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urzajr's review against another edition
4.0
This book is worth your time.
Much of the media coverage focused on a few juicy details (Larry Summers "home alone" comments, the male-centered atmosphere of the White House, etc.), but this misses the larger picture.
The real story is about a presidential campaign that ran on rhetoric about changing the system, and then proceeded to govern in a way that shied away from any radical steps, no matter how radical the crisis. Read it and cringe as Paul Volker is ignored in favor of Tim Geithner, as the financial reform bill becomes weak piecemeal legislation, and as true health care reform (as opposed to health insurance reform) slowly dies.
The book isn't perfect. Suskind often relies on the same narrative tricks over and over (we're constantly put in the head of a Very Smart Person as they ride to one important conference or another - "Gary Gensler was late, but he had far more than dinner on his mind," etc.), and its clear from his characterizations who his sources are.
Ezra Klein's review should be packed in with the paperback edition:
http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2011/nov/24/obamas-flunking-economy-real-cause/
Much of the media coverage focused on a few juicy details (Larry Summers "home alone" comments, the male-centered atmosphere of the White House, etc.), but this misses the larger picture.
The real story is about a presidential campaign that ran on rhetoric about changing the system, and then proceeded to govern in a way that shied away from any radical steps, no matter how radical the crisis. Read it and cringe as Paul Volker is ignored in favor of Tim Geithner, as the financial reform bill becomes weak piecemeal legislation, and as true health care reform (as opposed to health insurance reform) slowly dies.
The book isn't perfect. Suskind often relies on the same narrative tricks over and over (we're constantly put in the head of a Very Smart Person as they ride to one important conference or another - "Gary Gensler was late, but he had far more than dinner on his mind," etc.), and its clear from his characterizations who his sources are.
Ezra Klein's review should be packed in with the paperback edition:
http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2011/nov/24/obamas-flunking-economy-real-cause/
mkesten's review against another edition
3.0
Like the rest of us, Barak Obama had virtually no understanding of how or why Wall Street had torpedoed the US economy as he rounded into the final months of his 2008 Presidential campaign.
I write these words even as Donald Trump’s Presidency is rocked by yet new revelations that he is an incompetent President of the United States, when a member of his own administration has anonymously written an Op-Ed piece in The New York Times claiming that his top officials regularly remove sensitive papers from his desk, “slow-walk” his orders, and have to re-explain the simplest of security matters to him.
Americans have a right to expect better from Trump, but how much better?
In Confidence Men we learn that Obama’s economics advisors “re-litigated” Obama’s decisions, “slow-walked” the ones they didn’t like, and flat out ignored others.
But even Obama was not the first.
The US Intelligence Community flat out hid an intelligence assessment from George Bush out of fears that the information would lead Bush and Vice-President Cheney to declare yet another war in the Middle East.
General Westmoreland fed Lyndon Johnson terrible advice and progress reports about the war in Vietnam. But Johnson largely accepted them.
John Kennedy completely bungled the Vienna Summit with Nikita Kruschev.
President Wilson suffered such serious strokes that his wife made all Presidential decisions for the last two years of his presidency.
President Grant was tricked into helping Jay Gould’s manipulation of gold prices before that, and the list of Presidential losers goes on and on.
What exactly should Americans expect of their President and is the office?
Ostentibly the office was designed to administer the fledgling US government, act on the laws passed by Congress, and give the armed forces a single voice to obey.
But from the beginning, the President has been charged with delegating responsibility to paid officers, and often officers paid on a fee-for-service model that encouraged terrific corruption. And they have “slow-walked” reforms to that system ever since.
People who mourn the loss of professionalism in government forget the alienation that accompanied the professional cadres of American government officials. They believed the bureaucracy sclerotic, the decisions divorced from the “real” needs of the people.
Clearly, government is a work in process. If Americans have anything to worry about it’s that their constitution not pre-empt changing circumstances. And if Americans have anything to fear from their Republican leaders its that they ignore global problems out what they say are threats to their sovereignty.
Sovereignty is a useful fiction for vested interests.
Climate change is not a negotiable outcome.
I write these words even as Donald Trump’s Presidency is rocked by yet new revelations that he is an incompetent President of the United States, when a member of his own administration has anonymously written an Op-Ed piece in The New York Times claiming that his top officials regularly remove sensitive papers from his desk, “slow-walk” his orders, and have to re-explain the simplest of security matters to him.
Americans have a right to expect better from Trump, but how much better?
In Confidence Men we learn that Obama’s economics advisors “re-litigated” Obama’s decisions, “slow-walked” the ones they didn’t like, and flat out ignored others.
But even Obama was not the first.
The US Intelligence Community flat out hid an intelligence assessment from George Bush out of fears that the information would lead Bush and Vice-President Cheney to declare yet another war in the Middle East.
General Westmoreland fed Lyndon Johnson terrible advice and progress reports about the war in Vietnam. But Johnson largely accepted them.
John Kennedy completely bungled the Vienna Summit with Nikita Kruschev.
President Wilson suffered such serious strokes that his wife made all Presidential decisions for the last two years of his presidency.
President Grant was tricked into helping Jay Gould’s manipulation of gold prices before that, and the list of Presidential losers goes on and on.
What exactly should Americans expect of their President and is the office?
Ostentibly the office was designed to administer the fledgling US government, act on the laws passed by Congress, and give the armed forces a single voice to obey.
But from the beginning, the President has been charged with delegating responsibility to paid officers, and often officers paid on a fee-for-service model that encouraged terrific corruption. And they have “slow-walked” reforms to that system ever since.
People who mourn the loss of professionalism in government forget the alienation that accompanied the professional cadres of American government officials. They believed the bureaucracy sclerotic, the decisions divorced from the “real” needs of the people.
