Customer Reviews

Is Our Children Learning? : The Case Against George W. Bush

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... With the publication of this immensely readable, witty, compact yet amply-documented book, Begala shows why we should all tremble if Bush is elected to the White House.

I'm more amazed than ever that Bush has dared to make "character" an issue in his campaign. As Begala's book attests, the red thread running through Bush's life and record is gross irresponsibility born of privilege. I already knew, for example, that Bush evaded the draft and used his father's influence to jump the waiting list for the national guard. But I was shocked to learn that Bush never showed up during the whole year that he was ordered to report to the Alabama National Guard. What's more, Bush told a press conference last June that he "didn't remember" what he did that year in Alabama. Really? The WHOLE year? (Why should that year be hazier than the two years after graduation he spent, in his words, "drinking and carousing and fumbling around")? Begala's discussion of Bush's business ventures is short but snappy. We learn about Bush's first foray, in which he raised, and promptly lost, millions of dollars invested by his father's friends-- and then sold this disaster dubbed "El Busto", by then worth just $38,000, to another of Poppy's friends for $1 million. Even more astonishing, we learn that Bush engaged in but was never prosecuted or even reproached for INSIDER TRADING in 1990 while a director of Harken Energy. He didn't even comply with the law requiring him to report the sale until eight months after the deadline. (Unfortunately the press is too busy dissecting "important issues" like open mikes and verbal gaffes to investigate commercial hanky panky).

As head of the Texas Rangers, Bush persuaded the citizens of Arlington to raise their taxes to pay for a new stadium, while the Rangers retained all the profits once it opened. Well, the people's loss was Bush's gain. For some strange reason, Bush's partners allowed him to increase his share of his holdings from 2 percent to 12 percent without Bush investing more of his own money. So, while citizens got the shaft, Bush reaped a windfall profit of over $14 million principally on shares he never bought. For doing what? For trading Sammy Sosa? Worse than that, Bush's meager record of PUBLIC service also comes across more like public plunder.

His tax plan would give the richest 1% NEARLY HALF of all tax cuts, while "most average working families would get about 60 cents per day." As Begala, citing UPI, notes, he's squandered Texas's budget surplus: "the first time in nine years that Texas has suffered a budget pinch." Thanks to Bush, say 44 environmental groups in Texas, Houston has the dirtiest air in America, causing hundreds of premature deaths each year. The problem is so bad that asthma rates among Houston's inner-city children have doubled in only two years! Small wonder too, because as Begala points out, Bush's idea of trusting people with responsibility is trusting pro-industry, anti-regulation people to occupy EVERY SINGLE position in his environmental agency. And I guess he also trusts us not to notice.

EDUCATION PRESIDENT? A cruel hoax. As Begala tells us, Bush already broke his promise to Texas voters to increase public education's share of the budget from 45% to 60%; it declined instead. Not only did Bush fail to give schools the money he promised, but he even tried to pinch $47 million from the teacher's pension fund to cover administrative costs normally funded from general revenues. He admitted in 1998: "Higher education is not my priority." Nor is the hiring of new teachers to reduce class size, universal prekindergarten, teacher testing and many other proposals Gore champions. Bush proudly chose as his running mate a man who was one of very few in the House to vote against Head Start, free immunizations for the poor, college student aid, and lunch programs for the neediest children.

Most damning are the words coming from Bush's own mouth: "I've never been a long-term planner about anything. I have lived my life with more of a short-term focus." That's in part because, as his own aides admit, Bush has an extremely short attention span. In other words, he's lazy. He can't be bothered to read 10-page policy papers. "I do need somebody to tell me where Kosovo is," he told the Manchester Guardian. I suppose reading the newspaper or looking at a map would be asking too much. (And what a fine role model for our students.) Too bad Bush didn't ask his adviser and full-time security blanket Condoleeza Rice about our delicately-crafted Taiwan policy, in place since Nixon. No president, including Dubya's Poppy, has ever been so reckless as to explicitly pledge to honor a defense pact with Taiwan. Begala writes: "Bush darn near committed us to a war with the largest country in the world." Next to that, I suppose the fear that Bush would make America a laughingstock is small potatoes. Still, I winced when I learned Bush told a Slovakian journalist: "The only thing I know about Slovakia is what I learned first-hand from your foreign minister, who came to Texas." Problem is, he met with the PRIME MINISTER of SLOVENIA.

