Book Description
The “top journalist in America and the funniest” (Randi Rhodes, Air America), takes his previous New York Times bestseller a step further with hot undercover dispatches— hanging out the dirty underpants of the “armed and dangerous clowns that rule us.”
A White House spokesman said, “We hate that sonovabitch.” TheyÂ're not alone: From corporate suites to OsamaÂ's cave, they fear what BritainÂ's Guardian calls “investigations up there with Woodward and Bernstein—and a lot funnier.” But Greg PalastÂ's fanatic following (nearly two million readers of his Web column) has made him “a cult fave among progressives” (Village Voice) who canÂ't wait for his next release.
PalastÂ's old-style gum-shoe detective work to dig out the info on the War on Terror, greed- dripping schemes to seize little nations with lots of oil, the hidden program to steal the 2008 election, and the media biases that keep it unreported are the meat and bones of this BBC television reporterÂ's new book. Armed Madhouse is illustrated with dozens of documents marked “secret” and “confidential” that have walked out of file cabinets and fallen into PalastÂ's hands.
You wonÂ't find Palast in The New York Times (except its bestseller list), but you will read his reports on the hottest Web sites worldwide, hear him regularly on Air America and the Pacifica radio networks, and see his stories reappearing as the basis for EminemÂ's hit video “Mosh,” Michael MooreÂ's Fahrenheit 9/11, and sampled by a dozen of todayÂ's top platinum rock artists. BACKCOVER: “The greatest investigative journalist in America.”
—ALAN CHARTOCK, NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO
“The type of investigative reporter you donÂ't see anymore—a cross between Sam Spade and Sherlock Holmes.”
—JIM HIGHTOWER
“Courageous reporting.”
—MICHAEL MOORE
“Upsets all the right people!”
—NOAM CHOMSKY
Customer Reviews:
Read the book, avoid the audio version.......2007-10-10
The material presented seems to be meticulously researched, and clearly and systematically presented. The problem is -on the audio CD edition- the sarcasm with which the lines are spoken. The sneering, cloying sarcasm is so intense, so pervasive, and so grating that it detracts from the narrative. Is it really necessary to emulate Anne Coulter's style?
The truth exponentially!.......2007-10-05
Greg Palast is the modern day Thomas Paine. Believe me when I say that that is not overstatement. This is the book that got a man tazed by his vociferous opining over one single chapter - in fact, the very chapter that is what makes this book so important to understanding the hijacking of an entire country and its Constitution by the Bush crime machine.
The very fact that Palast has to go to another country to speak his truth tells you that we are in serious danger of losing the fourth estate altogether if we don't pay attention and do something about it.
I heard Palast on progressive radio and started my quest for the facts by reading his online pieces, and then buying this book. I only wish more Americans had listened much earlier and perhaps we could have avoided the fiasco that began with the hanging chad fiasco of 2001 when the Supreme Court appointed King George. That horrific event began the decent into constitutional chaos and the monumental abyss of lies, torture, rendering, the attack on human rights in our country and more.
I am so glad there is a Greg Palast. Just as glad as Bush cronies hate everything this man represents. "Armed Madhouse" is a welcome addition to my reference library and historic archives. Read and become enlightened!
Hostile Takeover.......2007-10-04
Greg Palast's Armed Madhouse documents the thesis of CW Mills' seminal 1956 book The Power Elite - that US politics is just a facade: A facade for a hostile corporate takeover of both governments and nations. Palast asserts and documents that the "war on terror" was conceived as an attempt to destroy OPEC, further impoverish the US middle class, and reap windfall corporate profits from rebuilding Iraq, whose "no-bid", cash cow rebuilding Palast calls "the biggest reconstruction project since the pyramids" [page 277]. Palast humorously remarks in passing that "Operation Iraqi Freedom" was originally dubbed Operation Iraqi Liberation ("O.I.L.") by White House spokesman Ari Fleischer.
"Conspiracy nuts think George Bush, from the moment he took office, had a secret plan to control Iraq's oil. They're wrong. Bush had two plans. Here they are: One crafted by the neoconservatives at the Pentagon, another fashioned by the State Department and Big Oil. This is the history of the secret cold war between these two power elites, which drives the hot war on the Tigris" [page 51].
"[This book] is about how they are taking these American rights away, stripping them off you one by one, from the Wage and Hour Law's 40-hour week to the Clayton Antitrust Law to the False Claims Act to the laws that keep your lights on and your pensions protected. Many are laws that you've probably never heard of, like the Public Utility Holding Company Act. But, take my word for it, you'll miss them when they're gone" [page 284].
Outstanding book.
Highly Informative, Disturbingly Insightful.......2007-10-01
Palast uncovers advanced economic plots to make the rich richer and the poor their servants. First he discusses the oil economy as it relates to big businesses and the political systems of those countries in power. Although there are those who completely dispel Palast's notion that oil is in seemingly infinite supply (and I don't mean right-wingers, either... do a google), I don't think if Palast is wrong on this count that it destroys his theories on how the oil industry operates and prospers. Other keep-the-rich rich schemes include the stealing of elections, something I've already studied and yet, was completely horrified to learn further extent to this phenomenon. Other notable topics include China, our lack-luster education system, and how the working class is held down. Well worth the listen, but have your brain turned on and focused. You can't be day dreaming and get what the author is saying because there are a lot of details given and he talks rather quickly.
