployed, ignorant, bigoted, mendacious, simple-minded moron (who, I might add, half the country identified with - says something).Don't know if we're either capable or willing to recover from the past 7 years of utter cynical evil.Perhaps now would be a good time for an extraterrestrial takeover.(I'm kidding, folks.About the ET, that is, not about the person referenced above.)Maybe we can convince the ETs to take the 5 "conservative" "justices" with them?Especially Scalia and Thomas?The ETs can put them in some kind of display case and label them "mentally underdeveloped semi-humans" or something like that?I can't help thinking that whenever someone identifies themselves as a republican that I feel there's a severe personal deficiency about them, like retardation, or autism.

Educational
This book packs a lot of information into very few pages. Bugliosi does a good job of supporting his suppositions with law. There are so many points made, most everyone will be unaware of some of them. The biggest drawback for me was that sometimes Bugliosi strays into name-calling which leads one to begin to doubt if some of the scholarship isn't slanted more than is obvious at first blush. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from APS Diplomat Recorder, published by Arab Press Service on December 20, 2008. The length of the article is 900 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: ARAB US RELATIONS - Dec 14 - Dodging Shoes, Bush Makes Final Iraq Visit.(United States President George W. Bush)
Author: Unavailable
Publication: APS Diplomat Recorder (Newsletter)
Date: December 20, 2008
Publisher: Arab Press Service
Volume: 71Issue: 26

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This book presents essays by cabinet members, world leaders, and scholars examining the formation of President George H. W. Bush's character and the factors that influenced his leadership as a legislator, a diplomat, and an American president. ... Read more

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This is the first volume to chronicle the story of the evolution of the symbiotic relationship between the presidential press secretaries and reporters who covered White House news during the terms of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Harry S. Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard M. Nixon, Gerald R. Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush. Author Woody Klein has been both a reporter (for the Washington Post and the New York World-Telegram & Sun) and a press secretary himself to New York City Mayor John V. Lindsay, who ran for president in 1972. The book reveals how the presidential press secretaries' role has evolved from old-fashioned public relations into a smooth-working system of releasing news and responding to reporters' questions at daily briefings by portraying the president in the best possible light. Klein ferrets out fresh, anecdotal information and includes interviews with nationally known personalities—including former White House press secretaries and notable journalists who have covered the White House. He brings to life the personalities and views of every presidential spokesman on how the job has grown in stature as the press secretaries or spinmeisters have become high-profile officials.

Klein reveals how the tension between government and the media—normally healthy in any democracy—has resulted in the manipulation of facts and the release of favorable official news. It started subtly in the Roosevelt administration and has been carefully honed with the transformation of the media in the information and technology revolution; he shows how it has been refined to the point where it is now recognized for what it is: slanting or packaging the news in favor of the president to make it acceptable—even desired—by the public. Perception quickly becomes reality, and once the facts of a situation have been accepted by the establishment—politicians and the press alike—it becomes virtually impossible to change people's minds about them. The book documents scores of examples of White House spin by topic rather than chronologically—for example, how different press secretaries managed the news in wartime, in foreign policy, in scandals, and in a host of domestic issues such as education and national disasters. Twenty-three press secretaries are included. The most notable among them are Steve Early (Roosevelt), James Hagerty (Eisenhower), Pierre Salinger (Kennedy), Bill Moyers (Johnson), Ron Ziegler (Nixon), Marlin Fitzwater (Reagan and G. H. W. Bush), Dee Dee Myers (Clinton), Mike McCurry (Clinton), Joe Lockhart (Clinton), Ari Fleischer (Bush), Scott McClellan (Bush), and Tony Snow (Bush).

Customer Reviews (2)

Great book by someone with experience...
I really enjoyed this book. The author has clearly done the research and work to create a very readable, accessible book. I especially enjoyed how the history and evolution of the press secretary's role itself was traced, all the way from Roosevelt to the end of the Bush administration.

And, as the other reviewer mentioned, the way the book was arranged, by challenges faced rather than simply chronologically really made the book even more interesting. It was good to see and hear the story from the other side things, so to speak.I did find myself a bit more sympathetic to what this very tough job entails, although I still found it difficult to stomach much of what the Bush administration presented as it's take. I've always felt they were the masters when it came to double-speak and spin.

Perhaps because they did their job so well and the press lost its way in those years, We the People lost in so many ways.I guess I was waiting for the author to get tougher on them. He never did, but this was still a book well worth the time.

