The Rise and Rise of Richard B. Cheney

Unlocking the Mysteries of the Most Powerful Vice President in American History

The indispensable portrait of the man who still runs the world

“Lay[s] bare the agenda, tactics, and worldview of the Bush administration. . . . Just reading the 10-page introduction will give even the seriously studied Bush basher an ‘ah-ha’ moment. It connects all the dots.” —San Francisco Bay Guardian

Here is the definitive portrait of the ultimate power broker by “the toughest, most in-your-face investigative reporter in the U.S.A.” (Greg Palast). Dick Cheney sets energy policy. He guided the nation into war with Iraq. And, working closely with Karl Rove, he oversees the political infrastructure that allows corporate interests and the religious right to control lawmaking, regulation, the selection of judges, and the development of foreign policy. As John Dean put it, “This page-turner closes the case: Cheney is our de facto president.”

With an emboldened administration that has turned a thin victory into a renewed mandate—rewarding ideologues and purging dissenters—John Nichols’s question is more urgent than ever: can this nation survive four more years of Dick Cheney?

The Rise and Rise of Richard B. Cheney draws on groundbreaking reporting—including exclusive interviews with Cheney’s college professors, Nelson Mandela, Gore Vidal, and political insiders.

Praise

“Instructive, offering a blow-by-blow brief on Cheney’s rise to power.”
Independent Weekly (Durham)
“If you doubt that Cheney fits his sarcastic self-description as ‘the evil genius in the corner,’ [this book] will go leagues toward dispelling it.”
Pittsburgh City Paper
“Makes a persuasive case . . . that the vice-presidency is the real locus of power in the current U.S. administration: Cheney runs the show.”
London Review of Books

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The Genius of Impeachment
The Founders’ Cure for Royalism

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Tragedy and Farce
How the American Media Sell Wars, Spin Elections, and Destroy Democracy

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Goodreads Reviews