Why Isn't Congress Reading This Book?.......2007-09-23
This book should be a mandatory assignment to be read by every member of congress. It's all about lies and the real reason for this war. Controll of oil prices.
Amazon.com
Due to the timing of its publication, Unfit for Command could be dismissed as the sort of controversial, loaded book typical in a presidential election year: Either courageous and necessary, or untruthful and malicious, depending on one's political point of view. Filled with interviews of men who served in Vietnam at the same time as John Kerry, the book poses the following question: "Why do an overwhelming majority of those who commanded or served with John Kerry oppose him?" (Note that the issue of "service" has sparked investigation into its definition--in other words, just how close was the interaction between Kerry and those cited in the book during Kerry's Vietnam tour of duty?) The charges leveled against Kerry in this book are severe and include filing false operating reports; lobbying for and receiving three Purple Hearts for minor wounds, two of which were self-inflicted; receiving a Silver Star under false pretenses; offering false confessions of bogus war crimes in both print and testimony; and recklessness in the field, including the burning of a village without cause or direct order. The book also claims that Kerry left Vietnam after serving just four months instead of the usual one year tour and that he returned home and accused his fellow soldiers of atrocities without offering any evidence, endangering POWs in the process. It is debatable whether the book will change any minds, or votes. Instead, readers will likely reach one of two conclusions: Either John Kerry grossly misrepresented his military service or the authors are spinning the interviews that they conducted for ulterior motives. There is a third option, however; readers will further investigate both sides of the debate, and by doing so, may reach conclusions independent of partisan extremes. --Brian Neff
Book Description
A shocking indictment of John Kerry by some of the men who knew him best.
Customer Reviews:
Riveting Revelations .......2007-10-04
This book took guts to write--Not many would have the courage to speak out publically about such a powerful man. My hat's off to the writers of this book.
A Good Read Before the 2004 Election.......2007-03-09
I'm glad I read this book before the 2004 election. I'm a Vietnam era vet, but I had forgotten many of the events covered in this book. It was eye-opening to realize that the guy most of us thought of as a traitor back then, is now pawning himself off as a war hero and presidential material. It was good to see Mr. Kerry pay for the sins of his youth.
Whose Kidding Who?.......2007-02-01
America knows characters the likes of John Kerry! No surprise here!
Unfit for Command.......2007-01-11
I know in our world there are two stories to all conditions in life but if half of this book is true then John Kerry should not be in public office. What a disgrace to all service members who served our great country. He should placed on the same list as Jane Fonda.
Never more timely than it is today..........2006-11-02
God Bless Swift Boat. This book was a blessing when it came out, and it truly is a testament to this "man's" character today as it was then. As Kerry, who still can't come to terms with the fact that America simply did not want his sorry excuse for a life to lead this fine country, tries to figure out how to dig himself out of the hole in which he has dug himself by stating that the men and women of our nation's Armed Services (myself included, as I am a Captain in the USMC) are uneducated nitwits "stuck in Iraq,"....well, there is nothing more relevant than this treatise to serve as an example why this piece of garbage should never have been, nor should ever be, our Commander in Chief. It is clear that his contempt of the men and women of the military runs deep, just as deep as it did when he returned from Vietnam and began holding hands with Hanoi Jane.
I take great issue with his recent comments. Above all else that this so-called "man" represents and claims to represent, the bottom line is that he is a bonafide loser. He can't get past that, nor accept it. To degrade our nation's finest in the manner he did is simply atrocious, above and beyond being outright incorrect. Sure, it was a "joke" that went wrong. Whatever you say Johnny boy. It was clear to all what you meant and, more importantly, what you actually SAID.
But, I must heartily shake your hand for one thing. The one thing you seem to have accomplished is that you single-handedly set the Dems back even further for the upcoming election, just days away. Great job. Leave it to Kerry to do such a job. You know you've done wrong when you have the likes of Billy and Hilly rushing in to beg you to apologize...yet even still, you chose not to do so publicly, but simply, coward that you are, post a little note on your website. Pathetic. Thank GOD this trash was so devastingly beaten and never had a chance. He never will. He simply cannot see what lies right beneath him, and trips over his own feet simply by being the idiot that he is. He's an arrogant, petty, stupid, whining, petulant little man, who will be resigned to the footnotes of history as nothing more than the penultimate loser of a bid to the White House.
God bless the United States of America, God Bless our troops both home and abroad, and SEMPER FI.
Book Description
Stephen Wayne, a leading scholar of presidential electoral politics, describes and analyzes the crucial politics, procedures, and strategies behind campaign finance, media relations, nominating conventions, and the general election. The post-election edition includes a thorough analysis of the entire 2000 presidential election and its dramatic conclusion.
Customer Reviews:
A textbook, not a report on the campaign.......2005-04-29
This was written before the 2004 campaign as a guide for following the campaign, and does not include info re: the campaign itself. As such, it's rather dry but useful for a hard-care politics junkie.