Fantastic but for one thing
I am a political journalist, and I looked forward to this book with great anticipation around Christmastime.The great aspects of the book are several in number.First of all, for anyone who has followed American politics, many of the people in Woody Klein's book are known quantities.That is to say, everyone has seen Ronald Ziegler evading and lying through his teeth, Marlon Fitzwater yucking it up, Ari Fleischer being combative and, tragically, Jim Brady lying in a puddle of blood on a sidewalk.Mr Klein's book fleshes all of these people out beyond what we already know from having seen them on TV a million times, and that is wonderful.The second thing is that the author has chosen to divide the book up not by press secretary, offering a short biography of each, but by issue, examining the way in which press secretaries react to categories of occurrences such as domestic crises, the Cold War, global issues and presidential scandals.I consider that to be an excellent way to present the information.Third, the book contains quite a few excerpts from actual press conferences, and that provides a really stellar look at the give-and-take in the relationship between the White House press corps and the press secretary of the day -- combative in some instances, jovial in others.

The four, not five stars are due to something that absolutely drives me mad -- the apparent failure of anyone to proofread the damn thing!Once again fulsome praise is given in the acknowledgement section to lists of editors who apparently should all be sacked for incompetence.In just one paragraph of "All the President's Spokesmen" we find the sentence "Bill Moyers [..] has since become one of the nations most highly respected television commentators" and "... he said: 'Potomac Fever can produce a bloated sensation--particularly in the area of the ego--that causes press secretaries to take themselves much too seriously,' he said."There is a difference between "nations" and "nation's" even if they do sound the same, and two "he saids" in one sentence is simply one "he said" too many.That said, I would imagine that there are plenty of fans of politics and journalism who do not grind their teeth at the impending collapse of the English language.They, like I, will enjoy this book, only a bit more for keeping their teeth safe. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Campaigns & Elections, published by Campaigns & Elections, Inc. on August 1, 2003. The length of the article is 811 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Let's have some fun: how should President Bush spend his huge re-election campaign war chest? Let us count the ways--all 200 million of them.(On The Record)
Author: Ron Faucheux
Publication: Campaigns & Elections (Refereed)
Date: August 1, 2003
Publisher: Campaigns & Elections, Inc.
Volume: 24Issue: 8Page: 7(1)

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Wickedly clever and politically incorrect, The President's Secret IMs is a hilarious collection of imaginary online conversations between politicians. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

A great read
What a clever and entertaining book!Crittenden gets so totally inside the heads of Bush and his cronies (including his super-secret IM buddy President Clinton), that you really feel you've accidentally logged into the White House computer system.She pokes fun at everyone (from Jenna Bush to Pope Benedict to the Emir of Kuwait) and everything (from self-important media types to scheming Washington bureaucrats to American foreign policy) in such a skillful, stylish, and refreshingly non-abusive way that I found myself laughing -- but sympathetically! --at the foibles of public figures I thought I loathed.A terrific and fun read that people on both sides of the political divide will enjoy.

slighly humorous
I was perhaps expecting more humor. It did at times bring a smile to my face..

brilliant parody
this book is a hoot! It shows Bush and his cohorts exactly as we assume them to be, warts and all, but does it so amusingly I can't imagine even the subjects themselv es not being tickled by it.
Also a great way for the older generation to learn the arcana of Instant Messaing!

High-larious!
What a fun and witty book this is! For all of you political junkies out there, no matter what side of the aisle, I hope you enjoy reading these IMs as much as I did.

Uncanny perception or a secret source
Does the author have a secret inside source inside the White House, or has her teenage son hacked into Kickass 43's laptop? Whatever, this is a must read for those hooked on the vagagres on intentaional diplomacy. Yeah, I know it's computer-talk fiction, but the author has the likes of Tony Blair. Ladeezman Clinton and even Condy cutie-pie down pat. Hyey, Maybe the First Lady is the secret sourcce -remember her refering to her hubby as "Mr. Excitement.?" Whatever, a delicious book without malice but lots of perception. Even the Pope gets a laugh.

