The Co-Presidency of Bush and Cheney

by Warshaw, Shirley

• ISBN13: 9780804758185
• ISBN10: 0804758182
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2009-04-14
• Publisher: Stanford Politics & Policy

Summary

The Bush administration is out but the American public continues to suffer from its disastrous domestic and foreign policies. In this excellently documented work, presidential scholar Shirley Anne Warshaw offers an in-depth analysis and exploration of the political maneuvering that got us into our current mess. Combining her study of the motivations of both Dick Cheney and George W. Bush, knowledge of the spheres in which they operated, and personal interviews with White House staff and Washington insiders, Warshaw demonstrates that these complementary conservatives were nothing less than co-presidents. Breaking with popular sentiment, she denies that Bush's authority was hijacked or stolen. Bush, rather, focused on building what he called a moral and civil society, anchored by a war on science and by the proliferation of faith-based programs, while allowing Cheney to lead in business and foreign policy. Warshaw highlights Cheney's decades-long career in Washington and his familiarity with its inner workings to present a complete picture of this calculating political powerhouse who continues to capture headlines. From Cheney's unprecedented merging of the vice president's office into the president's to his abhorrence of what he deemed congressional interference in the president's ability to do his job, Warshaw paints an intriguing, and at times frightening, portrait.

Author Biography

Shirley Anne Warshaw is Professor of Political Science at Gettysburg College. An authority on the American presidency, the president's Cabinet, and organizational decision structures for presidential policymaking, Warshaw is the author of numerous books and is a frequent commentator on National Public Radio and network radio and television.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. vii
Introduction	p. 1
The Bush-Cheney Ticket Emerges: The Melding of Compassionate and Conservative	p. 10
Transition Planning: Cheney Gains Control of the Administration	p. 33
Full Transparencies: Merging the Vice President's Staff into the White House Staff	p. 58
God and George W. Bush: The Faith-Based Presidency	p. 77
Dick Cheney and the Business-Friendly Presidency	p. 102
What Happened to the Domestic Agenda?	p. 133
Cheney's Penchant for Secrecy	p. 159
The Imperial Presidency	p. 178
Cheney's War	p. 205
Epilogue: The Cheney Legacy	p. 240
Notes	p. 251
Select Bibliography	p. 285
Index	p. 291
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