Off with Their Heads: Traitors, Crooks & Obstructionists in American Politics, Media & Business

Dick Morris is on a tirade in Off With Their Heads--and that’s good news. For as an experienced political consultant who has worked with both Democrats and Republicans at the highest levels of government, he knows what he’s talking about. As a result, there is much to learn from this detailed book, regardless of whether one may agree with his conclusions. Morris begins by railing against the established news media for showing blatant liberal bias and for irresponsibly undermining the war on terror as the Bush administration is waging it. With good reason, as he illustrates in many examples, he advises citizens to rely on a wider variety of sources for information and to approach the media in general with far more skepticism. (Presumably this includes his current employer, the Fox News Channel.)

Morris’ hit list is extensive, and he spares nothing in his attacks. There is a particularly fascinating chapter on Bill Clinton in which he declares that "All our terrorist problems were born during the Clinton years." Though he praises the former President’s achievements on many domestic issues, he accuses him of utter negligence in terms of national security and foreign policy. In explaining exactly why, he also offers fascinating insights into Clinton’s character and approach to policy-making that only an insider could supply. He also targets outspoken leftist Hollywood elites and crooked CEOs. Other chapters deal with the realignment of political districts and the power it affords incumbents, governors who failed to use the massive tobacco settlement for the slated purpose of funding anti-smoking campaigns, and the plight of 3.5 million nursing home residents. He saves special venom for his assessment of France.

Morris does not accuse his opponents of treason or even a lack of patriotism, only of being wrong and misguided. He is aggressive without being vicious and he backs up every claim he makes--two things that put him ahead of most other political analysts in the media (in addition to his work on Fox News, he is also a columnist for the New York Post. A well-informed and thoughtfully argued book delivered with force. --Shawn Carkonen