Book Description
The True Story of Two Master Criminals Aiming to Take America's Biggest Prize and Our Security Agencies' Systematic Inability to Stop Them by the Former Intelligence Agent Recruited to Foil Their Plan
Robert Sensi has worked for the CIA, the Republican National Committee, and, as cover, for Kuwait Airways and the Kuwaiti royal family. He has twice served time in federal prison for embezzlement and fraud. Richard Hirschfeld, originally recruited to the CIA by Sensi, boasts an equally illustrious past: in the seventies he duped investors out of millions of dollars, later allegedly stole a $12-million payoff from Ferdinand Marcos intended for Ronald Reagan, and came within a hairbreadth of conning the U.S. Senate out of $50 million.
When the Department of Homeland Security suspects that Sensi and Hirschfeld are at the center of an investigation involving money laundering and the funding of Al Qaeda-and when their supposedly comprehensive database turns up little to no information on either man-it takes onetime spy Larry Kolb to crack the case, ultimately orchestrating Hirschfeld's spectacular capture. But when Kolb begins to connect the dots, he realizes something even more sinister is afoot, and that he's on to the biggest possible con with the highest political stakes.
Customer Reviews:
Excelent story and well written.......2007-05-14
This book has some very interesting insight into a real story that depicts how some things work in this world... how someone can get all the way to the "kitchen" with the Bush's and be an outlaw. Very well written novel also! Only con would be some far fetched conspiracy theeories laid out at the beginning of the book and never proved during the book.
Fiction Is Stranger Than Truth.......2007-04-23
I'm sure most of what Mr. Kolb says is true about Hirschfeld and Sensi but I suspect he uses this capital to serve his ultimate goal -- to trash everything Republican. As a hit piece of this magnitude he is unconvincing. Ironically, if the picture Kolb has painted of these two con men is accurate and their abilitiy to use powerful figures is proven, then why is he not looking to find innocence in the many Republican politicians that seem to have been used? Why does he automatically see conspiracy on a wider scale within the GOP?
He seems to trust "The Gray Eminence" and other people he has actually talked to like Engin Yesil. John Kerry is a war hero (Bush a poseur). He uses the term neo-con as a perjorative. Wolfowitz, Rice et al are war mongers out of touch with what....the omniscient benevolence of the Kerry team? A balanced outing of the "facts" would have at least included some rebuttal. There is none. He says at the beginning he is non-partisan. Nice try.
He believes he is saving the world from evil. Has Kolb read Bill Sammon's book "At Any Cost - How Al Gore Tried To Steal The Election"? How that egalitarian and progressive organization, the Chicago Daley Machine was called in as a fixer for the Florida recount? There is no paucity of evil in America. Why be seletive?
The fact is that both parties have operatives. Both parties are involved in scullduggery. And because of the hightened political climate both parties have a stake in deeming the other an enemy. I think the day of a mere advisarial relationship between left and right is over.
We all pick sides. Kolb is on the Democratic team.
criminals, no conspiracy.......2007-03-19
An entertaining book, as long as you don't believe the far-fetched conspiracy theories. The author takes a fact here, a factoid there, on and on and tries to put them together for a grand conspiracy. As far as I could tell, it's really just the story of some con men, talented and interesting though they were.
becomes weird.......2007-03-12
This started off as interesting, but I lost interest when he started writing page after page about Muhammud Ali as the greatest man who ever lived. Toward the end, the book became a reason to bash the right, although the author claims he isn't. Kold is a left wing partisan, and it shows. Too bad, as the books holds real promise.
FASCINATING .......2007-03-08
America at Night is one of the most riveting books I've read in a long while. I absolutely couldn't put it down. Not only is the story completely intriguing, but Kolb--unlike many true crime authors--can really write. The man is obviously a born storyteller. And in this case, the story he's telling happens to be true--which makes the book all the more fascinating. I highly recommend this to anyone interested in how politics really works in this country, or anyone that just enjoys a compulsive, compelling read.
Amazon.com
Nearly a year after the presidential election of 2004, Al Franken is still checking facts, exposing lies, and trying to clear the record as he sees it. Sneering at President Bush's declaration of a mandate after a two-and-a-half percent victory, he deconstructs Bush's 2004 platform of "fear, smear, and queers," and explains how the president has done some flip-flopping of his own. He offers comment on well-known stories, including the Terri Schiavo case, and some more obscure, such as reports of forced prostitution, indentured servitude, and squalid conditions at clothing factories in Saipan (which is part of the American Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands). Franken focuses on Tom DeLay's connection to the territory and his efforts to prevent bills from being passed that would have required Saipan to follow U.S. labor laws. Iraq, too, is discussed, from its planning stages to the huge sum of money currently unaccounted for, including $8.8 billion missing from the Coalition Provisional Authority's coffers.
