The Right Man: An Inside Account of the Bush White House

by David Frum

The Right Man is a behind-the-scenes look at the George W. Bush White House—how the president’s stature grew and how his administration followed—by a former member of the Bush team who had unique access to the Oval Office. Frum offers a fascinating and unprecedented account of a sitting president.
Updated, and with a new Afterword by the author, The Right Man is an essential book for understanding Bush and his administration.

Genres: Politics, Biography, Nonfiction, History, Presidents, Biography Memoir, Historical

336 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

David J. Frum is a Canadian American journalist active in both the United States and Canadian political arenas. A former economic speechwriter for President George W. Bush, he is also the author of the first "insider" book about the Bush presidency. His editorial columns have appeared in a variety of Canadian and American magazines and newspapers, including the National Post and The Week. He is also the founder of FrumForum.com (formerly NewMajority.com), a political group blog.

Reviews

[haetmonger · Rating 2 out of 5]

The totally unapologetic exceptionalism can definitely make me queasy -- for example, Frum seems to consider it immoral to wonder whether the 9/11 attacks were caused by bad foreign policy on America's part, because recanting would mean losing to the terrorists or something, I guess. Then there's Frum's suspicion that while people say they oppose the Iraq War because Hussein couldn't be conclusively linked with 9/11, or because they believe containment to be the best policy in dealing with enemy states, the real reason is that they are just afraid of American power. Yeaaaah, parts of this book really haven't aged well.

Still, I think Frum's probably as good as it gets when it comes to conservatives. If I was stuck on a desert island full of leftists and I could only bring one conservative voice to provide counterarguments, I'd probably have to go with Frum. He has his ugly moments (see above), but I often find him to be a gentleman with whom one can respectfully agree to disagree -- the kind of person we need more of, in some ways. Maybe this book isn't the best example of that gentlemanliness, though; it was written in 2003, so he's a bit more of a triumphalist regarding some policies that have since turned out to be less successful than they might have appeared at the time, so it can be hard to even agree to disagree with some of the stuff he wrote. Still, I don't think the book's a total bust, if you're the type that's into reading arguments from both sides.

[Dann · Rating 4 out of 5]

From conservative writer and former Bush administration staff member David Frum comes the political memoir The Right Man: The Surprise Presidency of George W. Bush. Frum, an economics speechwriter for Bush from 2001 – 2002, recounts his experiences working for the White House and analyses George W. Bush’s presidency. He begins with the administration’s attempt to set a new tone in Washington and restore integrity to the office in the wake of President Clinton’s scandals, and then continues on with Bush’s daring foreign policy changes, along with the handling of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the Afghanistan War. A conservative critic, Frum approaches Bush’s actions with a healthy amount of skepticism, but ultimately concludes that Bush had a vision that proved to be right in a post-Cold War, 21st century world. He also discussions some of the divisions in the administration (such as those between senior advisers Karen Hughes and Karl Rove) and the speech writing process of the Bush White House. The Right Man: The Surprise Presidency of George W. Bush is a remarkable insider’s look at the making of a presidency during one of the most challenging times in American history.

[Kristen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a good book if you like biography's. I wanted to learn all I could about GWB when he was President. Again, people hate him, call him an idiot. He is none of those things. Did you know he had a little sister that died of leukemia when she was 3-years-old? I think her name was Robin. I can't remember. George was the oldest child and I cannot imagine how this affected him. I think it does a disservice to say how stupid he is since he graduated from Yale AND Harvard, two of the MOST prestigeous schools in our country. It was interesting to learn about the common struggles he had, that alot of people have gone through. (ie. infertility, alcoholism). Money can't buy your baby sister back, money can't make you have a baby (they have twins). And anybody can be a drunk. But he rose above all this and became our 43rd President. He was amazing on 9/11. It was unfortunate about Katrina, but he did the best he could. One day people will realize he was an amazing President, he was caring, he was funny, he loved this country and he did the best he could. Read this book.

[Will · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sometimes you have to read something that you don't think you'll like, just to check and see.

I set out to read this with low hopes and for the most part my expectations were met.

David Frum is not a stupid man nor is he a bad man, per se. I think he is deeply misguided, and perhaps something of a political shill.

At least he writes fairly well and gives a relatively candid assessment of what he saw in his brief time at the White House.

Nothing ground-breaking here, really. I'm glad I only paid a buck for it.

[Parker · Rating 4 out of 5]

A compelling and eye-opening view to the W. Bush administration. The majority of my perception of the 2nd Bush presidency came from the SNL parody of him and the Oliver Stone movie "W." This book revealed a different picture altogether of a thoughtful, kind, and determined man. I greatly enjoyed Frum's writing and will suggest this book to anyone who wants to read about the Bush presidency and leadership.

[The American Conservative]

'This is a strange memoir in many ways. An aide just off the payroll and hungry for fame might be expected to “kiss and tell,” but the truth is that Frum did precious little kissing there to tell about.'

Read the full review, "Axis of Ego," on our website:
http://www.theamericanconservative.co...

