Pennsylvania Avenue: Profiles in Backroom Power
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Pennsylvania Avenue: Profiles in Backroom Power

3.09 of 5 stars 3.09  ·  rating details  ·  46 ratings  ·  12 reviews
Prizewinning journalists John Harwood and Gerald F. Seib show how today's Washington power game really works, through stories of people who are making a difference on Pennsylvania Avenue. These new power brokers, some of whom are rarely seen and are largely unknown, have figured out how to make their voices heard, and how to get things done, amid the complexities of today'...more
Compact Disc, 7 pages
Published May 13th 2008 by Blackstone Audiobooks
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Jack
This is a fine, short book on current politics in America. Harwood and Seib both worked for the Wall Street Journal (Seib still does). Their non-partisan approach to the problems and potential cures for what ails the American political process is useful. The chapters are short and each focuses on one or two powerful political folks. Some of them are well known, like Karl Rove and Jim Webb, and others are the backroom players that few people hear much about. A few overriding themes include t...more
Delight
This was a fascinating book of the players (some behind the scene, some not) of how business gets done in DC. Some of the profiles I enjoyed more than others. If you're interested in how DC REALLY works, this is a book worth reading. It's bipartisan as Rs and Ds are both highlighted.
Tulin
This book sounded more interesting than it was. It basically was just profiles of various players in Washington. I would have liked to see more of an integrated book that included a bit more of a narrative.
Matt
A decent collection of profiles of DC power players. Good background info on some of DC's personalities, but probably only interesting to real political junkies.
Nick
This book should have been a little better than it was. Harwood certainly knows the players, and some of the stories are very telling. But he's a bit too careful with his analyses of the powers-that-be, and the profiles are on the cursory side. Perhaps that's only inevitable given the powers that be..... Still, read this book if you want to understand how power works in Washington, and how it's changed over the past decade. The good news is that anyone with a computer, a sense of how to hook...more
Brad
If you ever wonder who are influencing the day to day decisions and long term decisions that affect this country, this is the book to read. From lobbyists, to lawyers, to lawmakers, the people mentioned in this book are the people who are shaping policy today in Washington. It is good to note them and their positions because you, for the most part, will not see the faces of these individuals plastered all over CNN or major newspapers.
Joy
Joy marked it as to-read  ·  review of another edition
Nerdy journalist alert....had to buy this book. And yes, I looked at first pages to see if I got a first edition. (I did!) The secondary author, Jerry Seib, is a fellow journalist from Hays. And he's just always been one of those people I've looked up to, so this is a must read for me. (An added bonus...he recently appeared on Meet the Press.) Ok, this is the end of the nerdy journalist alert for today.
Justin
This really should have been better. It often read like a summary of people's resumes, with the occasional quote from a friend of one of the subjects. It's one of those books that should be great in theory but was instead just underwhelming. Why do 8 or 10 in-depth profiles when you can do 20 simple and superficial ones?
Marsha
An unbelieveably fantastic read. I actually had to slow down and take notes because I was gobbling up the book. These are the movers and shakers of our times and I recommend this book to read before the next election.
Mike
A fascinating view of how modern Washington really works. Intriguing for the political junkie. If you're not into politics and policy making, don't bother.
Carol
Carol marked it as to-read  ·  review of another edition
I heard John Harwood speak today and he shared an antecdote from the the book. It sounds like it might be interesting if you like politics.
Andrea
Some of the stories were mildly interesting, but there was no coherent narrative to tie it all together and make me want to keep reading.
Mark
Mark marked it as to-read  ·  review of another edition
Brian Besaw
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Katy
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Pennsylvania Avenue: Profiles in Backroom Power (Hardcover)
Pennsylvania Avenue: Profiles in Backroom Power: Making Washington Work Again (Paperback)
Pennsylvania Avenue: Profiles in Backroom Power (Analog Audio Cassette)
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