On the home front, Franken covers President Bush's attempt at Social Security reform, explaining how they came up with the projected shortfall figure of $11 trillion. For one thing, they adjusted life expectancy to 150 years, while leaving the retirement age at 67: "That's an eighty-three-year retirement. They're never gonna get to that without stem cell research." He also takes some wickedly funny swipes at Karl Rove, lobbyist Jack Abramoff, pundits and hosts such as Rush Limbaugh, Tim Russert, and Sean Hannity, and, of course, President Bush. The Truth succeeds in providing ammunition to liberals and others dissatisfied with the current power base in Washington, D.C.--only this time (with jokes). --Shawn Carkonen
An Exclusive Video for The Truth (with jokes) from Al Franken
We try to keep things civil in our customer review section, but Al Franken, who apparently trained at the Saturday Night Live school of conflict mediation, didn't get the message in his exclusive video for his book The Truth (with Jokes): see high bandwidth and low bandwidth versions.
Book Description
Al FrankenÂ's landmark bestseller, Lies (And the Lying Liars Who Tell Them): A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right, was praised as a “bitterly funny assault” (The New York Times) that rang “with the moral clarity of an angelÂ's trumpet” (The Associated Press). Now, this master of political humor strikes again with a powerful and provocative message for all of us.
In these pages, Al reveals the alarming story of how:
* Bush (barely) beat Kerry with his campaign of “fear, smear, and queers,” and then claimed a nonexistent mandate.
* “Casino Jack”Abramoff, the RepublicansÂ' nearest and dearest friend, made millions of dollars off of the unspeakable misery of the poor and the powerless. And, also, Native Americans.
* The administration successfully implemented its strategy to destroy AmericaÂ's credibility and goodwill around the world.
Complete with new material for this paperback edition, The Truth (with jokes) is more than just entertaining, intelligent, and insightful. It is at once prescient in its analysis of right-wing mendacity and incompetence, and inspiring in its vision of a better tomorrow for all Americans (except Jack Abramoff). BACKCOVER: “DevastatingÂ…The Truth keeps its promise to be funny about extremely unfunny matters. It matches Lies in wit, and its subjects are tougher. The gags have bite. . . .The book stays lively even when it dissects President BushÂ's views on Social Security . . .And it is effectively leavened with bits of dialogue, many of them all too real.”
—The New York Times
“Subtle, laugh-or-cry-out-loud and ultimately devastating . . .The Truth (with jokes) is guaranteed to rile the right again with its forensic lasering of Republican skullduggery and media mendacity, laced with sharp humor. . . . [Al Franken] is the voice the American left has been waiting for.”
—The Guardian (London)
Download Description
The Republicans won the White House and Congress in November. In Fall 2005, Al Franken strikes back. His new book picks up where Lies and The Al Franken Show leave off. Armed with an arsenal of facts and research (and comedy!), Al is ready to take the fight to the Bush administration and their right-wing cronies. Intelligent, insightful, inspiring, and laugh-out-loud funny, Al's hard-hitting work of political satire is poised to become the most talked about book of the year.
Customer Reviews:
Al Franken tells it like it is.......2007-09-22
This book is very well written. Al Franken tells the story of how Bush and his friends used "fear,smears, and queers" to win the 2004 election from John F. Kerry. While this book made me mad that Bush had actually beat Kerry in the election Franken did a good job in researching and writting the book. A great read for those who dont like Bush
Good book, bad technology.......2007-08-27
I enjoyed the book very much, but I made the mistake of putting it into my iPod...the disks are separated into 99 individual tracks and many are named something ridiculous...sooooooI would suggest listeing to this on the disk as is and not importing into iTunes or yout iPod. But the writing is great (Franken is always a treat) and the information is stunning.
the sad truth.......2007-08-17
Franken does it again, exposes the lies and corruption of the conservative right, and especially the Bush administration. Looking past Franken's way too left politics and occassional unfairness, you find a lot of disturbing things going on with Bush and his cronies. The book is an eyeopener, though not quite as funny as his previous works.
Humor backed by Harvard Research.......2007-08-07
Insightful and enlightening with regard to Bush's disastrous policies at home and abroad. The facts check here, unlike those of his counterparts at Faux News. The book is also chock full of Franken's ingenious brand of sarcasm. If the current political discourse between left and right can be couched in terms of humor versus hate speak, it seems humor wins here -- hands down. Thank you, Senator Al Franken!
Sometimes the jokes are a bit of a problem.......2007-07-10
This is serious stuff about the Lunatics that are running our asylum. I gained a great deal of insight about several issues and was bombarded time and time again with the hypocrisy that embodies the far right in our country today. I respect Al Franken and truly enjoy his humor, and it is through humor that he can perhaps enlighten people that might not otherwise seriously study or understand what is happening in the current administration. He does not do it with the hyperbole that I often find on both sides of the talk radio spectrum. (i.e. Rush Limbaugh and Randi Rhoades.) He just presents the facts. The problem with Franken's work is that I was often made to feel as if I were in an awkward situation, like when someone tells a joke, but you are not quite sure if they are serious or not. A case in point is when he discusses the Schiavo case and he tells an anecdote about DeLay's father crashing into a tree in his backyard when his home made tram skips the tracks. I am thinking to myself "Delay's dad has a homemade tram line in his back yard. That's a joke right?" Then he discusses how they decded to pull the plug on the guy rather than leave him as a vegetable. It was serious stuff, and had anyone else written it, I may not have questioned it, but I had to take a few seconds and ask myself if this was real. Keep in mind, DeLay was one of the most vocal opponents to pulling the plug on Schaivo, yet he did not hesitate pulling it on his own father. Bottom line is that Franken is trying so hard to throw jokes into every serious heinous action that has occured in our government for the last 6 years that sometimes it is hard to know when to laugh and when to cry. But it is highly recommended and Franken is truly a patriot.
