The American Spectator

Print Email

Text Size

Buy the Book

(Page 2 of 2)

The best stories involve the more obscure contests. Marks mentions his work on a city council race in which a serious candidate, who only ended up losing by 60 votes, didn't even bother to shut down his pornographic website for the duration of his campaign. He recounts how he helped one Jimmy Stewart to victory in a race for the Ohio state legislature over an alleged deadbeat dad named Jim Pancake. From Tom DeLay and Ronnie Earle to his digging on Dick Gephardt, Marks provides a fascinating look at the inner workings of the political underworld.

When Marks turns his observations into Big Ideas about the political process, he can get a bit tedious. He repeats the usual lines about Republican hypocrisy, the value of the political center, and his strange new respect for the 42nd president he once hated. But he still dishes dirt with the best of them. Instead of apologizing for negativity in American politics, he writes, "Armed with the facts, the public can generally figure out which are relevant and which are not."

Oppo Man may be a changed man. But here's betting my former host has a few files hidden in that one-eyed ski mask that are relevant to this year's campaign.

topics:
Bill Clinton, Business, Books, Law, Conservatism