After reading Begala's book I wondered: How can we expect Bush to keep government agencies honest and accountable if he can't be bothered with more than brief assurances and summaries spoon-fed by aides?

I agree with conservative columnist George Will, who sees Dubya as a careless, reckless adolescent. If he can't bother to prepare adequately for the most important job in the world, why should Americans bother to vote for him?

I bought this book and _George W. Bushisms : The Slate Book of The Accidental Wit and Wisdom of our 43rd President_ by George W. Bush, Jacob Weisberg. The choice of books probably tells you that I don't particularly like Bush. I still don't. Neither does the author of this book, Paul Begala. While Begala makes no claims to being non-paritisan here, he does claim to be as fair as possible to Bush, and I think that he succeeds. He raises questions about Bush and his character that somehow seem to constantly be ignored by the press, and the Republican Party-- for example, where was Bush when he was supposedly serving in the Alabama National Guard, and why can't he prove he actually served there. The book is readable with a hip sarcastic tone. It's very funny in many places. Unfortunately many of funniest patches are direct quotes from our 43rd president. If you buy it, don't buy _George W. Bushisms_ because most of them are here in the book. As a companion, I'd recommend _Shrub: the Short but Happy Political Life of George W. Bush_ by Molly Ivins instead. On the other hand, since we're stuck with Bush now, you might just want to not know about all this.

Admittedly, Begala is not the most objective person in the world, and that alone will probably keep many from reading this book. But that doesn't change the facts, which Begala has meticulously documented. He uses the words of Bush's own supporters, like Larry Lindsey. He cites studies done by objective third parties, such as The New York Times and The Dallas Morning News. He talks to people close to the issues he discusses who have worked with W, like Texas legislators. If you cut through all the "ask Karl Rove" jokes (which I really enjoyed), you'll see that Begala has gathered strong evidence against W.

For all his talk of Al Gore's character, it's clear that W is not exactly the exemplar of moral fortitude he claims he is. And I won't even mention his intellectual laziness or the fact that his success stems strictly from his family connections, both of which speak for themselves. The bottom line is that those who discount Begala's book simply because of who he is are just as partisan as he is, but even worse off because they blindly follow W without considering his record and what it shows about the kind of president he'll be. Thanks for lowering the bar for us all, W.

Paul Begala is partisan and freely admits it, but he succinctly exposes George Bush Jr. for the lightweight he is.

Begala paints a portrait of Junior as a study in contradictions. A lousy student who was accepted to an Ivy League university ... a failed businessman who enjoyed a successful career ... the beneficiary of millions of dollars in government hand-outs who doesn't believe in government assistance. We see Bush Jr. for what he is -- a privileged rich boy whose family name has allowed him to coast through life and succeed in spite of himself.

This book should scare the hell out of Americans as we face the prospect of Bush Jr. as the leader of the free world for the next four years. It would destroy my faith in the American voter altogether, were it not for the fact that more of us voted for the other candidate. An excellent book, filled with irrefutable facts.

If you think George W Bush is unqualified to be president, after you read this book you'll be praying for the next election. Begala does a great job at exposing Bush for exactly what he is-a rich kid who somehow made it into the white house. Begala offers at least one Bushism at the start of every chapter; he also utilizes his great sense of sarcasm and humor to keep the reader from putting the book down. What also makes this book strong is that Begala gives overviews on how Bush handles many different topics such as education, the environment, and social security. Begala does a great job at simplifying things for the reader and he also excels at citing his work well to give it legitimacy. It is greatly disturbing to know that the president is against lowering classroom sizes, he skipped a year in the national guard, and he thinks there's no such thing as a hate crime! We need more authors like Begala to show things as they are and also to infuse the books with a little humor too.

It was so refreshing to see all of George W. Bush's inadequacies and the reasons why he is so dreadfully wrong for the presidency laid out. During the entire election it seemed like no one had the courage to expose these facts, and when they did make headlines the story died down suspiciously quickly. Here at last the full story comes out, and is extensively backed up with footnotes -- letting you know that what you are reading hasn't been twisted or run through the rumor mill. Paul Begala presents the information with a wit that keeps you laughing despite the horrors of W's record. The writing is also very clear and concise, so that even I, someone not very knowledgable of politics, was able to understand each and every section. I just wish that I had discovered this book earlier -- it would have been a godsend in convincing some family members of mine just how awful Bush really is.