Book Description
Strategery is a term borrowed from a Saturday Night Live skit and self-deprecatingly adopted by the White House for their meetings. White House Correspondent Bill Sammon is borrowing it yet again in his latest account of this unlikely-yet historic-president. It is written with verve and piercing insight by Sammon, who has been granted unprecedented access to President Bush, Vice President Cheney and their most senior advisers. No other journalist has interviewed the president more times than Sammon.
Customer Reviews:
Could Not Put It Down!.......2007-07-06
This is the finest 'behind the campaign scene' book I've ever read. That goes for fiction and non-fiction alike.
The way the Bush/Cheney/Rove/Rice team handle the various media attacks and political roadblocks is astounding.
Watching the top American media sources finally implode under the pressure of trying to make a great man look bad is a thing of beauty.
Like the majority of my countrymen, I voted for Bush Jr both terms. What I see in Bush is a strong leader who cares about this country.
Understanding our need to be in the middle-east, particularly Iraq, is imperative for whomever we elect in '08. I hope they will have read, 'Strategery'.
The Real West Wing.......2007-05-14
This is an awesome book, I could not put it down. It's like the tv show "The West Wing" but you know it's all real life. Bill Sammon was able to get exclusive behind the sceens access, and see first hand America go to war in Iraq, and a President win re-election and deal with Hurricane Katrina.
Childishly Written .......2007-01-23
I am a right wing super freak. I have no problems with the facts or views in this book. I do have a problem with the "emotional coloring" by Sammon. It's like he's trying activate certain emotions and attitudes that are childishly simplistic. Right out of the gate we go into the siege of Rove's home by misinformed libby protestors. Rove comes off sounding like a man cowering in a corner while people pound on his windows like a dawn of the dead movie. This book talks down to readers in a condescending way that only small children wouldn't notice and I keep remembering books from my childhood....."see Jane run." Bill....please stop helping my party.
Like Sitting in the Oval Office.......2006-08-15
This is Bill Sammon's third book on the Presidency of George W. Bush. The extraordinary access given to Mr. Sammon is evident in the detail and atmosphere that is consistent throughout this whole series. I am assuming (Always a dangerous thing!) that this access has been provided because the author actually tries to be as objective as possible, a trait sorely missing in the media of today. As this review is written, we are reacting to the discovery of the latest Islamic terror plot to kill thousands of passengers in jumbo jets over the Atlantic. Watching the press and politicians try to spin the story, along with the constant parade of altered 'news' photos from Lebanon, it is refreshing, and critically important, to know that somebody in the media actually sticks to the facts instead of injecting his political and personal prejudices into every word produced.
Mr. Sammon sticks to the facts and occasionally asks the hard questions. His unfettered access comes through in the open and easy answers the President provides to his questions. As a self professed "News Junkie", I like to think that I keep myself well informed; but I have learned much from reading this book. Mr. Sammon's "behind the scenes' insight reached it's height in his coverage of election night 2004. The reader will come away with a much clearer understanding of what really happened on Election Day 2004, and well into that night. It seemed that the TV networks had sunk as low as possible in their 2000 Election coverage, but they managed to top their sorry performance in 2004. Throughout the marathon, shamelessly prolonged by the media, Mr. Sammon conveys the evolving situation, from the disastrous, flawed early exit polls, through the state-by-state results trickling in throughout the evening, to the media attempts to influence the results in the 'battleground' state of Ohio. As the events of the night unfold, Mr. Sammon accurately captures the highs and lows of the Bush team as they try to make sense of conflicting and contradictory information. His account of how the President and his inner circle reacted to, and attempted to interpret, what was actually happening, alone makes the book worth reading.
This is the third installment of Mr. Sammon's coverage of the Bush Administration, and the three books flow easily, covering the past six years in his easy, readable style.
This is no "Puff Piece" about the Bush Era, but a balanced, easily read account of what has happened on the inside. These are difficult times, and it is important that we all stay well informed and involved. This book makes it easier to do so. It will be interesting to see how these books stand the test of time. I'm hopeful that Mr. Sammon will continue his series with the finale.
