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socraticgadfly 's review for:
Matt Bai reminds us and informs us of a few things:
1. Gary Hart did not "invite the media" to stake him out before the Miami Herald did so. Its staff, after having already decided to do so, based on a tip by a female friend of a friend of Donna Rice, saw him make his famous quote in an **advance** copy of the NYTimes Mag, given only to select fellow press; the Herald then worked Hart's quote into the story.
2. Hart was an introvert to a fair degree; he was aloof to a fair degree; and he didn't suffer fools gladly. Maybe it's a good thing he imploded; looking at fellow recent introverts Dick Nixon, Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama, he might not have been the best president.
3. His outing did start a new age of presidential politics coverage. How much we are over it, and to what degree GOP candidates "skate" more today, or Democratic ones do, is still an open question.
That said, indirectly, Bai notes that Hart had the attitude of "stake me out" even if he didn't publicly say so. This probably could have been a four-star book, or more, if Bai had delved more into Hart's psyche, and done one other thing.
As for sexual dalliances, maybe they ARE our business. After al, on at least one occasion, JFK deliberately ditched the nuclear "football" to have a quick sexual rendezvous. And Bai never tells us that.
So, good, but just not good enough.
1. Gary Hart did not "invite the media" to stake him out before the Miami Herald did so. Its staff, after having already decided to do so, based on a tip by a female friend of a friend of Donna Rice, saw him make his famous quote in an **advance** copy of the NYTimes Mag, given only to select fellow press; the Herald then worked Hart's quote into the story.
2. Hart was an introvert to a fair degree; he was aloof to a fair degree; and he didn't suffer fools gladly. Maybe it's a good thing he imploded; looking at fellow recent introverts Dick Nixon, Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama, he might not have been the best president.
3. His outing did start a new age of presidential politics coverage. How much we are over it, and to what degree GOP candidates "skate" more today, or Democratic ones do, is still an open question.
That said, indirectly, Bai notes that Hart had the attitude of "stake me out" even if he didn't publicly say so. This probably could have been a four-star book, or more, if Bai had delved more into Hart's psyche, and done one other thing.
As for sexual dalliances, maybe they ARE our business. After al, on at least one occasion, JFK deliberately ditched the nuclear "football" to have a quick sexual rendezvous. And Bai never tells us that.
So, good, but just not good enough.