Product Description

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.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #345354 in Books
• Published on: 2004-01-05
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 416 pages

Amazon.com
Political consultants are nothing new in American politics; they are the big guns called in to work on a campaign or deal with the occasional crisis, then dismissed for another day. Not so with White House Senior Advisor Karl Rove. Due to his close personal relationship and unlimited access to George W. Bush, as well as his control of the information that reaches the president, this "permanent consultant" occupies a unique spot in Bush's inner circle and in history. "His influence marks a transcendent moment in American politics: the rise of an unelected consultant to a position of unprecedented power," write authors Moore and Slater. Since Rove is ultimately responsible to Bush only, not to American citizens, he is not required to work openly. As a result, Rove is hardly a household name, despite his considerable clout. This intriguing and important book seeks to remedy this by offering a comprehensive look at this behind-the-scenes political guru. "Karl Rove matters to all Americans, many who have never even heard his name. While the president chafes at the description of Rove as 'Bush's Brain,' he can hardly deny that every policy and political decision either goes through, or comes from, the consultant," write the authors, leading them to pose the question, "Who really runs this country?"

Rove has been involved with the Bush family for nearly 30 years and has worked on every one of George W.'s campaigns. In great detail, the book shows how Rove led Bush, a "reluctant political warrior," all the way to the White House. The portrait of Bush and Rove's relationship is fascinating. Though opposites in many respects, they are an unusually effective political team. But where Bush seemed to fall into politics, Rove has been preparing for his current job all of his life, and Bush has served as a vehicle for Rove's considerable ambitions, the authors contend. "Without Karl Rove, there would be no President George W. Bush," they write. Moore and Slater look deeply into Rove's past to offer copious evidence of his political genius, his tenacity, and his remarkable success rate in getting his clients elected. The facts also portray Rove as unethical, vindictive, and a chronic abuser of power. Loaded with revealing anecdotes and inside information, this is essential reading for anyone looking to understand not only the Bush administration, but how politics really work. --Shawn Carkonen

From Publishers Weekly
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.

Review
"The second, and more substantial, of the recent books about Bush's longtime political partner, Karl Rove." (Austin American Statesman)
"Should force questions about having a win-at-all-costs political operative shaping White House policy as our nation moves toward war over the world's protests." (Austin American Statesman)
"Bush's Brain is also attracting attention for its stark claim that Rove has become America's "co-president"." (The London Times)
"If you want to understand the president's underlying motives, read the new book on his guru, Karl Rove, Bush's Brain. Penned by two crack Texas reporters, it discloses that in 1994 Mr. Rove, a hired gun for Philip Morris, persuaded the gubernatorial candidate George W. Bush to make tort reform a priority." (The Wall Street Journal, March 6, 2003)

Customer Reviews

Karl Rove: Svengali (or the Rasputin?) to the Western World
An interesting tale about how Karl Rove, son of a Rocky mountain geologist, and a "political savant extraordinaire," a virtual Bobby Fischer of politics, with the same kind of a political instincts and genius as Bill Clinton - was, since childhood, bent on becoming a "top behind the scenes man." And next to Dick Morris, he has perhaps succeeded in becoming the greatest one of our (or any) times.

Rove, single-handedly found, mentored, and fashioned a reluctant under motivated and under-performing peripatetic warrior, composed of the most meager of raw materials, into a conservative political superstar.

Left to his own devices, "Bush junior," would probably have preferred nothing more than remaining a spoiled, underdeveloped, under motivated, misdirected, mediocre, "kick-about" for the rest of his life. However, Rove saw, as few others did, a "diamond in the rough," and set about chipping away at the lackluster and peripatetic outer shell to get at the hidden untapped, underdeveloped inner treasures.

Rove, in the best of his Svengali-like roles, not only became the Rasputin to the Western World, but since every decision Bush has made -- from his two terms as governor of Texas through his two terms as President of the U.S. - have been "cleared" by Rove, he literally became not just Bush's alter ego, but his "uber-ego." Rove quite literally became Bush's brain. So much so, that, as the author notes: "it is hard to know where Bush's brain begins and Roves' ends."

How did Rove polish the dull and listless GW into spanking shiny brand new money? In the liveliest of prose, chocked full of lush and tasty details, this book gives the answer: Rove, like the inventor of the term itself, Dick Morris, is nothing but a "triangulator." His political philosophy is the same as Morris': See what the polls say, and then "spin the rhetoric" so that (even when it is not so) the President's policies "sound like" and "look like" what the President's political constituency thinks they want.

Rove owes a deep unacknowledged debit to the one who invented and patented this process, Dick Morris. Since Morris invented the process of triangulation during the Clinton administration, this period in U.S. history may someday be known as the "era of the super power-political triangulators." (no pun intended).

A fabulous but disturbing read. Five Stars

bush's brain or lack there of
this book shows that without someone else's input this president would not have made it to any elected position. it is all smoke and mirrors for this administration.

not good people...
This review is not a memoir. Nor is it a policy memorandum issued by the government or by a local think tank. Rather, it is an assessment of how our long-corrupt legal system is parlously close to establishing a precedent that will enable Karl Rove to waste our time and money. Note that some of the facts I plan to use in this letter were provided to me by a highly educated person who managed to escape Karl's flippant indoctrination and is consequently believable. The problem is, if I didn't sincerely believe that there is certainly reason to fear that imprudent beatniks will provide covinous franions with an irresistible temptation to palm off our present situation as the compelling ground for worldwide Fabianism by the next full moon, then I wouldn't be writing this letter. His true goal is to implement a hotheaded parody of justice called "Karl-ism". All the statements that Karl's helots make to justify or downplay that goal are only apologetics; they do nothing to stand up and fight for our heritage, traditions, and values.

If I may be so bold, only by taking risks and pushing boundaries with this letter can I operate on today's real -- not tomorrow's ideal -- political terrain. And let me tell you, my message has always been that Karl's decisions are ill-advised. It's that simple. My general thesis is that Karl has written volumes about how there is something intellectually provocative in the tired rehashing of larcenous stereotypes. Don't believe a word of it, though. The truth is that if he thinks that he can make me experience psychological stress or "cognitive dissonance", then he's barking up the wrong tree. I'll talk a lot more about that later, but first let me finish my general thesis: I don't care what others say about him. Karl's still cold-blooded, offensive, and he intends to wipe out delicate ecosystems. If you think that Karl's blessing is the equivalent of a papal imprimatur, then think again. If Karl wants to put a demented spin on important issues, let him wear the opprobrium of that decision. To bring the matter closer to home, let me remind you that we've all heard his yammer and whine about how he's being scapegoated again, the poor dear. It is not uncommon for Karl to victimize the innocent, penalize the victim for making any effort to defend himself, and then paint the whole addlepated affair as some great benefit to humanity. Have you ever had a bad dream about her trying to exhibit cruelty to animals? Well, I have news for you. That wasn't a dream; it was real. I would like to end on a heartfelt note. I find Karl Rove's failed attempts to create an infantile world of guilt and shame mildly amusing.