Journalistic month-in-review time capsule summary of the Bush-Kerry campaign (+2005 events). See Fred Barnes book info below........2006-07-26
The "real John Kerry walked onto the stage in Coral Gables, Florida, and Americans saw not a cartoon, but a flesh-and-blood person with poise and grace and serious arguments about important issues. The man appeared downright reasonable and at times even likeable." But that man was bested, in the end, by another on election day in November. This is the story of this book---rather straight foward journalistic details of what occured during the presidential campaign of 2004 that enabled the latter to triumph so, rather than with analysis of how events played out. The author, a journalist with the Washington Times, thus rehashes the following in succession: The Abu Ghraib whirlwind, Kerry's courting of John McCain as his VP running mate, the Democratic Party's convention, the Swift Boat Veterans appearance on the political stage, Zell Miller and the Republican Party's national convention, the CBS News fake documents fiasco, the presidential debates and, finally, the election itself. But the book doesn't not stop here (at page 208), but continues to describe a George Bush trip to Chile, Bush's inauguration, Iraq's successful first real election, the crisis in Lebanon set off by the assassination of that country's prime minister, Pope John Paul II's funeral, the nomination of John Roberts to the US Supreme Court, hurricane Katrina, William Rehnquist's death & the nomination of Samuel Alito (after the Harriot Miers failed candidacy). The notion of strategic "Strategery," while it is a great title, doesn't really characterize this (neverthless well-written engaging) book as it has been written, however. The subtitle of this book ("How Bush is defeating terrorists, outwitting Democrats, & confounding the mainstream media") is even less apropo since this work is not an argument per se. Imagine a newspaper's "week in review" section X 60, 70 or something. That's what this book resembles and, as such, is a time capsule of sorts which will be ever more useful as the years progress. If, however, you want to read the book that really makes an argument for George Bush that covers the same period as Mr. Sammon's does you'd be better off picking up a copy of "Rebel-in-Chief" by Fred Barnes. Or read both in tandem if such is your inclination. (06Jul) Cheers!
Book Description
An elated, victorious Truman brandishes a newspaper with the headline "Dewey Defeats Truman." Theodore Roosevelt galvanizes the crowd with a fiery stump speech. Richard Nixon wipes away sweat during his debate with a poised JFK. Against the backdrop of a towering flag, Reagan captivates crowds with his promise of a stronger, prouder America. Bill Clinton weaves a spell with his saxophone. Throughout American history, few events have commanded the undivided attention of the public the way presidential campaigns have. Now the enduring moments of inspiration, the humiliating gaffes, and the heartbreaking losses of these campaigns are captured in a historic collection of photographs from America's greatest photojournalists.
From the divisive election of Abraham Lincoln to the opening salvos of the 2004 campaign, America's presidents -- and pretenders to the office -- come to life in these pages. These men embody not only the drama of their times, but also the great arc of American history. They are captured here in pivotal and telling campaign moments: on the stage and behind the scenes, on whistle-stop tours, at high-voltage conventions, and in head-to-head debates. Accompanied by political adviser Douglas E. Schoen's trenchant essays, the striking photographs in
On the Campaign Trail offer a unique view of the moments that have united and divided us during the race for the presidency. A fascinating journey in words and images, this landmark collection brings home the drama, fanfare, and power of America's great national contest.
Customer Reviews:
A great compilation of campaigns..........2007-01-02
Wow, this book provides a great walk through American campaigns, both past and very recent. The campaign posters that are included are suburb -- some of the best available -- and the author does a nice job with the analysis portions of the book.
Great Political History..Visually Dynamic.......2004-07-12
A visually very interesting look at American Presidential campaigns..particularly timely now..much of what appears is new..at least to me..great addition to the line up of campaign books that always seems to come out at this point in the electoral cycle.
Book Description
Updated for the 2004 Presidential Election season, this collection of essays provides a fascinating tour of the history, development, and current day issues facing the American Presidency. Constitutional Origins of the Presidency; Historical Perspectives on the Presidency; Selecting Presidents: Campaigns, Elections, and Mandates; The Public Presidency: Press, Media, and Public Approval; The Institutional Presidency; The Separation of Powers; Domestic Policy Leadership; Commander-in-Chief and National Security; Evaluating Presidents: Greatness and Abuse of Power. Anyone interested in the American presidency
Customer Reviews:
Textbook.......2007-08-08
I read this book as part of the required reading for a course on, well, the presidency. It was a very nice supplement to class discussion. By that I mean it discussed in-depth issues of the presidency and in some cases clarified the professor's answers. A great read if you're looking to understand the evolution of the American Presidency and how our political system has changed with it.
Book Description
On the afternoon of Election Day 2004, the world was abuzz with the news: Exit polls indicated that John Kerry would win the election and become the next president of the United States. That proved not to be the case.
According to the official count-that is the number of votes tallied, not necessarily the number of votes cast-George W. Bush beat Kerry by a margin of three million votes. The exit polls however had predicted a margin of victory for Kerry of five million votes. In every "battleground" state across the nation the final tally swung clearly beyond the exit poll's margin of error to favor the president.
How can one explain this eight-million-vote discrepancy between the Election Day exit polls and the official count? Either the exit poll data was wrong or the official count was wrong.
Was the 2004 Presidential Election Stolen? analyzes the exit poll data and looks at documented examples of conventional vote suppression and outright vote fraud. It investigates the possibility that enough election fraud occurred to determine the outcome of the presidential race. And it asks the question why neither the government, nor the Democratic Party, nor any major media organization did their own investigation.
Steve Freeman has a PhD in organization studies from MIT's Sloan School of Management. He is a visiting scholar at the University of Pennsylvania's Center for Organizational Dynamics, where he teaches research methods and survey design (a domain that includes polling). He has received four national awards for best research paper of the year-on four different topics in three different fields.
Joel Bleifuss, a journalist of 23 years, is the editor of In These Times. In his 18 years there, he has had more articles cited as one of the Top Censored Stories of the Year by Project Censored than any other journalist.
