Rating: 
Summary: Must reading
Review: This may be the most important book you read this year. After the events of 9/11 I expected a flurry (snowstorm) of books on the subject to appear. I believe that this is the definitve book on that subject and on the threat of terrorism to our world. While Clarke was not in the driver's seat during that event, he certainly had a chillingly clear view from the passanger seat, and is in the best position to alert the reading public that the vehicle is being driven over a cliff.
Rating: 
Summary: This guy is bipolar...Lies to sell book
Review: Richard Clarke in this book, is saying things totally opposite to what he said in August 2002. Then he had nothing but praise for Bush because Bush was finally doing something about terrorism that had been ignored by Clinton.
Interesting that one of Clarke's friends is with the John Kerry camp...[...]
Rating:
Summary: convincing...
Review: Like his testimony before the 9/11 pannel on march 24th, Mr clarke weighs in with his authoritative C.V and writes eloquently, calmly, powerfully and convincingly...
This book, like the follow up testimony, is not to be taken lightly by the people of washington, it has potential to be very contentious and divisive, but, i for one, was convinced..
Rating:
Summary: Profiting from the deaths of 3,000 people
Review: As the 9-11 commission searches for answers to how the events of 9-11 could occur, along comes the all-knowing, all-caring Mr. Clarke who, if only he was listened to, could have stopped the terrorist attacks from happening. The fact that he's personally profiting from the attacks should make every American's stomach turn. And the apology? Shameful grand-standing.
The premise that the Clinton administration had 'no higher priority' than terrorism (apparently in the guise of those wag-the-dog cruise missiles launched during the President's Lewinsky grand jury testimony), while the Bush White House didn't take the al Qaeda threat seriously (never mind the quick annihilation of the Taliban following the 2001 attacks)is preposterous to any thinking person.
Could the motivation behind Mr. Clarke's position be the sour grapes and bruised ego experienced by his being relegated to insignificance by a more brilliant woman? Whatever the case, enjoy your 15 minutes, Dick, because you'll be a minor footnote within a year. The baggage of eight failed years serving in the Clinton administration will be your true legacy.
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Summary: Expected leftwing tripe
Review: This book is nothing more than what the liberal media thinks we should all think. Fiction? Indeed.
Rating:
Summary: Is lying now or was he lying in the past?
Review: In the past he praised the President, Now he slams him. Which is it? Is Clark lying now or was he lying in the past? I find the book to be political rubish clearly seen for what it is.
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Summary: Provocative Insider's View Of Bush's War On Terror!
Review: As the sitting White House National Coordinator for Security, Infrastructure Protection, and Counter-terrorism on the President's National Security Council for more than eight years during both the Clinton and Bush administrations, former intelligence analyst Richard Clarke sat in the literal catbird's seat to observe as well as participate in the national security apparatus in action. As a consequence, his new book detailing the specifics of the government's progress on the war on terror since the advent of 911 is provocative reading indeed. The portrait he paints so convincingly is that of a Bush administration populated by political ideologues and characterized by shooting from the hip at targets of opportunity. Thus, no one wanted to believe in the frightening evidence of a mounting Al Qaeda threat in the weeks and months before September 11, 2001, despite the persistent warnings of advisors like himself. Moreover, the morning after 911 Donald Rumsfeld suggested attacking Iraq in the total absence of any evidence linking Saddam Hussein's regime to the attack on New York City or Washington, since Iraq represents a target-rich environment, as opposed to Afghanistan, which has so few. In Mr. Clarke's estimation, the Bush administration was intent from that time on to use 911 as an excuse to attack Iraq. Indeed, Clarke's impression of the modus operandi of the so-called "Vulcans" such as Paul Wolfowitz, Condi Rice, and Donald Rumsfeld is one of a previously set ideological agenda, of having a predetermined objective to attack and conquer Iraq, and then attempting to use the events of 911 as justification to proceed toward that objective. Indeed, the available public record suggests as much, with not only Mr. Bush, but also Mr. Cheney and Ms. Rice, as well as Mr. Rumsfeld trotting out a garden variety of ostensible rationales for invading Iraq in the post-911 time frame, all the way from the original "Axis Of Evil" comment in the 2002 State of The Union speech to the spurious linking of Saddam with Al Qaeda to the use of nerve gas against the populace some dozen years before to failure to comply with United nations resolutions since the 1991 attack by the international coalition that deliberately stopped short of regime change due to fear of destabilizing the region. Mr. Clarke has more than enough criticism to go around, and both Mr. Clinton and Mr. Bush find themselves seriously criticized and called to task for their lack of appropriate action, given what Mr. Clarke feels was the clear and present danger the evidence he offered indicated. So this book is no simple attack against the Bush administration, as it casts aspersions on both sides of the political fence in terms of ascribing blame for our present set of circumstances regarding lapses in national security. Yet he reserves special scorn for the current administration, given its self-serving and somewhat cynical use of the 911 events to turn the political landscape upside down. What Clark describes as being tantamount to treason is the fashion in which President Bush has politicized the situation for short-term political benefit without taking serious and meaningful action to actually meaningfully combat the set of threats themselves. Most surprising to Clark is the way in which the Bush administration has done so little to accomplish relatively inexpensive and yet quite effective action against the terrorist threat, such as strengthening the infrastructure or beefing up border security, while hugely increasing the administrative manpower and salaries of personnel within agencies such as Homeland Security, which do little to actually counteract terror threats. Like many observers, Clarke believes the war in Iraq is at best a distraction from the real threat, robbing the country of valuable resources with which we could much more effectively protect ourselves and extend the reach of American power to combat terrorism. Meanwhile, he views the growth of terrorism and the extension of its world-wide capabilities with alarm, suggesting that our ineffective military actions as well as our inattentiveness to key details which would bolster internal security have led to increased danger and higher threat levels rather than the reverse, and wonders aloud how long it will take for this nightmare scenario to play out with potentially devastating consequences. This is an absolutely riveting read, albeit in less than stirring prose or striking narrative. It serves as forewarning that we are on a wrongheaded and very dangerous path, and that it is high time for a course correction. I highly recommend this book! Enjoy!