Frustrated conservative ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from The Humanist, published by Thomson Gale on July 1, 2005. The length of the article is 1072 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: From Watergate to downing street: lying for war.(Up Front: news and opinion from independent minds)(War Made Easy: How Presidents and Pundits Keep Spinning Us to Death)
Author: Norman Solomon
Publication: The Humanist (Magazine/Journal)
Date: July 1, 2005
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 65Issue: 4Page: 5(3)

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Product Description
This digital document is an article from APS Diplomat Recorder, published by Pam Stein/Input Solutions on September 22, 2001. The length of the article is 529 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: ARAB-US RELATIONS - Sept. 20 - Bush Speech Against Terrorism.(Brief Article)(Excerpt)
Publication: APS Diplomat Recorder (Newsletter)
Date: September 22, 2001
Publisher: Pam Stein/Input Solutions
Volume: 55Issue: 12Page: NA

Article Type: Brief Article, Excerpt

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Product Description
This digital document is an article from APS Diplomat News Service, published by Arab Press Service on January 14, 2008. The length of the article is 2264 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: GCC+Egypt, Part Of US Alliance, Receive Bush With An Idea On Tackling Iran-Led Axis.
Author: Unavailable
Publication: APS Diplomat News Service (Newsletter)
Date: January 14, 2008
Publisher: Arab Press Service
Volume: 68Issue: 3

Distributed by Gale, a part of Cengage Learning ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from APS Diplomat Recorder, published by Thomson Gale on April 15, 2005. The length of the article is 437 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: ARAB-US RELATIONS - Apr 10 - Bush Rejects Reports Of US Plans To Attack Iran.
Publication: APS Diplomat Recorder (Newsletter)
Date: April 15, 2005
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 63Issue: 15

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Product Description
This digital document is an article from APS Diplomat Recorder, published by Pam Stein/Input Solutions on March 20, 2004. The length of the article is 449 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: ARAB-US RELATIONS - Mar. 19 - Bush Seeks Int'l Support For Iraq Efforts.
Publication: APS Diplomat Recorder (Newsletter)
Date: March 20, 2004
Publisher: Pam Stein/Input Solutions
Volume: 60Issue: 12

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Product Description
This is the book that cracks the code of the Bush presidency. Unstintingly yet compassionately, and with no political ax to grind, Slate editor in chief Jacob Weisberg methodically and objectively examines the family and circle of advisers who played crucial parts in George W. Bush’s historic downfall.

In this revealing and defining portrait, Weisberg uncovers the “black box” from the crash of the Bush presidency. Using in-depth research, revealing analysis, and keen psychological acuity, Weisberg explores the whole Bush story. Distilling all that has been previously written about Bush into a defining portrait, he illuminates the fateful choices and key decisions that led George W., and thereby the country, into its current predicament. Weisberg gives the tragedy a historical and literary frame, comparing Bush not just to previous American leaders, but also to Shakespeare’s Prince Hal, who rises from ne’er-do-well youth to become the warrior king Henry V.

Here is the bitter and fascinating truth of the early years of the Bush dynasty, with never-before-revealed information about the conflict between the two patriarchs on George W.’s father’s side of the family–the one an upright pillar of the community, the other a rowdy playboy–and how that schism would later shape and twist the younger George Bush; his father, a hero of war, business, and Republican politics whose accomplishments George W. would attempt to copy and whose absences he would resent; his mother, Barbara, who suffered from insecurity, depression, and deep dissatisfaction with her role as housewife; and his younger brother Jeb, seen by his parents as steadier, stronger, and the son most likely to succeed.

Weisberg also anatomizes the replacement family Bush surrounded himself with in Washington, a group he thought could help him correct the mistakes he felt had destroyed his father’s presidency: Karl Rove, who led Bush astray by pursuing his own historical ambitions and transforming the president into a deeply polarizing figure; Dick Cheney, whose obsessive quest to restore presidential power and protect the country after 9/11 caused Bush and America to lose the world’s respect; and, finally, Donald Rumsfeld and Condoleezza Rice, who encouraged Bush’s foreign policy illusions and abetted his flight from reality.

Delving as no other biography has into Bush’s religious beliefs–which are presented as at once opportunistic and sincere–The Bush Tragedy is an essential work that is sure to become a standard reference for any future assessment. It is the most balanced and compelling account of a sitting president ever written.


From the Hardcover edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (73)

Angry priviliged kid + scheming madman + huge army = ???
I have to admit to being apathetic during both of 43's terms in office. I remember in 2004 many of my friends disclosing "If he gets re-elected I'm headed to Canada". I wasn't taking any notice .... After 43 left office I started to see more and more how his legacy is a trail of devastation that will resonate around the world for many years to come.

The Bush tragedy starts by defining one very pointed moment in Bush's two terms when, as passenger, he landed on the deck of the USS Abe Lincoln and came waddling into view in his flight suit. Remembering that moment and delving into Bush, the more relevance that moment has in defining Bush, his politics, his personality and his view towards leading the free world. Basically, "hey look at my crotch".