Customer Reviews:
Why isn't this masterpiece of research and analysis better known?.......2007-06-26
This is a phenomenal book in every way. It was also very difficult to read--not because it is written badly (it's not), but because the book makes it abundantly clear that the 2004 election was stolen--and our democracy failed us, badly. Why didn't this book get a lot of attention from the press? Why was it not reviewed in the New York Times? Why are so few people aware of this book and its first-rate scholarship?
A service to our country, a tribute to science and reason.......2007-03-08
This book uses the science of statistics to destroy any notion that the 2004 election was accurately and honestly recorded. Every excuse for the exit polls is refuted. It may take a Ph.D in statistics to write this book but the facts are so clear, anyone with a grasp of arithmetic and open to reality can understand the book and appreciate its warning to us.
Look at the other reviews. See which ones are reasoned and supported by details. See which ones are fact free dismissals.
Wah wah wah, cry some more liberals.......2007-02-05
This book is nothing but whines and tears from the Democrat Party that lost the election in 2004. Over two years later and the Democrats still cannot accept their loss. The whole premise of this book is that exit polls showed Kerry slightly ahead so Kerry was the real winner. Too bad for the Democrat Party that exit polls do not decide elections.
There are a number of valid explanations for the disparity between the exit polls and the actual results. The most obvious one is that Bush voters tend to dislike the biased liberal media so they don't respond to their polls or they lie to them in spite. I know if someone from CBS came up to me and asked how I voted I would spit on them. The 2004 election was just a short month after the liberal biased media tried to slam Bush with forged memos typed in Microsoft Word 1973 edition so anti-liberal media sentiment among conservatives was even higher then than it is now.
America elected Bush and liberals just cannot stand it. This book is just comical. Liberals need to take their own advice and "MOVE ON".
Your duty as an American citizen is to read this book.......2007-01-09
Every American who takes the integrity of elections for granted must read this book because its evidence is so strong and its conclusions are so shocking. The first author is an MIT-trained expert in statistical analysis in social sciences, and the book is chock full of hard evidence, not conspiracy theories. Here is a terse summary of the evidence.
1. Systematic Discrepancies Between Exit Poles and Ballot Counts
Discrepancies between poll exit interviews and official vote counts are far beyond the limits of statistical probability in many places.
* Exit poles closely tracked vote counts in precincts that used paper ballots in the 2000 and 2004 elections.
* Exit poles diverged by 6-7% from certified vote counts on electronic voting machines.
* The discrepancies increased in proportion to how important a state or precinct vote was in determining the electoral vote and whether the voting in that polity was administered and tallied by Republicans.
* In 2000, 2002 and 2004, virtually all large discrepancies favor Republicans, which coincidence has odds of occurrence of one in millions.
For the past 40 years, poll exit interviews have proven highly reliable checks on integrity of elections. Exit polling methods have been refined to account for numerous secondary distortions in accuracy, such as different response rates to exit poles by various demographic and political groups.
The cumulative effects of these divergences were to give Bush-Cheney both elections in spite of the strong evidence from exit poles that they did not win in either 2000 or 2004.
2. Vote Suppression
Election officials have practiced voter suppression for specific demographic groups and precincts. For example, in Florida
* Criteria for accepting voter registrations, allowing slightly defective ballots, voter identification requirements at the polls, acceptance of absentee ballots, and other factors affecting the vote count differ by precinct, and tend toward looser standards in Republican precincts.
* African Americans tend to vote Democratic, while Cuban-Hispanics tend to vote Republican. Voting machines and problem resolution systems tend to be inadequate in African American areas and adequate in Cuban-Hispanic areas. Lists intended to exclude former felons from voter roles (done in no other country in the world) contained race information and were assembled with very rough name matching, but virtually excluded Hispanic names.
The methods of voter suppression used in several states are too numerous to recount here.
3. Insecure Voting Machines
DRE (direct recording electronic) voting machines are exceptionally prone to error or fraud yet by 2004 they recorded about about 1/3 of votes and their share is growing. Computer experts unanimously condemn as DRE machines as unreliable, easy targets for fraud, and lacking in a paper trail for verification.
DRE voting machines are virtually unregulated black boxes, compared to slot machines in Nevada. For example,
* The state of Nevada has access to all gambling software. It is illegal for casinos to use software that is not on file. Software for electronic voting machines is a trade secret.
* Board inspectors show up unannounced at casinos to compare computer chips to those on file. No checks of voting machines are required, and even if an election official wants to, he or she would not have a chip to compare to the one in the machine.
* Slot machine manufacturers are subject to background checks that last 6 months or more, and any uncovered criminal record is investigated. Citizens have no way of knowing, for example, if e-voting programmers or industry executives have been convicted of fraud. In fact, at least one key technical executive in a voting machine company has a previous conviction for fraud.
* Slot machines are certified by a public agency that maintains and arms length relationship with manufacturers. Public questions are invited. Voting machines are certified by for-profit companies chosen and paid by the manufacturers. No public information is available on how the testing is done.