Rating: 
Summary: Take it with a grain of salt -
Review: The author, Richard Clarke was in a position of unbridled observation and obvious frustration during both the Clinton and Bush administrations as White House National Coordinator for Security and Counter-terrorism on the President's National Security Council. His credibility as author of these opinions is impressive and he openly cricizes each administration for the failure to heed warnings leading to 9/11. The most virulent criticisms though are stinging and personal when it comes to the Bush administration and the Iraq war. He does not hold back name calling as he labels Paul Wolfowitz, Condoleeza Rice, and Donald Rumsfeld as "Vulcans" determined to level Iraq using whatever means necessary including the sympathies associated with 9/11. He criticizes Bush for politicizing the sympathies of 9/11 to build up Homeland Security offices and spending unbridled sums of money but doing little when it comes to actually effectuating change against terrorism. Clarke points to the "Axis Of Evil" comment during the 2002 State of The Union speech and unsubstantiated comments linking Saddam Hussein with Al Qaeda as attempting to create public support for the invasion of Iraq. There's little to counter weigh his assertions but I found the book fascinating because books like these often effectuate change by opening a dialogue and shedding light on a cave.
I read it through and through very quickly. Some opinions I found gave credibilty to suspicions of my own but hindsight is 20/20 vision. It's always so easy to criticize a president when you're not the president but to Mr. Clarke's credit he had to feel extraodinary frustration after 9/11 knowing there were warnings that went without action. I only hope this one man's opinion is recognized as just that - a uni-dimensional view of a complicated situation and it does not reopen wounds of families struggling to move on after losing loved ones on 9/11.
Rating:
Summary: THIS MAN HAS PROVEN TO BE A LIAR.
Review: Don't buy this book if you want the truth about the war on terror, i haven't read the book, but i have heard much about the lies he has told to the 9/11 commission today (3/24/04). Today Jim Angle on the Foxs News Channel played a tape recorded by Richard Clarke in February 2002 saying that Bush did do the right thing right after he was elected. He said on the tape that the Clinton Administration did not have a plan and that Bush understood that the plan had to be changed to fight terrorism and had a 7 point plan to fight terrorism. He said totally different things in this book. He lied to the 9/11 commission and was told by them that his "credibility was compromised" because of the tape released by Jim Angle on Fox News today singing Bush's praises when he thought he was getting a promotion from the Bush Administration. He resigned after he was not promoted and is telling these lies as part of his six figure book deal. He is nothing but a bitter old man with delusions of granduer and is a pathetic liar. Also when the book was being promoted on CBS's "60 Minutes" by Leslie Stahl, they neglected to disclose that "Viacom", CBS's parent company is also the owner of this book's publisher. CBS has a liberal agenda to promote this book and make money. That is all. Also, Dick Clarke admitted that he works with a Kerry advisor now but says he did not write the book to promote Kerry's campaign. He also said under oath to the 9/11 commission that he would not accept a position in the Kerry Administration if Kerry is elected. Talk about a conflict of interest, this man is a proven liar.
Rating:
Summary: lying in 2002 ,or now, you decide!
Review: Funny,that the only way to attack President Bush,is to lie!Are we to believe this account, or the interview Mr. Clarke gave to Jim Angle of Fox News in 2002? I hope for his sake that his latest rants are the truth,because I believe that they were given under oath!Mr. Clarke is the "poster boy" for "disgruntled employee." He should be ashamed of himself!
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