Book Review: Strategery

Rarely do you pick up a book that has quotes on the back by Rush Limbaugh, James Carvel, and Brit Hume. For Rush Limbaugh and James Carvel to agree on the same thing means one of two things. Either (a) there is a coming apocalypse, or (b) they are telling the truth. All three of the men on the back of this book were impressed with Strategery: How George W. Bush Is Defeating Terrorists, Outwitting Democrats, and Confounding the Mainstream Media by Bill Sammon.

Strategery is the third in Sammon’s series of books on President George W. Bush. I haven’t read the other two, but liked this one enough that I have already bought one of the others, will probably read the missing one, and I am hoping there is a forth one.

Strategery is an inside look at George Bush’s Presidency during the re-election campaign against John Kerry in 2004, and his presidency in 2005. While doing research for this review, I found numerous sources that say something along the lines of ,”No other journalist has interviewed President Bush more.” This shows through in the book. During each significant event, Mr. Sammon tells us what President Bush and his staff were thinking in their own words. He covers an assault on Karl Rove’s house by protestors, “memogate”, the Swift Boat Veterans attacks on Kerry, Hurricane Katrina, the Iraq War, and other challenges Bush faced during this time period.

I really enjoyed the historical perspective Mr. Sammon puts on these recent event. For example, few of us remember the sequence of events after Hurricane Katrina made landfall. Could there have been a better response to the Hurricane? Definitely. Was it President Bush’s fault that the devastation of New Orleans reached the level it did? No.

It was also interesting reading this book with the current Presidential campaigns underway. I was reminded that some of the items that became “issues” during the 2004 election were not of the candidates choosing. It made me wonder what we might see this season.

While I don’t agree with everything President Bush has done, I do believe future generations will judge is Presidency favorably. Will it be the greatest? Probably not. Will it be the worse? No. However Strategery gives us a good point to begin a real and honest assessment of Bush’s presidency.