BOOK REVIEW: Cronies In, Experts Out

(Originally published 2008, Hardcover edition 274 pages)

When Ronald Reagan was elected president, I was attending college. I was neither liberal nor conservative, but eager to become a well-informed, critical-thinking U.S. citizen. So, for the next three decades, I spent a great deal of time and energy reading a wide variety histories, social issues, and opinions. Hedrick Smith's tome "The Power Game' was extremely illuminating in this area. Over the following three decades, conservatism was our country's zeitgeist. What I found disturbing was the ever-increasing harshness of Republican assaults on government as an evil entity. President Reagan drove our country's deficit to record-breaking heights with nary a peep from Republicans. Then President Clinton took drastic austerity measure to balance our federal budget while the Republicans hounded and blamed Democrats for the huge deficits they conveniently forgot to mention were caused by Reagan. Then President George W. Bush came into office and drove the deficit waaaaaaay beyond Reagan's shenanigans and, once again, nary a peep from Republicans. Now President Obama is elected and conservatives have found Jesus again about out-of-control spending and, surprise surprise, they're blaming the Democrats again. The pattern to me looked like the Republicans where intentionally trying to destroy any sense of a functional government. But I silently thought that was just plain crazy. Well, along came Mr. Frank's book.

The author not only reaffirms my theory but convincingly lays out how the far-right conservative movement is trying to cripple the government and any forms of liberalism. The hardcover was published in 2008 a short time before the sub-prime mortgage fiasco sent the economy into the crapper. Mr. Frank's book holds up in the wake of President Obama's election and the stalling tactics used by Republicans in such areas as judicial appointments and their assaults to prevent the highly capable Elizabeth Warren in running the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Just compare the continual glowing praise of President Obama from Governor Chris Christie after Hurricane Sandy to the horrible Mike Brown debacle after Hurricane Katrina. The Democrats believe government can be a source of good. The Republicans, to paraphrase Grover Norquist, just want to weaken it enough so they can drag it to the bath tub and drown it. The book shows how Washington has become a huge cash cow for business interests, lobbyists and anyone with strong hard-right views. The author focuses on many of the famous odious zealots such as Tom Delay, Jack Abramoff and Grover Norquist as well as some less renowned ogres.

Mr. Frank's book is for citizens who are liberal, independent, or moderate Republicans who believe government's top priority should be all its citizenry and not just big business. The author puts it best: "Fundamentally amoral, capitalism is loyal to no people, no region, no heroes, really, once they have exhausted their usefulness - not even to the nation whose flag the wingers pretend to worship." And THAT'S why we need a functional government; to protect us from a plutocracy and not turn into another Saipan* (*read the book.) If you're of the Rush Limbaugh mindset or drink the FOX News Kool-Aid, don't even bother reading this thing. Our country needs a two-party system where compromise is not viewed as an apostasy. Right now, the Republicans are more focused on their jihad and that's just sad for our nation. The material in the book is historically accurate and the author's assessment is dead on. Heck, even Reagan apostle/columnist George Will is impressed with Mr. Frank's bona fides. The highly readable and informative "The Wrecking Crew", despite being five years old, is still extremely relevant. 

(Meyers - A few years ago, I started writing, under the pseudonym Franklin the Mouse, short reviews at Amazon's web site. This is my most recent review #342)