I like George W. Bush. I voted for him twice for president of the United States. I was privileged to host him in the spring of 2000 in Jackson, Mississippi when he was running for president. I was impressed with him then and my respect for him has only grown after reading this book. Of course, there were many decisions of his I did not agree, but I am always thankful for any president who makes the tough decisions on behalf of all of us. Naturally, I anticipated his book and I was not disappointed.I have been a bibliophile for as long as I can remember. I especially enjoy political biographies. The first “adult” book I can remember reading as an older child was Plain Speaking, an oral biography of Harry S. Truman. I remember the plethora of books that were published after the Watergate crisis. I devoured All the President’s Men by Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, I was fascinated by G. Gordon Liddy’s Will and forever changed by Charles Colson’s Born Again. All of these and more almost made me thankful for Watergate.
It was in this spirit of love of political books that I anticipated reading Decision Points by President Bush. Now, unlike previous generations, we have the ability to have a political book in front of us much nearer to the actual events themselves. I was mildly surprised at how much information survived the inevitable classified intelligence scrubbing and I was impressed on how candid he was about world leaders and the men and women who served him.
Decisions Points is not an autobiography but rather a collection of the stories surrounding some of the most important decisions made by President Bush. It is his desire to give the reader a glimpse of some of the details leading to these important decisions.
Instead of giving a typical book review, I would like to list several of the impressions and anecdotes I take away from reading this book.
- The Personal Details of His Biographical Information
The first chapter, Quitting, only comprises 23 of the 481 pages of the book, yet it contains many interesting biographical details and several very humorous stories. It is impressive that President Bush describes a decision he made long before his Presidency as the primary decision. The decision to “quit” drinking alcohol on his fortieth birthday is foundational to understanding the person and the man who served as president for eight years. All other decisions are a manifestation of the character revealed in this decision. The spiritual nature of this decision and some of the humorous details that accompany it make this chapter some of the most interesting reading in the book.
- Some People are More Qualified to be President than Others
In reading this book one gets the overall impression that a quality family background and some of America’s best educational opportunities provides great qualifications to be president. I know that speaks of elitism and many of our great presidents (most notably, Abraham Lincoln) did not have the opportunity of a good family background or excellent education, yet I have come to see the values in these twin pillars of preparation for public service. George W. Bush possessed an excellent foundation in both and coupled with his common sense Texas roots, it uniquely qualified him to be president.
America abhors a ruling class of elites. Family background and education are wisely not included in our Constitution as requirements for the office of President. One of my favorite evangelists of a former era was fond of saying about marriage, “Staying with the same woman will not get a man to heaven, but it sure gives him a tailwind in the right direction.” I come away from this book with the same impression about family and educational background as beneficial for positions of leadership in our nation. It does not qualify you alone to be an effective president, but it sure gives you a head start on the competition.
- The Most Well Read President in History
The media loves to caricature George W. Bush as a simpleton. It is far from the truth. When reading the book President Bush refers often to the books he read while president and the lessons he learned. It is well known that President Bush and Laura do not watch television, but rather use their time to read. Some of the books he read include: McCullough’s biopic, Truman, Ulysses S. Grant, Memoirs, Edmund Morris, Theodore Rex, The Aquariums of Pyongyang by Kang Chol-Hwan, John Barry’s Rising Tide (The great Mississippi River flood of 1927). On top of these Bush read fourteen separate biographies on Abraham Lincoln (p.368).
In the chapter called Surge, President Bush recounts how unpopular the decision to provide an additional surge of troops in Iraq was during his second term. This decision was opposed by nearly everyone, including members of his own political party. Of course, the decision ultimately proved to be a very wise decision and the turning point in the liberation of Iraq. President Bush drew solace from the lonely decisions that President Abraham Lincoln made during the Civil War, citing especially Richard Carwardine’s Lincoln: Profiles in Power.
One interesting anecdote is the reading contest he had with Karl Rove on who could read the most in a period of time. The competitive nature of the President is revealed because even though he lost, he footnoted the final tally of pages read: 40,347 to 37,343 and 2,275,297 to 2,032,089 in total square inches of page space (p.52).
President Bush’s reading habits was one of the most impressive revelations of the book to me personally. The argument can easily be made if the President of the United States has time for such an ambitious reading schedule then what about the rest of us?
- The Importance of a Unified Team
It does not matter if you are head of a committee, a family, a business or head of the United States of America, you must have a unified team around you in order to achieve your goals. No one is successful without surrounding themselves with a group of people who believe in them and want them to succeed. President Bush went after some of the most distinguished and qualified people to serve as aides and as cabinet members. This resulted in some excellent creative tension that served his presidency and the country well. However, when the creative tension became unmanageable because of different opinions, President Bush made the hard choices to replace people. This information, very candidly shared, is a great lesson to all leaders.
- The Price of Leadership
Ronald Reagan is almost universally respected today as one of the most effective presidents in United States history. His resolute leadership and unique communication skills are widely praised today. However, I was very much involved in the political process while Reagan was actually president and I remember how vilified he was during his two terms as president. At times it was an unmerciful criticism he was called to endure. The same is true of any president that makes courageous principled decisions. It is certainly true of President George W. Bush.
The book reminds one of just how partisan and unpatriotic the attacks were many times. For example, The Democrat Leader of the Senate, Tom Daschle, immediately after terrorists killed over 3,000 innocent Americans, cautioned the President on using the word “war.” President Bush aptly responded, “[T]hen what was it? A breach of diplomatic protocol?” (p.142).
Later at a critical time of the war in Iraq with 145,000 troop and their families defending our freedom, Harry Reid, the new Democratic Majority Leader of the Senate declared publicly, “This war is lost, the surge is not accomplishing anything.” President Bush writes of this statement, “It was one of the most irresponsible acts I witnessed in my eight years in Washington” (p.382).
Every leader must endure criticism. Some of it just and much of it unjust. The higher the leadership position, the more searing the criticism. Decision Points reminds us all of the price leaders pay to lead.
These are just a few of the impressions I take with me after reading Decision Points. I was also reminded of the power of God’s providence in the life of President George W. Bush; the personal discipline of the President from his health, to schedules and meetings; the core value of believing in freedom the President obviously possesses; the decision-making process he employed on key decisions which included consulting with numerous experts for each major decision; the importance of his personal morality in making a responsible decision on Stem Cell research, and his commitment to alleviating suffering in Africa over the AIDS epidemic. The latter of which reminds us of just how popular he is in that continent to this day.
Decision Points is a cornucopia of information on how our chief executive made key decisions over an eight year period and is worth the time of everyone to read.