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book captures an observation and opinion rooted in time. The fact that the opinion and observations are overturned by the passage of time might well render this book useless for anyone who isn't a student of politics or the media.

[Jostalady]

I read this to try to hear the voices who support Bush, but came away thinking this was a veiled subtle attack on him. I can't tell if the author did this intentionally or if I just disagreed so strongly with Bush's choices that I couldn't appreciate why anyone would site them as good.

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Everyone should read this book. Reveals the truths about a great leader that the media has distorted and disclosed.

[Brian redman · Rating 1 out of 5]

Never read it. Makes good firewood or a door stop.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, but no real insight. Probably a bit dated by now.

[Barron · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting look into the genesis of "Axis of Evil." Revealing is that in the wake of 9/11, Frum decided that "People WANT to feel like we're in the midst of World War II."

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

i think the first book from a person in the administration. not the last.

[Frederick]

The secular saint who devised the phrase "axis of evil" wrote this book.

[Atchisson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book couldn't and wouldn't be written today, but at the time it was spot on. The facts haven't changed any, but the perspective has, and it would be a hard sell now.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book. The author who was one of speech writer shows how surprised he was by the faith of George W. Bush

[Pamela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good speechwriters always seem to write good books.

[Nathan Foy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good

[Derek · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great "read". I listened to the audio version.

[Andrew ✝️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thirteen years ago, I snagged this book at a resale store in my hometown--that resale store has sadly since gone out of business. In 2011, I had never read a political book and was predominately focused on Harry Potter, Charlie Bone, and a couple other fictional stories. Fast forward to today, and this has become the ninth book (8 if you exclude the one that was his speech to Congress on September 20th, 2001) I've read about the last respectable Republican President of the United States. Yes--regardless of lingering objections from liberals and President Trump's most ardent supporters, that's my opinion.

Frum was hired on as one of the President's speechwriters even though he hadn't been too enthusiastic or initially supportive. After voluntarily resigning, despite false press stories, he wrote this book. It's nostalgic and even provides insight that wasn't in the other books that I've read about this President--but I'm ultimately conflicted. While the reader can definitely discern support for the President who served from 2001 to 2009, there's also very obvious dissent in places.

On pgs 126- 128, Frum delivered harsh and unfounded criticism of President Bush's oval office address on the night September 11th, 2001. He did the same thing on pg 240, down talking the President's defense of his second state of the union. The President had repeated his statements from the SOTU with which he agreed most fervently, and I don't see why this was a bad strategy in the war on terror. What was the President supposed to do? Cower and say he shouldn't have said any of it??? Thrown in unnecessary damage control??? Backpedaled and flip-flopped??? 🤦🏻 The final criticisms were on pg 282 where the supposedly supportive author and former staffer calls his former boss "unintelligible." 🤔

Ultimately, Frum sought to come across as a skeptic-turned-supporter who considered this President the right man (hence the title) to lead the country in it's darkest hour--but was also willing to lay constructive criticism at that same man's door. That affects my rating a bit, to be honest--by two stars. For the most part, though, Frum seems honest and sincere. He is not a supporter of President Clinton, which was made obvious by the mention of rumors that that predecessor and his staff willfully and purposely damaged or otherwise didn't take good care of the White House. There's a somewhat humorous story of how dirty and disgusting his office was on pgs 18-19. His wife's horror and subsequent assistance with cleaning is getting an honorable mention. 😆

This book is not as much a tell-all as much as it is a walkthrough. Frum did not piece everything together methodically to give you a picture of President Bush's first three years in office. He strung together important or relevant moments. Also, this isn't strictly about the President. It's really a 50/50 thing--half President Bush, half Frum's tenure; which isn't altogether a horrible thing... But I haven't finished this book with a very clear picture on what it was like to work in the Bush White House. This book triples as a conservative-ish commentary. It's readable, followable, and otherwise enjoyable despite the negative comments I mentioned two paragraphs ago. 3 stars.

Two random notes:
1. Interesting to see that the acronym POTUS had not only been a thing before Obama, but that it was also seen as ironically pompous--when now, it is the screen name of the incumbent President with most if not all social media presences. The acronym makes an appearance on pg 15.

&

2. Interesting coincidence. My fiancè and I just finished a book by Sylvia Browne called "Secret Societies and How They Affect Our Lives Today," where clandestine and covert were some of the most used words, and Frum used them both in one sentence on pg 143.

[Michael Tarpinian · Rating 4 out of 5]

It gives one good reason to either like or admire President Bush.

[Lewis Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written pseudo biography of George "W" Bush. Many details on his strengths as well as his weaknesses.

[None · Rating 1 out of 5]

In true branch covidian fashion, nothing he has to say is accurate or worth reading. 10/10 don’t recommend.

[Thomas Myers · Rating 2 out of 5]

David Frum delivers a slightly nuanced take on Bush's successes and failures, but ends up coming across as an apologist.

Also, I was expecting more speechwriting anecdotes.

[Tricia]

Interesting look at GW years in office