... If more people had read this book and known all this stuff BEFORE the presidential election in November of 2000, Resident-Select Shrub would not be living in the White House today. I'm sure it is no warm consolation to Paul Begala to be able to say, "I told you so." Nevertheless, all is not in vain. What is in this book will come in real handy for the UPCOMING presidential election of 2004.

... About then presidential candidate, George W. Bush, Paul Begala writes, on page 40: "George W. Bush's economic plan is a return to the trickle-down days of the 1980s. He wants to cut taxes for the rich, gut the social safety net, turn more and more power over to giant corporations, and limit the rights of working people. ... You're reading this, and you're thinking: Didn't we try this before? And didn't all that trickle down result in a few rich folks and corporations getting the gold mine while the rest of us got the shaft? Didn't those Reagan-Bush economic policies run up the debt, cripple our competitiveness, and drive us into a recession?"

... About then vice-presidential candidate, Dick Cheney, he writes, on page 133: "And in case you ladies thought Dick was on your side, he also voted against the Equal Rights Amendment. Apparently full equality for women was an idea whose time had no yet come for Mr. Cheney. In his defense, Cheney says he opposed the ERA because he feared it would require that women be drafted. Hey, Dick: we haven't even drafted any men for twenty-five years. But at least he's consistent: Cheney was so opposed to the draft during the Vietnam War that he got several deferments. He never spent a day in uniform himself, but he was eager to ship my cousin Dennis (a Marine sniper) off to Kuwait to do Cheney's fighting for him."

... Ah, you've got to hand it to Paul Begala, he knows how to maintain his sense of humor in the heat of battle. Indeed, for battle it is - political battle - over the future direction of our country. Read this book ( as well as his newer IT'S STILL THE ECONOMY, STUPID ), and you will be very well informed about "the enemy" before going into battle. I will never forget what my friend, Danny ( a US Marine who fought at Kae San in Vietnam ), once said to me about his political enemies in union politics. He said: "I love my enemies. I really do. It's EASY to love your enemies and be a Christian. WHY? ... Because they're SO STUPID, they make you look good!" ... Danny was right - and Paul Begala is right. Read this book, love your enemies, and think victoriously about the future presidential election! ... YOWZA! - The Aeolian Kid

Paul Begala's brief, partisan, but highly readable and very persuasive tome on George W. Bush reminds this reviewer of some of James Carville's books. The saving grace of this book is that unlike all of the Bush biographies, it is brief, yet well-documented.

Begala looks at Bush not only at his background as governor of Texas, but most importantly, looks at where Bush stands on various issues and why his stands are not in the best interests of America. Issues discussed include Social Security reform, education, environment, foreign policy, the death penalty, and health care. The book is designed to help the voter make an informed decision on whether or not Bush deserves to be president.

Begala spends relatively little time on Bush's personal and business scandals, with the exception of the little-reported "missing year" of 1972-1973, when Bush evidently did not report for Air National Guard duty. It is important only in that the media have focused in so much microscopic detail every movement of Bill Clinton's life, yet George W. Bush's life remains largely unexplored. Outside of this, the book stays focused on the issues.

Recommended for all those interested in the upcoming election and for those who may not have made a decision on the choice for president.

This interesting book proves the point of millions of Americans (including mine): George Bush is an idiot that deserves to be defeated in the November election by a man who actually knows what he is doing for our country and the world, John Kerry. A superb book!

While Begala is certainly biased against Bush, the book is based in solid facts, whose sources Begala carefully annotates. This book makes a few things abominably clear: Bush has made many mistakes, as a student and as a businessman, and yet he has always advanced anyways, largely due to his family's wealth and power. The label of "Compassionate Conservative" is nothing more than a campaign gloss. Bush's tax plan saved the wealthiest one percent an extra $46,000 per year, while the bottom twenty percent got a whopping $42 (that's per year too, if you can't beleive your eyes). Where is the compassion in that? Or in laughing when asked about death penalty cases? Whatever the topic, Begala makes it clear that Bush doesn't really care about the poor and needy, at least when it comes to politics. He follows wherever the big money lures him.
The chapters are a short, easily readable length; the book makes for light and easy reading-- although at some points the more liberal minded may want to cry. Each chapter starts out with several quotes from W about the topic, many duplicates of the ones which appear in the Bushisms. The parenthetical comments (It's _____________, Governor, Karl Rove will explain it to you.) are hysterical. A simultaneously funny and sobering book, it is well worth the read.