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Summary: The Truth about Richard Clarke
Review: You want the real truth about Richard Clarke read this part of a transcript posted on Fox News Web Site from an interview Richard Clarke gave in August 2000. Why has Richard Clarke changed his tune now? This book is nothing but political rubish. Read the entire transcript yourself on the Fox News Web Site. Transcript: Clarke Praises Bush Team in '02 Wednesday, March 24, 2004 WASHINGTON - The following transcript documents a background briefing in early August 2002 by President Bush's former counterterrorism coordinator Richard A. Clarke to a handful of reporters, including Fox News' Jim Angle. In the conversation, cleared by the White House on Wednesday for distribution, Clarke describes the handover of intelligence from the Clinton administration to the Bush administration and the latter's decision to revise the U.S. approach to Al Qaeda. Clarke was named special adviser to the president for cyberspace security in October 2001. He resigned from his post in January 2003. RICHARD CLARKE: Actually, I've got about seven points, let me just go through them quickly. Um, the first point, I think the overall point is, there was no plan on Al Qaeda that was passed from the Clinton administration to the Bush administration. Second point is that the Clinton administration had a strategy in place, effectively dating from 1998. And there were a number of issues on the table since 1998. And they remained on the table when that administration went out of office - issues like aiding the Northern Alliance in Afghanistan, changing our Pakistan policy -- uh, changing our policy toward Uzbekistan. And in January 2001, the incoming Bush administration was briefed on the existing strategy. They were also briefed on these series of issues that had not been decided on in a couple of years. And the third point is the Bush administration decided then, you know, mid-January, to do two things. One, vigorously pursue the existing policy, including all of the lethal covert action findings, which we've now made public to some extent. And the point is, while this big review was going on, there were still in effect, the lethal findings were still in effect. The second thing the administration decided to do is to initiate a process to look at those issues which had been on the table for a couple of years and get them decided. So, point five, that process which was initiated in the first week in February, uh, decided in principle, uh in the spring to add to the existing Clinton strategy and to increase CIA resources, for example, for covert action, five-fold, to go after Al Qaeda. The sixth point, the newly-appointed deputies - and you had to remember, the deputies didn't get into office until late March, early April. The deputies then tasked the development of the implementation details, uh, of these new decisions that they were endorsing, and sending out to the principals. Over the course of the summer - last point - they developed implementation details, the principals met at the end of the summer, approved them in their first meeting, changed the strategy by authorizing the increase in funding five-fold, changing the policy on Pakistan, changing the policy on Uzbekistan, changing the policy on the Northern Alliance assistance. And then changed the strategy from one of rollback with Al Qaeda over the course [of] five years, which it had been, to a new strategy that called for the rapid elimination of al Qaeda. That is in fact the timeline.
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Summary: An insider's look at the REAL U.S. anti-terrorist policy
Review: In this book, Richard Clarke, counterterrorism coordinator for President Bill Clinton and President Bush I, asserts that while neither president did enough to prevent the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the "Dubya" administration has undermined American national security by using the 9/11 attacks for political advantage, ignoring the threat of Al Qaeda in order to invade Iraq for profit. This is a riveting piece of material that every American should read -- even (especially?) those not terribly politically minded. Modern America is threatened both by foreign terrorists, and from within by the Christian right that uses the fearful post-9/11 climate to pick away at our civil liberties. Clarke provides us with an insider's view, to educate us...information we must utilize to vote, protest, etc. -- to put our country back on the platform from which is was built: for the people, by the people. With benevolence. [...]
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Summary: Stripping the Emperor's clothes.