This book is probably the third or so I've read about the whole farce that was 43, Rove, Cheyney, Rice etc ... and, the overwhelming feeling is one of Bush wasn't really ever at the helm of his presidency other than symbolically.

The Bush Tragedy goes further than the others I've read in so much as it paints a very good picture of the Bush "dynasty" via it's history and melding with the "Walkers". Seems that the off springs all basically did the same thing in their search and quest for "independence". Which becomes apparent as you read through.

"W" seems to have been the laziest in terms of academics and self motivation. Stumbling into most of his life by way of privilege and "unseen" guiding hands (Mainly daddy's). His character is one of zero inquisitiveness, limited intellect and more suited to the ranks of the Armed forces as he's really just one of the boys. What sets him apart though is his overwhelming self-confidence and arrogance. In his mind he doesn't need what it takes to succeed as he just "knows" he knows how to.... some how.

When Mr Rove first met Bush, the sight of Bush in his Texan garb gave Mr Rove a political boner and the relationship that moved and shaped the free world into a tailspin had begun. I think Rove saw 43 as amiable, charismatic and, more importantly, VERY pliable. Rove had the skill to manipulate Bush in a way as to make Bush think he was driving when he was really 3 - 4 rows back.

Another feature of Bush that had Mr's Rove & Cheyney foaming is the fact that once W has made up his mind, either manipulatively or otherwise, he will not waiver and, should popular or public opinion go against him he just digs in deeper. Very powerful for those in the shadows trying to further their own agendas.

You get the feeling George is a sad person in so much as his whole adult life has been about proving himself either To his siblings, his father or pretty much everyone who knew him back in the early days. He really is a privileged nobody kid who, via his connections, gentle patting and nudging, made it to the most powerful spot in the world and then set it all on fire.

Highly recommended.

Interesting read
Very infomative well written book about the Bush presidency. I learned a lot about what was going on in the George W. Bush administration, his family and also Richard Cheney. I would recommend this book to learn about the Bush adminstration, the family and George Bush, the man. Thank you.

Good Family History
Though not a psychologist, Weisberg has created an excellent historical and psychological study of George W Bush.From his well known rivalry with his father, to his families less well known history of brashness, hotheadedness and proclivity for action over thought.Weisberg is a natural writer and it shows here.This is an enjoyable read, and anyone interested in the genealogical or psychological underpinnings for some of the former presidents actions will be well served by this book.

Douba
So much promise and so much disappointment.So it goes as Kurt Vonnegutt would have said.A mistake that we are still paying for.

The Bush Tragedy
Everyone who has any interest in politics should read this very educational book.You will learn what actually made the Bush administration do what it did and who the principal characters were doing the forced leadership. ... Read more

Product Description
All the President's Spin, the first book from the editors of the acclaimed nonpartisan website Spinsanity, unmasks the tactics of deception and media manipulation that George W. Bush has used to sell his agenda to the American people.

From his campaigns for tax cuts to the debate over war in Iraq, President Bush has employed an unprecedented onslaught of half-truths and strategically ambiguous language to twist and distort the facts. Fritz, Keefer, and Nyhan's powerful critique of Bush's record of policy deception explains why the media has failed to hold him accountable and demonstrates the threat these tactics pose to honest political debate.

This is the essential book for every citizen who wants to understand how George W. Bush has misled the nation and why, if left unchallenged, all the President's spin could soon become standard practice -- a devastating development for our democracy.Amazon.com Review
It's no shock that an American president would employ skilled PR pros to carefully hone a message that makes the administration's objectives more palatable to the general public. It's a tradition that dates back decades. But it's another matter entirely to base an entire presidency on the bending, twisting, and distorting of the truth. According to authors Ben Fritz, Bryan Keefer, and Brendan Nyhan, the George W. Bush administration tiptoes around the definition of lying but still uses ambiguous language, selective use of facts, and shaky evidence to sell the American people on issues like the effect of tax cuts, the impact of a business-friendly environmental policy, and the reasons for going to war in Iraq. While the authors have plenty of blame to place on the administration, the news media are also fingered for parroting administration spin and reporting it, without verification or context, as objective fact. Fritz, Keefer, and Nyhan, founders of the political analysis web site Spinsanity, detail how Bush and company, more than any administration in history, cherry pick information that they find helpful, regardless of how representative it is of the overall truth, and then package it with a forceful and persistent presentation that eventually takes on the patina of reality. Democrats will also find that 2004 presidential candidate John Kerry appears very much up to playing the political game on Bush's terms as the authors dissect and deflate plenty of misleading primary season anti-Bush charges made by the Democratic nominee. All The President's Spin is richly detailed, not surprising given the sound bite-free task of picking apart political spin, and while it is intensely critical of Bush's messaging, it does not pass judgment on the wisdom or efficacies of the policies themselves. Any politician could take a lesson from the authors' clarity and comprehensive scope. --John Moe ... Read more

