Fire and Fury by Michael Wolff

 

BIG QUESTIONS

·      Is the Wolff guy a hack?

I don’t think so.  I’ve read more than a thousand books in the past decade, and I’d put him in the middle of the lot.

The bar is pretty low for DC tell-alls.  No one takes 2-5 years to “polish” his or her book.

It’s what he says it is: a chaotic story, written mid-chaos, which he’s tried to make cohesive and flowing in narrative form.

·      Is there anything To Learn here?

It depends on how deeply you’ve followed the White House this past year.   I haven’t followed at all – 30 minutes a day on the five o’clock news.

For Me, this book filled in the details that I’ve only read in headlines. I learned about the back-room machinations and “rationales” for what was happening.  I now understand the personalities better.

·      How partisan is it?  Should it only be read by Dems?

It’s a tell-all: -Wolff gossips about everyone.  Currently in the White House are Republicans, so that’s mainly who he gossips about.  There’s some good gossip, but most gossip is bad gossip. 

Read it if you want to know what goes on in Washington D.C.  It’s not that much different than, “The West Wing”, I enjoyed the read, but it does bog down at times, mainly because life in DC is insanely boring.

·      Peter’s politics

A Barry Goldwater guy (early ‘60’s); then worked for Morris Udall’s campaign (techie-a decade later).  Ross Perot (interviewed-80’s, voted ‘92); then Gore 2000.  Obama 2008 -- Kamala Harris 2020.