dennisw
05-19-2005, 18:28
Just finished reading A Matter of Character( inside the White House of George W. Bush) by Ronald Kessler. This book is very well written and provides real insight into the inner workings of the Bush Administration. The Author also interviews a substantial amount of Bush's long term friends and their views are of real interest.
He also interviews a wide variety of white house staffers and secret service agents and includes their stories related to some of the former presidents. Their views are very interesting and for me, they were a bit startling. He spends a fair amount of time highlighting the substantive differences between Bush and fromer presidents Carter, Johnson, Nixon and Clinton. I believe the Author is pissed that some of these former president are held in high esteem when according to him they were/are real sh** bags. For example, many folks believe Carter is a saint, but the people who had to work for him were of a completely different opinion.
It reminded me of the quote in Kyobanim's profile: "If you want to get the true measure of a person, watch how he treats a person who can do him no good." Apparently some of these guys cared very little for the ordinary citizens in their periphery and only about their public persona. However, he believes Bush is a straight forward person caring more about the job he's doing than what the media thinks of him. He makes a very convincing argument.
Kessler really slams the Clintons which is hilarious. Of special interest was Clinton's complete lack of leadership in every facet of his presidency. From cancelling the daily meetings with the CIA after six months, spending millions on trips to far away places for no apparent reason, having sex with an intern, the list of screw-ups is extensive. Clintons handling of the CIA and FBI is astounding ( almost criminal).
He tells a story of how Hillary fired an older gent who worked for years in the White House because he assisted Barbara Bush setting up her laptop.
He also recounts Bush's visit to the troops in Iraq at Thanksgiving and his visit to ground zero after 9/11. Both these stories are great. Although it was repetitive at times, I really enjoyed it and would strongly recommend it.
He also interviews a wide variety of white house staffers and secret service agents and includes their stories related to some of the former presidents. Their views are very interesting and for me, they were a bit startling. He spends a fair amount of time highlighting the substantive differences between Bush and fromer presidents Carter, Johnson, Nixon and Clinton. I believe the Author is pissed that some of these former president are held in high esteem when according to him they were/are real sh** bags. For example, many folks believe Carter is a saint, but the people who had to work for him were of a completely different opinion.
It reminded me of the quote in Kyobanim's profile: "If you want to get the true measure of a person, watch how he treats a person who can do him no good." Apparently some of these guys cared very little for the ordinary citizens in their periphery and only about their public persona. However, he believes Bush is a straight forward person caring more about the job he's doing than what the media thinks of him. He makes a very convincing argument.
Kessler really slams the Clintons which is hilarious. Of special interest was Clinton's complete lack of leadership in every facet of his presidency. From cancelling the daily meetings with the CIA after six months, spending millions on trips to far away places for no apparent reason, having sex with an intern, the list of screw-ups is extensive. Clintons handling of the CIA and FBI is astounding ( almost criminal).
He tells a story of how Hillary fired an older gent who worked for years in the White House because he assisted Barbara Bush setting up her laptop.
He also recounts Bush's visit to the troops in Iraq at Thanksgiving and his visit to ground zero after 9/11. Both these stories are great. Although it was repetitive at times, I really enjoyed it and would strongly recommend it.