Customer Reviews (36)

The five golden PR rules
This book laid out the facts about Bush, his administration, and the way the media has played into all of his spin and "misleading" facts. This book takes an objective look at the tactics used by the administration spinkled with a few anti-bushisms. If you are looking for an angry anti-bush book this is not for you. Even when presenting infuriating facts about the lies and deciet found in the media and our presidency the authors do not present an angry public anywhere in the book. A book everyone should read if they care about their government and it's use of the media to get their own agendas in place.

Spin, misinformation, lies, disinformation, plausible deniability
This book BARELY scratches the surface of the lie machine that is the Bush administration. They cause a ten car crash and say they are working on recycling scrap metals..what is missing from this book is the OUTRAGE any decent journalist should feel- they lament that the media sits on its haunches and is spoon fed, but thats where the story ends and begins. Someone needs to get to the bottom of this and find out why major corporate media is allowing this load of manure to be fed to the public- whose pocket is being lined? What ever happened to unbiased, unpaid, investigative journalism? A free press is the foundation of liberty and our media has been patted on the head, given a sucker and told to wander on home.It doesn't take rocket science- listen to the interviews where they just repeat their point regardless of the question- its obvious manipulation- and the mass of America is swallowing it without looking at it.
We should have serious works by the media decrying this, but they just sit and whimper or say nothing to keep "access" open.
No government should be able to pull this!

All The President's Spin
SHOULD BE READ BY ALL AMERICANS WHO STILL BELIEVE THEY LIVE IN A FREE COUNTRY

Finally--Fair Media Criticism
In a time when 99.9% of media criticism consists of people saying "I don't like what you are saying therefore you are wrong," Fritz and Co. actually use facts and reason when critiquing the media. Shocking, but effective.

How this book could have been much more fair & balanced
The authors make a decent case that Pres. Bush sometimes stretches the truth a bit. Though when push comes to shove, what he says, they admit, is generally correct. That the media doesn't do its job very well is hardly new or unique to the Bush Admin. It is somewhat laughable that the authors choose to focus on Bush's sometimes picayune distortions (e.g., when the basic point he is getting across is correct, and what he is saying is also factually correct -- on taxes for example -- yes, those he picked to highlight his tax plan make the plan look good, but it did cut taxes for all taxpayers, which was his point: 'This cuts taxes, it is a tax cut.'), and choose not to cover Clinton's far greater mendacity. Only one of these presidents was found to have lied under oath and sanctioned by a federal judge amd then later disbarred for doing so (Not to mention lying to the entire country numerous times by his own admissions.). To preserve their alleged neutrality, and to make this book a more fair look at spin that would have supported the purpose of their website and made this a truly nonpartisan book, that would have been read by a broader cross-section of the electorate, the book should have focused on Clinton AND Bush. Since this largely focuses on a President in office, the Kerry portions would have been better replaced with an expanded Clinton section. Especially in light of the fact that the whole phenomenon of spin came into the public eye during the '92 Clinton campaign, with J. Carville and G. Stephanoupolous spinning (and in turn being spun by Clinton & Clinton - see GS' ALL TOO HUMAN) madly to deflect bimbo erruptions they swore up and down had no factual basis. As later events and Michael Isikoff's excellent and fair book, UNCOVERING CLINTON, make clear, this was all designed to mislead the public and keep the electorate from knowing the truth, resulting in the dawning of a new age of degraded political discourse. Also, I must point out the irony of the authors' attempts at "spinsanity", unbiased analysis, here and at their website - 2 Democrats, no Republicans - why, what could possibly be more fair and balanced!? ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from APS Diplomat Operations in Oil Diplomacy, published by Pam Stein/Input Solutions on November 1, 2004. The length of the article is 2215 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: IRAQ - The Neo-Baathists & US Electioneering.
Publication: APS Diplomat Operations in Oil Diplomacy (Newsletter)
Date: November 1, 2004
Publisher: Pam Stein/Input Solutions
Volume: 48Issue: 5

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more