* If a gambler believes he or she has been cheated, the casino is required to contact the Gaming Control Board, which has investigators on call around the clock. Investigators can open machines to inspect their internal mechanisms and their records of recent gambling outcomes. If a voter believes a machine has manipulated his/her vote, in most cases the only recourse is to call the Board of Elections to lodge a complain that may or may not be investigated.
In 2005 a commission headed by Jimmy Carter and James Baker called for an auditable paper trail for all votes. In Florida, and to some extent nationally, Republicans oppose expenditures to provide paper trails for elections. Democrats support such measures.
4. Defects in Electoral Procedures
In 2004, President Jimmy Carter's foundation, which specializes in monitoring elections in other countries, stated that "Some basic international requirements for a fair election are missing in Florida," the most significant of which are: (1) a non-partisan electoral commission or official, (2) uniformity in voting procedures.
5. Intervention by the Supreme Court in 2000
In the 2000 presidential election, had the US Supreme Court allowed the Florida recount to go ahead as ordered by Judge Allen, Gore would have clearly won.
* In 2000, Florida Judge Terry Allen, overseer of the 2004 Florida vote, ruled for a recount and that the clear intent of every vote should be counted when it could be ascertained as per the standard set by the Florida State Supreme Court. Republicans petitioned the US Supreme Court to stop the Florida recount ordered by Judge Allen and the Republican majority on the Supreme Court ordered the recount stopped.
* So called "overvotes" (ballots having improper marks outside the check boxes) that were rejected by voting machines were later examined by researchers and classified. When the rejected overvotes with clear intent were counted, Gore received 68,200 votes and Bush received 23,802; therefore, Gore won Florida by over 40,000 votes which would have overturned the certified 537 vote advantage given to Bush by the Republican administered voting process. Even if only the category of rejected "overvotes" had been included in the certified vote where a candidate's name was written in and the ballot was properly marked for the same candidate, Gore would have won.
6. Fear of Raising such an Explosive Issue
The media, exit polling companies, and the Democratic Party focus on anecdotal evidence of fraud. They deemphasize the most competent professional analyses, which establish that fraud was extremely likely in many elections, including two presidential elections, from 2000 to 2004. Systemic fraud in presidential elections is so explosive that mainstream institutions avoid seriously raising the issue.
The book explains many other types of fraud that contributed a few (ten or hundred) thousand votes each that were more than enough to account for the Bush margin of victory in the popular vote and the electoral college.
7. Conclusion
The book is full of statistical tests of the probability of the outcomes in the 2000, 2002 and 2004 elections. The authors conclude that systemic fraud must be present in American elections during this period. In the 2006 midterm elections, the gains by Democrats were significantly less than the gains indicated by exit polls. The problem has not gone away.
Actual and potential electoral fraud could be greatly reduced by some basic reforms - such as insisting on nonpartisan electoral commissions, paper trails for all votes, and effective poll exit surveys). Obviously Americans must address these issues before any others in the electoral system.
Politicians need public backing and outcry to fix the growing systematic fraud occurring in U.S. elections.
Here's the evidence that it was.......2006-09-25
How can a democratic country allow voting machines that cannot be verified? How can it let interested parties run elections? How can the media stand by while people are not allowed to vote? The answer is that a democratic country can't do this and remain democratic.
This book provides a huge amount of statistical evidence that the official results do not match what actually hapenned in the 2004 election. It's very convincing, and hopefully will demonstrate to many people that we will lose our democracy if we don't demand fair elections.
Books:
- Breaking Through Bureaucracy: A New Vision for Managing in Government
- Bush at War
- Bushmanders and Bullwinkles: How Politicians Manipulate Electronic Maps and Census Data to Win Elections
- Chaotic Elections! A Mathematician Looks at Voting
- Choice Words: How Our Language Affects Children's Learning
- Conspiracy Encyclopedia: The Encyclopedia of Conspiracy Theories
- Contemporary Urban Planning (7th Edition)
- Corrections in America (11th Edition) (Corrections in America: An Introduction)
- Criminal Justice Today: An Introductory Text for the 21st Century (8th Edition)
- Criminal Profiling: An Introduction to Behavioral Evidence Analysis (2nd Edition)
Books Index
Books Home
Recommended Books
- Investment under Uncertainty
- Every Year on Your Birthday
- The Red Book Kirchner's Insurance Directories South Central East 2004: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi
- Viva Mallorca!: One Mallorcan Autumn
- Adios to My Old Life
- Classic and Contemporary Readings in the Philosophy of Education
- Barbaro: The Horse Who Captured America's Heart
- Beginner's Guide to SolidWorks 2006
- Understanding Hospitality Accounting I
- PostSecret: Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives
History
| Subjects
| Books
| Africa
| Americas
| Ancient
| Arctic & Antarctica
| Asia
| Audiobooks
| Australia & Oceania
| Books on CD
| Books on Cassette
| Europe
| Gay & Lesbian
| Historical Study
| Large Print
| Middle East
| Military
| Military Science
| Russia
| United States
| World
The Best Democracy Money Can Buy
Failed States: The Abuse of Power and the Assault on Democracy
Conservatives Without Conscience
Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army
Screwed: The Undeclared War Against the Middle Class - And What We Can Do about It (BK Currents)
