Thursday, July 10, 2008

what i'm reading now

Whenever I read something biographical about a politician I avoid the puff pieces done by their family or friends. I think if you read something a little more critical you can get a better picture of their character. Here's the blurb from the cover: John McCain is one of the most familiar, sympathetic, and overexposed figures in American politics, yet his concrete governing philosophy and actual track record have been left curiously unexamined...........Welch provides the key for decoding McCain's allegedly "maverick" actions, and the first realistic assessment of what a John McCain presidency would look like. McCain quickly lays out in overlapping detail the root cause of the senator's worldview: his personal transformation from spoiled, underachieving punk to war hawk dedicated to American exceptional ism.

1 comment:

ml said...

This sounds interesting. I don't know how much difference "governing philosophy" and "worldview" can make on an office so guarded by checks and balances and dependent on congressional approval, etc. But "track record" really shows something, and that's what I'd be interested in in this book. I'd be interested to see if world-view and track record are consistent; if so, the power of the office is scarier than I envision.
Would you mind letting me know what you think when you finish this book, in an e-mail?