Rumsfeld: A Personal Portrait - Hardcover

Midge Decter

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0756788277 ISBN 13: 9780756788278

Publisher: Harper Collins, 2003

Synopsis

The making of
an American icon

The sudden rise of Donald Rumsfeld to political stardom has been one of the most unexpected developments of the last few years. When he was appointed secretary of defense, no one foresaw that he would become the most prominent and influential member of President George W. Bush's cabinet. But as the main architect of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, Rumsfeld moved into a central position as a policymaker. And through his televised briefings, he also moved into the spotlight, where he won the almost worshipful admiration of millions of Americans by the extraordinary directness, agility, and confident poise he showed in handling the press.

Drawing on her long acquaintance with Rumsfeld, a wealth of documents, and interviews with him and his family, friends, and colleagues, Midge Decter provides riveting accounts of the many milestones marking the journey Rumsfeld made from the suburbs of Chicago to the Pentagon. There is the insurgent young congressman; the head of the Office of Economic Opportunity; the ambassador to NATO; the White House chief of staff; the youngest ever secretary of defense; the successful corporate executive; and, finally, the spectacular second tour of duty as secretary of defense under Bush.

As this remarkable story unfolds, Decter brings her knowledge of American culture to bear on the question of why so many Americans have responded so fervently to Rumsfeld. In answering, she points to the values of the Midwest in which he was born and bred and the powerful appeal they still exert in spite of how old-fashioned they seem in certain circles.

Decter's fascinating account of the life and career of Donald Rumsfeld, lavishly illustrated with photographs from the private collection of the Rumsfeld family, is, then, essential reading for anyone who wishes to become better acquainted with a key figure in public life -- a figure whose rise to stardom sheds new light on the current condition of the American people.

About this title

About the Author:

Midge Decter is an author and editor whose essays and reviews have appeared in Harper's, The Atlantic, National Review, The New Republic, and The Weekly Standard. A regular contributor to Commentary, she is also the author of several books, the most recent being An Old Wife's Tale. She is a member of the board of the Heritage Foundation, the Center for Security Policy, First Things magazine of the Institute on Religion and Public Life, and the Clare Boothe Luce Fund, and she lectures widely on a variety of subjects, from the family to foreign policy. She lives in New York City with her husband, author Norman Podhoretz.

From Publishers Weekly:

With his dry wit and deliberate demeanor, Bush defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld became a television personality through his daily press briefings following the 9/11 terrorist attacks and subsequent wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. Now, Rumsfeld gets an adoring biopic from an adoring writer. In breathless, reverential prose, conservative essayist Decter (Liberal Parents, Radical Children; etc.) offers a personal, thoroughly uncritical profile of the defense secretary, whom she has known and admired for years. From modest Chicago roots, Rumsfeld went on to Princeton University, achieved success in business, served three terms in Congress and, at age 43, became the youngest secretary of defense in the nation's history and a close adviser to President Gerald Ford. More than two decades later, Rumsfeld is reprising his role as defense secretary under President George W. Bush, and while, true-to-form, ruffling feathers at the Pentagon, has been suddenly thrust to prominence under extraordinary circumstances. Clearly, Rumsfeld, one of the first and foremost proponents of using technology to remake the U.S. military, owns a career worth examining. Decter's doting paean, however, so exceedingly praises its subject that it is nearly impossible to take seriously. The book's tone is set in an almost surreal prelude where an elegant, anonymous New York socialite confesses to Decter that she has Rumsfeld's picture hanging in her dressing room. From there, Decter attacks Rumseld's critics with sycophantic zeal and attempts to build events in the secretary's life and career into the stuff of legend. Even fans of Rumsfeld's will find that this overwrought hagiography trivializes the secretary's impressive, if at times controversial, career.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harper Collins
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0756788277
• ISBN 13: 9780756788278
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 220