To erase that image in the 1988 race, Bush embarked on a display of impetuosity. In theatrical outbursts choreographed by the media guru and image crafter Roger Ailes, Bush fought with reporters at a Des Moines Register forum, and then famously in a set-to on CBS News with Dan Rather. Before the Rather rumble, Ailes wound up Bush like a top. “You’ve either got to go in there and go toe to toe with this guy,” said Ailes to Bush, “or you’re going back to Kennebunkport.”41