Review: Richard Clarke presents an inside look at the Bush White House, not from the vantage point of an obscure and an essentially unimportant onlooker (e.g., Dereliction of Duty book), or from by a person committed to the opposition party (any number of current books). It is also not published by a company with a hard core political agenda. The author gives a memoir of his several years in the executive hierarchy, and gratefully he does not stray outside his field of competency. In just under 300 pages, the book is an easy read in a conversational style, i.e., not heavy with stats and figures. Clarke's positions were as a non-partisan, high level officer in every administration since Ronald Reagan and two years in the current Bush white House. His book shows his exceptional knowledge and commitment to combat terrorism. His concerns about terrorism is what sparked this book. The current administration is now trying to personally attack him as an apparent means to discredit his book. This is the usual maneuver by someone with something to hide, or with little of the truth on their side. However, the author details his case about the Bush failures to effectively combat terrorism with facts, not fantasies. Several of the author's observations were also presented in other sources such as Ron Susskind's, The Price of Loyalty, and Al Franken's latest book. I read this book while administration officials wrote editorials, spoke on talk shows, gave speeches defending Mr. Bush, but they won't all give full testimony, under oath to the 9/11 commission! That is where to dispute Mr. Clarke, if dispute can be offered. The author, however, is willing to give testimony under oath. This is not to say that the author does not give many conclusions that are based on his professional judgment. But, his opinions are based on decades of devoted service, and the book makes clear that he does know a great deal about the subject. It is particularly interesting that Condeleeza Rice (national security advisor) recently tried to dismiss Clarke by saying that he was not involved in many of the White House meetings on terrorism, thus making him unqualified to judge the administration. This excuse is as telling as anything the author has to say, since what justification can there be to not involve the expert on terrorism in a high level meeting on terrorism?! Until this administration shows less resistance to open communication, I must congratulate Richard Clarke and thank him for his noble service to our country with the writing this book.
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Summary: A decent book, but nothing really special
Review: This book isn't really all that groundbreaking in any real way. The only reason why it is as popular as it is is because of the media hype surounding the Clarke right now. There is not a whole lot of research in this book to back up much of what he says--seeming to state rather that his opinion alone should count for something just because he was on the inside at the White House. We'll see if this book will have any lasting political impact, but I think it's mostly just hype right now and this book will be long forgotten in the near future.
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Summary: Nothing but a politcal hack job..
Review: Save your money.
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Summary: Bush's justification for Iraq!!
Review: Wow!
The biased left wing media is so busy pushing the parts of this book that bash President Bush that they conveniently skip over the parts that justify his decision to go into Iraq. That's right! According to the Clinton CIA Bin Laden was bankrolling a certain "chemical" factory in the Sudan that was producing an ingredient essential to making the type of nerve agent the Iraqis were known to possess. Read it and weep liberals. Hmm, and the Socialist (Democrat) party says there is no BIAS?! You Socialists (Democrats) can't have it both ways. I highly recommend this book to all interested in the left wing bias that exists in the media.
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Summary: A Review of Few Words.
Review: One word. Credible. Two words. Overwhelmingly so. 9-11 was a crime.
The criminals are of course divided into perpetrators and conspirators.
The perps are dead.
The conspirators are at large.
And we're jerking around in Iraq, why, exactly? Read this book and understand one man's view of the process by which that clear mistake happened, and is STILL happening, tothe cost of our children's lives and the filling of BushCorp.'s friends' pockets. That's not partisan (because I'm neither a [donkey] nor an elephant): its in fact the case. Read this book, and anything else you can; our "media" doesn't explore nay of this on their own...you must for yourself. This book is one of the best ways to start.
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Summary: Bombshell Indictment From An American Hero and (GOP) Patriot
Review: Dick Clarke voted for Bush. He served heroically under Reagan and Bush 41 and was a valued and trusted cabinet member under Clinton (whose efforts to thwart terror now look positively heroic, having stopped Al Qaida's attempts in Bosnia and at the LA Airport at the turn of the millenium.) Clarke is simply an unimpeachable authority and his book is disastrous news for the Bush administration and their legion of toadies and propagandists. How can they possibly spin their way out of this historic reckoning? They demoted Clarke from the cabinet, haughtily dismissed his frantic warnings about Al Qaida, chosing instead to devote their resources to cold war issues and drug policing (!) It's all here, chapter and verse from a hero and Reagan stalwart. Of course, much of this has been well documented before, by former National Security Czar Sandy Berger, among others. But now the facts have been laid out for the American people by a career Republican. It is a tragedy to watch the jackals of the radical right smear this great American patriot, as they smeared Treasury Secretary O'Neill (career Republoican and Bush I favorite) and David Kay (GOP entrusted weapons expert who blew the whistle on the Bush-Rice-Perle WMD claims...) When will this great nation wake up and rise up against this criminal administration?
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Summary: Full of Lies
Review: Richard Clark is a bitter person who is out to get those who forced him out of the position of terrorism czar. The book is full of lies and belongs on the fiction list. For example, he states that Condi Rice did not know anything about al-Qaida. This is false as the Bush Administration discussed terrorism from day one of its term in office. Bush haters will buy this book in great quantities.
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Summary: Don't Bother
Review: Not going to bore you with details. Bottom line is this... Clarke thought the Clinton administration did the MOST to combat terrorists, thought the rest did nothing. Typical liberal slanted writing IMO. Don't waste your money.
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