Marching in Place: The Status Quo Presidency of George Bush

by Michael Duffy, Dan Goodgame

Argues that President Bush fears change and has been manipulated by the Republican right wing, and that his desire to be reelected has led to the nation's economic decline

Genres: History, Politics

320 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1992

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Reviews

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

As the title suggests, there simply isn't a lot to report as to the accomplishments of the George Bush presidency. As the writers make clear, Bush spent most of his time in office reacting to global events (Iraq invasion of Kuwait, fall of the Berlin Wall, etc.) and doing his best to approach domestic policy in the safest manner possible. There just isn't a lot of exciting ground to cover here.

It's a bit more illuminating for gaining a better understanding of Bush's son George W. Bush and the eventual damage he would do to America. Bush's elitist background and lack of concern for the poor and working class is well-documented here, and it's easy to see how Bush Jr. inherited this outlook. And like his father, Dubya duped a lot of people with his fake regular folks persona, revealing a deliberate bit of cynical manipulation of the electorate for pure political purposes.

And on a less serious note, the book was fun to read because the 1992 election was the final American election before the widespread use of the internet. Looking back on a political process without bloggers, lightning-fast news cycles, and super-partisan websites was very quaint. It seems like so long ago...

[Jim · Rating 1 out of 5]

This tome is simply one continual string of hit pieces; nothing more and nothing less.