Bush's Brain: How Karl Rove Made George W. Bush Presidential - Hardcover

Moore, James; Slater, Wayne

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0471423270 ISBN 13: 9780471423270

Publisher: Wiley, 2003

Synopsis

Praise for Bush's Brain

"Love him or hate him, Karl Rove is one of the most brilliant and successful political consultants of all time. In this riveting account, Wayne Slater and Jim Moore tell how he got there." —Paul Begala, CNN's Crossfire

"Bush's Brain isn't a hatchet job on George W. Bush. In fact, the two authors largely dispel the myth of Bush's supposedly deficient IQ. But, more importantly, they lay bare the story of how Karl Rove may be the most powerful man in America. It's a compelling story told by two veteran Texas journalists who don't need a briefing packet to understand the men they're writing about." —Philip Bruce, KCET/PBS Television, Los Angeles

The most powerful individual in the United States may not be George W. Bush. It is probably Karl Rove, the President's brilliant advisor. Who is this man and how did he acquire so much power? Having watched in awe for over fifteen years as they reported on the rise of Karl Rove, Moore and Slater expose the brutal and sometimes morally questionable, but invariably effective ways in which Karl Rove?and America's political system—actually operate.

About this title

About the Author

JAMES MOORE is an Emmy Award?winning TV news correspondent with more than a quarter century of print and broadcast experience. He has traveled extensively on every presidential campaign since 1976. His reports have appeared on CNN, NBC, and CBS. His professional honors include an Emmy from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, the Edward R. Murrow Award from the Radio Television News Director?s Association, and the Individual Broadcast Achievement Award from the Texas Headliners? Foundation.

WAYNE SLATER is the Bureau Chief of the Dallas Morning News in Austin, Texas. He has traveled extensively, covering national and state politics for the newspaper. Mr. Slater traveled full-time for eighteen months covering the presidential campaign of George W. Bush. He has covered every Republican and Democratic national convention since 1988, six sessions of the Texas Legislature, and the administrations of Texas Governors Bill Clements, Ann Richards, and George W. Bush. Mr. Slater is a frequent guest on numerous network and cable political programs.

"Love him or hate him, Karl Rove is one of the most brilliant and successful political consultants of all time. In this riveting account, Wayne Slater and Jim Moore tell how he got there."
–Paul Begala, CNN’s Crossfire

"Bush’s Brain isn’t a hatchet job on George W. Bush. In fact, the two authors largely dispel the myth of Bush’s supposedly deficient IQ. But, more importantly, they lay bare the story of how Karl Rove may be the most powerful man in America. It’s a compelling story told by two veteran Texas journalists who don’t need a briefing packet to understand the men they’re writing about."
–Philip Bruce, KCET/PBS Television, Los Angeles

The most powerful individual in the United States may not be George W. Bush. It is probably Karl Rove, the President’s brilliant advisor. Who is this man and how did he acquire so much power? Having watched in awe for over fifteen years as they reported on the rise of Karl Rove, Moore and Slater expose the brutal and sometimes morally questionable, but invariably effective ways in which Karl Rove–and America’s political system–actually operate.

From the Inside Flap

"Without Karl Rove, there would be no President George W. Bush. Rove is co-president of the United States."
–From the Introduction

Behind every successful politician lies a group of fiercely loyal individuals who help make the dream of holding public office become a reality. In President George W. Bush’s case, one person has always stood above the rest. His name is Karl Rove. Dubbed "the man with the plan" by the President himself, White House Senior Advisor Karl Rove helped develop the political career of George W. Bush and continues to be a guiding force within the current Bush White House. But who is Karl Rove and how did he acquire such power and influence?

Bush’s Brain: How Karl Rove Made George W. Bush Presidential is the first in-depth examination of Rove’s remarkable political journey, as well as a straightforward narrative of the key role he has played in George W. Bush’s rise to the top. Equal parts biography and history of late twentieth-century politics, this fascinating book pieces together the puzzle of Rove’s extraordinary political life through personal interviews with Rove himself as well as revealing stories from friends and foes alike. Veteran political journalists James Moore and Wayne Slater take you on a fast-paced ride that uncovers both the masterful skills and secret machinations of the President’s chief political strategist. You’ll gain the inside story on how Rove:

• Destroyed the careers of people who opposed his ideas and his candidates
• Planned "secret" classes to teach George W. Bush how government works
• Ran brutal yet brilliant campaigns that eventually swept Bush into the White House
• Impacted the midterm elections of 2002
• Exerts his influence in virtually every presidential decision–whether it involves steel import tariffs or extending the war on terrorism

Karl Rove is both feared and admired by Republicans and Democrats alike. In the fullness of his accomplishments, Rove has raised a new and disturbing question for American voters and their republic: Who really runs this country? In Bush’s Brain: How Karl Rove Made George W. Bush Presidential, you’ll enter a world of power and politics where few dare to venture–and leave with a better understanding of how much power Karl Rove really has.

Reviews

The complete subordination of public policy to political calculation is the theme of this hard-hitting biography of über-advisor Karl Rove. Drawing on their own reporting and interviews with Rove friends and foes, journalists Moore and Slater trace Rove's rise from high-school pol to high-priced, bare-knuckled campaign consultant, to his current perch as unrivaled architect of Bush administration policy. With an uncanny head for voting trends and poll results, a masterful way with a donor list and a gift for political re-packaging, Rove groomed Bush to ride the compassionate conservatism strategy straight to the White House. It's a colorful story, full of dirty tricks, misleading attack ads and sleazy whispering campaigns that drown out the issues. To the authors, Rove's "co-presidency" marks "the apotheosis of the permanent campaign," with everything from farm subsidies to steel tariffs to the saber-rattling against Iraq a part of his carefully considered mid-term election plans. The authors' line on Rove is by now conventional wisdom, but they bring it to life with a wealth of detail, painting nuanced character studies of Rove, the driven intellectual with an abrasive edge and an iron will to win, and Bush, the callow anti-intellectual with a charming air and a need for discipline and a game plan. Rove may not be the "genius" behind Bush's election they say he is-after all, there was more than campaign wizardry at work behind that contested victory-but he is a compelling character on the American political stage.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Wiley
• Publication date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0471423270
• ISBN 13: 9780471423270
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 416