false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170383566m/51922.jpg 51922 3 Arianna Huffington is a rare breed of political celebrity: an articulate pundit who left the intellectually safe world of criticizing elected officials to try her hand at actually becoming one. While her campaign for Governor of California in the highly unusual 2003 recall election was unsuccessful, the experience has brought valuable insight and perspective to <I>Fanatics and Fools</I>. Huffington, a former supporter of Newt Gingrich, has recently occupied a unique place in the political landscape as she moved away from the right, never quite arrived at the left and dwelled somewhere askew from what is thought of as the center. In this book, she grudgingly endorses the idea of voting with the Democrats in the 2004 presidential election despite grave misgivings about the Democratic Party, which she accuses of too often trying to be a watered-down of the Republicans. But even those Democrats, she feels, are infinitely preferable to the George W. Bush administration with its record of corporate favoritism and patterns of deception leading up to the invasion of Iraq. A section chronicling her experience in campaigning may not seem particularly relevant to people living outside California, but it's a pretty interesting passage. Few skilled opinion makers ever get out and run themselves (imagine George Will or David Broder giving stump speeches), and Huffington brings humor and humility to her account. Her characterization of Arnold Schwarzenegger includes stinging criticisms of his policies but conveys grudging admiration for the actor turned Governor. Her criticisms of Bush and the Republicans are impassioned; well supported, their sheer volume impedes her effort to create a unified message. Still, Huffington's wit and candor, coupled with her recently gained battleground experience, make <I>Fanatics and Fools</I> a terrific read. <I>--John Moe</I> 2883331 14 4 2004 Fanatics and Fools: The Game Plan for Winning Back America total:24|5:4|4:10|3:8|2:2| 24 88 40 3 2 0 false false Tue Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2004 Sun Oct 26 22:41:46 -0700 2008 Sun Oct 26 22:42:57 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2004 Sat Sep 15 22:38:00 -0700 2007 Sat Sep 15 23:14:56 -0700 2007 and bipartisan. Plus, I can finally say I've read something by a Republican - Well, a former Republican, anyway. (Ms. Huffington ...more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun Feb 10 01:02:20 -0800 2008 Sun Feb 10 01:04:40 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Fri Nov 20 18:23:25 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 20 18:23:25 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Mon Nov 02 10:43:00 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 02 10:43:00 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Mon Oct 05 13:49:00 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 05 13:49:00 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sat Sep 26 19:06:44 -0700 2009 Sat Sep 26 19:06:53 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Thu Jul 09 06:01:50 -0700 2009 Thu Jul 09 06:01:54 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Fri Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Mon Jun 29 09:41:12 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 29 09:41:25 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Thu Apr 16 15:28:25 -0700 2009 Thu Apr 16 15:28:25 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Wed Mar 18 16:20:40 -0700 2009 Wed Mar 18 16:20:47 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Mon Mar 16 19:18:13 -0700 2009 Mon Mar 16 19:18:13 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sun Feb 15 23:44:17 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 15 23:44:17 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Tue Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2004 Tue Feb 03 11:16:32 -0800 2009 Fri Mar 27 11:16:14 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Sun Jan 25 14:00:27 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 25 14:00:27 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Thu Oct 21 00:00:00 -0700 2004 Thu Jan 08 15:31:36 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 08 15:33:16 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Tue Dec 30 11:40:52 -0800 2008 Tue Dec 30 11:40:52 -0800 2008 2 0 false false Sun Dec 28 18:20:54 -0800 2008 Sun Dec 28 18:20:54 -0800 2008 0 0 false false Fri Nov 21 20:39:02 -0800 2008 Fri Nov 21 20:39:12 -0800 2008 5 0 false false Sat Nov 15 14:38:01 -0800 2008 Sat Nov 15 14:38:01 -0800 2008 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=51922