...and the Horse He Rode In On: The People V. Kenneth Starr [Hardcover]

James Carville (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 24, 2011

This is a blistering attack on the prosecutors of the Clinton scandals. James Carville questions the sex-obsessed investigation by Special Prosecutor Kenneth Starr, suggesting that after four years and $40 million it can only represent an historic violation of fairness and justice.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Nobody can accuse James Carville, the strategist for Bill Clinton's 1992 presidential campaign, of hiding his feelings. "You know something? I don't like Ken Starr. I don't like one damn thing about him. I don't like his politics. I don't like his sanctimony. I don't like his self-piety. I don't like the people he runs with...." And longtime Carville observers know that his dislike's been brewing since Starr was appointed to the independent prosecutor's office back in 1994 by a crony of ultraconservative Senator Jesse Helms to look into alleged financial misconduct on the part of Bill and Hillary Clinton in the Whitewater case.

Carville piles on the evidence for his argument that Starr, with his partisan politics and numerous conflicts of interest, should never have been let anywhere near Whitewater, let alone allowed to pry into the personal relationship that Clinton had with Monica Lewinsky in the mid-'90s. And he stands by his man, commenting, "In my mind, an indiscretion here and an indiscretion there will never amount to a tenth of cruelty." Even those who can't stand Carville's relentless style--who else would have the nerve to ask "What the heck is [Bill Bennett] talking about? Has he completely lost his mind?"--will be hard-pressed to refute the multiple charges of abuse of prosecutorial power. And this is dang sure the only book about the Clinton controversies that includes a mouthwaterin' recipe for brisket.

Review

"...And the Horse He Rode in On" doesn't pretend to be anything other than it is: a full-throttle partisan critique, a loud cry of "foul play!" -- The New York Times Book Review, Jonathan Lear

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; 1ST edition (October 24, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684857340
• ISBN-13: 978-0684857343
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,775,733 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fact anotated, July 12, 2000

By 

Robin Orlowski "political activist" (United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: ...and the Horse He Rode In On: The People V. Kenneth Starr (Hardcover)

Like many people, I was not intially aware just how bad Ken Starr really was. Although I was a Clinton Loyalist inspite of White House problems, I never imagined Mr. Starr would have taken the investigation to the heights he did. Somewhere along the line. the independent prosecutor decided that he was above the law.

Although not as hefty as several of the other books doccumenting the Clinton Inqusition, Carvile provides a basic summary of the real story and congressional overreaction to it. Yes, Clinton has problems, but seeing as how hidden extramartial affairs crossed party lines, this was never something that was supposed to be investigated.

When I bought this book amidst impachment hearings, I genuinely did not know if congress was going to remember the will of the people. Each day of coverage seemed more twisted and horrific than the next. Reading this book really helped me through those times and I would highly recomend it to anybody who was interested in getting the bare facts about sexual McCarthyism.

May future generations grow up without personally experiencing the near tragedy I witnessed.

36 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Informative and shocking, December 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: ...and the Horse He Rode In On: The People V. Kenneth Starr (Hardcover)

James Carville, set out to do the same thing he says Ken Starr did Starr, launching a paristan attack. However, James Carville doesn't have supeona power and isn't a government employee. James Carville has the right to be partisan and polimic because he is a private citizen. Ken Starr doesn't have that right because he the Special Prosecutor. I didn't agree with Mr. Carville that the Clinton's committed no crimes in Whitewater, I think that Congress needed to appoint an independent Counsul to investigate it. However after reading this book I certainly don't believe that Ken Starr should ever have been appointed to the post. The conflicts of interests of Starr that Carville documents are too many to count. Whatever you think of Bill Clinton he never should have been hounded by the not-too-Independant Counsul. I'm giving the book four stars because James Carville made many valid points.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book has new relevance after election 2000, August 16, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: ...and the Horse He Rode In On: The People V. Kenneth Starr (Hardcover)

I have been a fan of Carville for many years, but this is the first book that I have ever read by the Ragin' Cajun. First of all, and with all do respect, his writing style is much more relaxed than his "boiling" over demeanor that we often see on TV. This book is a hilarious but factual description of how Kenneth Starr from the get-go was the vessel of radical conservative movement willing to blatantly subvert the law and the constitution of the United States to bring down and humiliate Bill Clinton and his wife. Meticulous in detail and well documented, the book brings to light the blatant use of the "unbiased" legal system as a political weapon. This abuse will involve many of the same players two years later in the judicial coup of 2000. As if the reader needed additional reminders about the subject of the book, the pages are sporadically peppered with comical mini shots of Ken Starr's mug giving his sanctimonious non-smile or his bogus concerned lip pursing among other poses. This is a great little book, I am glad I found it.