Clearly, government is a work in process. If Americans have anything to worry about it’s that their constitution not pre-empt changing circumstances. And if Americans have anything to fear from their Republican leaders its that they ignore global problems out what they say are threats to their sovereignty.
Sovereignty is a useful fiction for vested interests.
Climate change is not a negotiable outcome.
publius's review
2.0
Ron Suskind's a good writer, but he's also in love with Barack Obama. Well, maybe not in love, but he's certainly not an objective or dispassionate observer. Even while he's observing that Obama may not have been ready for the Presidency, he's lavishing praise on the politician.
I read as long as I could, but after a third of the book fawning over Obama without really examining what was going on, I started to tire. Barack Obama is no villain as he's been portrayed by many, but neither is he a semi-deity or Olympian hero. Further, much of the material that Suskind covers is not new, having been reported in other sources. If you've read nothing else about the last few years, it's not a bad way to become familiar with some of the major players, and it's not horrible writing. But if you're looking for in-depth analysis and reporting, there are better books out there. "Too big to fail" is a good place to start.
I may come back to it later, but right now, it feels repetitive. Meanwhile, life's too short to read books that duplicate what you've already read. I'm moving on to a new book tonight.
I read as long as I could, but after a third of the book fawning over Obama without really examining what was going on, I started to tire. Barack Obama is no villain as he's been portrayed by many, but neither is he a semi-deity or Olympian hero. Further, much of the material that Suskind covers is not new, having been reported in other sources. If you've read nothing else about the last few years, it's not a bad way to become familiar with some of the major players, and it's not horrible writing. But if you're looking for in-depth analysis and reporting, there are better books out there. "Too big to fail" is a good place to start.
I may come back to it later, but right now, it feels repetitive. Meanwhile, life's too short to read books that duplicate what you've already read. I'm moving on to a new book tonight.
caddysnack's review against another edition
4.0
Woof! This book was, for me, a beast. I underestimated what a commitment it would be to read. I learned that I enjoy reading about government but glaze over when reading about economics and finance, although this is no fault of Suskind's. The greatest achievements of this book are it's ease of reading and consistent non-partisanship. His narrative of the first two years of the Obama presidency are particularly insightful, and inspired me to seek out more presidential biographies.
idrees2022's review against another edition
4.0
Like his previous book, an otherwise excellent work of investigative journalism is marred by an excess of superfluous detail. This book wouldn't suffer from losing at least 200 of its pages. Suskind writes in the non-fiction novel style of Bob Woodward, though he is a much better writer. But unlike Woodward, he has a tendency to easily get lost in unnecessary embellishment through novelistic details about minor characters.
Like Woodward's last book, Confidence Men paints an unflattering picture of a president clearly out of his depth and routinely played by his advisers. Obama's over-riding concern seems to be to present himself as an 'establishment' guy, who is not there to rock the boat. His compromising disposition has bred contempt which allows his subordinates to frequently ignore his orders. In the most telling quote from the book, Lawrence Summers speaks about being 'home alone' without 'adult supervision' something that 'Clinton would never do'. There could hardly be a more serious indictment.
Like Woodward's last book, Confidence Men paints an unflattering picture of a president clearly out of his depth and routinely played by his advisers. Obama's over-riding concern seems to be to present himself as an 'establishment' guy, who is not there to rock the boat. His compromising disposition has bred contempt which allows his subordinates to frequently ignore his orders. In the most telling quote from the book, Lawrence Summers speaks about being 'home alone' without 'adult supervision' something that 'Clinton would never do'. There could hardly be a more serious indictment.
kat_smith24's review against another edition
3.0
While nonfiction political books are not usually my thing, I found the author's style to be very approachable and interesting. I feel like I learned about a lot that was going on in New York and Washington that I did not know was happening when I was a self-absorbed college kid.
martha_schwalbe's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting book but really hard to read.
Rich white men continue to hurt and abuse the rest of us. How do we make it stop?
Rich white men continue to hurt and abuse the rest of us. How do we make it stop?
windingdot's review against another edition
3.0
Too long, too dry. I feel like the history of Wall Street trickery and the financial collapse has been told better in many other places, so 150+ pages on it in here are unnecessary.
publius's review against another edition
2.0
Ron Suskind's a good writer, but he's also in love with Barack Obama. Well, maybe not in love, but he's certainly not an objective or dispassionate observer. Even while he's observing that Obama may not have been ready for the Presidency, he's lavishing praise on the politician.
I read as long as I could, but after a third of the book fawning over Obama without really examining what was going on, I started to tire. Barack Obama is no villain as he's been portrayed by many, but neither is he a semi-deity or Olympian hero. Further, much of the material that Suskind covers is not new, having been reported in other sources. If you've read nothing else about the last few years, it's not a bad way to become familiar with some of the major players, and it's not horrible writing. But if you're looking for in-depth analysis and reporting, there are better books out there. "Too big to fail" is a good place to start.
I may come back to it later, but right now, it feels repetitive. Meanwhile, life's too short to read books that duplicate what you've already read. I'm moving on to a new book tonight.
I read as long as I could, but after a third of the book fawning over Obama without really examining what was going on, I started to tire. Barack Obama is no villain as he's been portrayed by many, but neither is he a semi-deity or Olympian hero. Further, much of the material that Suskind covers is not new, having been reported in other sources. If you've read nothing else about the last few years, it's not a bad way to become familiar with some of the major players, and it's not horrible writing. But if you're looking for in-depth analysis and reporting, there are better books out there. "Too big to fail" is a good place to start.
I may come back to it later, but right now, it feels repetitive. Meanwhile, life's too short to read books that duplicate what you've already read. I'm moving on to a new book tonight.