Controversy Over Former Bush Speechwriter

Drudge | January 5, 2003 | Drudge

[Peach]

Controversy develops over former Bush speechwriter. World Exclusive. Developing. That's it for now on Drudge.

[BenLurkin]

"Don't call me "tart" fellah . . .

Or I'll get SNIPPY with you . . ."

[Fzob]

This book?

The Right Man: The Surprise Presidency of George W. Bush

Due out in January

[mass55th]

"Don't call me "tart" fellah . . .

You know, they probably thought Harry Truman was "tart" too.

[Timesink]

I could have sworn that just last week I read a review of this book saying it portrayed the Administration in a POSITIVE light.

[x]

Frum has always been more of a nest-feathering opportunist than other White House staffers are, or feel the need to be. He's always been a pretty loathsome character. After a major Bush address, Frum's wife sent out e-mails saying that "axis of evil" was David's creation. This is a major no-no for speech writers who ought to cultivate anonymity, rather than notoriety. Lately, it's been said that "axis of evil" has plenty of problems, since the White House's different approaches to dealing with Iran, Iraq and North Korea suggests that they aren't all one united force.

[TLBSHOW]

XXXXX DRUDGE REPORT XXXXX SUN JAN 05, 2003 19:25:38 ET XXXXX

WHITE HOUSE ANGER AT BOOK BY BUSH 'AXIS OF EVIL' SPEECHWRITER; CONCERN MEDIA TOUR WILL MUDDLE MESSAGE; FRUM DESCRIBES PRESIDENT AS 'TART'

**World Exclusive**

Former Bush speechwriter David Frum -- credited with the phrase 'Axis of Evil' -- has infuriated top officials at the White House with his controversial new book, the first insider account of the W. Bush Administration, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned.

Frum helped make international headlines when President Bush's 2002 State of the Union address linked international terrorists to Iran, Iraq and North Korea.

But now Axis Man must walk a fine line between the art of hyping a book and overshadowing a president's own words and policy.

WARNINGS NOT TO GRANDSTAND

"He's going on the TODAY show to talk about North Korea, Iraq?!" an alarmed Bush intimate told the DRUDGE REPORT on Sunday. "Mr. Frum should seriously consider letting the president speak for himself on these highly volatile matters."

MORE

Frum, who left the White House less than a year ago, is set to launch THE RIGHT MAN: THE SURPRISE PRESIDENCY OF GEORGE W, BUSH on Tuesday with a high-impact media tour, giving the speechwriter and journalist a platform to elaborate on his Bush insights.

Among the White House staff, there was a "dearth of really high-powered brains," Frum, a neoconservative, writes in RIGHT MAN, obtained exclusively by the DRUDGE REPORT.

"One seldom heard an unexpected thought in the Bush White House or met someone who possessed unusual knowledge."

MORE

"Bush was a sharp exception to the White House code of niceness. He was tart, not sweet," charges Frum.

[RIGHT MAN was ranked #2134 on the AMAZON hit parade Sunday evening]

Native Canadian-style quips not withstanding, Frum reveals a grudging admiration for Bush throughout his prose.

Frum writes of the president: He "was hardly the obvious man for the job. But by a very strange fate, he turned out to be, of all unlikely things, the right man."

Bush is neither dumb [as portrayed by the left] nor nice [the president assigns cute nicknames to people only to remember who they are], Frum claims.

With his upclose look at White House players Rove, Hughes and Card, Frum is the first Bush insider to publish a firsthand account.

White House insiders question the "quick turn around" of the book, and one top adviser is said to believe Frum rushed to cashout on his direct access to the president, sources said.

RANDOM HOUSE has printed 125,000 copies of the book. The TODAY SHOW has reserved a money slot for Frum on Tuesday morning. And with North Korea/Iraq currently on the covers of both NEWSWEEK and TIME: Enter the speechwriter.

Developing...
http://www.drudgereport.com/frum.htm

[Timesink]

Thanks for the post. Sounds like a lot of sound and fury from Drudge signifying nothing.

[marajade]

Well Drudge is pushing the book and its higher on the selling chain... I can't stand Drudge anymore... I just go there for the links to other sites...

[marajade]

I hope Drudge has read it... He's said things before about books and it turns out to be the complete opposite...

[BenLurkin]

They kept asking him what the "S" stood for . . .just what is a Harry S.?

[Conservababe]

Matalin was the elder Bush's campaign manager, no less.

[Timesink]

National Review is strongly plugging the book on the front page of its web site. How anti-Bush could it possibly be?

[Timesink]

They kept asking him what the "S" stood for . . .just what is a Harry S.?

Ed Asner? Michael Moore?

[marajade]

Woodward... that's who I was trying to think of... Why does Drudge embarrass himself like this?

[Sonny M]

Being a RAT speech writer has got to be hard. Those pesky facts always get in the way, and you have to spin them constantly, plus make people who are stupid seem smart, and even worse try and constantly blame someone for something somehow while ducking any open holes in your arguement. Hillary actually must have a hell of a speech writer. She manages to always speak in vague generalities, offering no specific solution and with no substance, but all in great soundbites, that sound like shes making a stand for something. She manages to talk about any issue, but always avoids substance in anything while sounding like an advocate. She's also the best in class warfare without even saying why. At least Bill used to use analogy's.

[alisasny]

WOW, I could be a rat speech writer...

Yes , it sounds easy only because of the dumbed down populace who really believes they have nothing to lose....I could tell them anything,,,,,

anyway where were you last week

[wingnuts'nbolts]

Not Peggy Noonan!

[clintonh8r]

It's probably about Scully.

I was obviously wrong. Again.

[Howlin]

David Frum helped make international headlines when President George W. Bush's 2002 State of the Union address linked international terrorists to Iran, Iraq, and North Korea in an "axis of evil." But that was only one moment during one of the most crucial times in American history, when a president, an administration, and a country were transformed.

David Frum's political commentary has been described by William F. Buckley as "the most refreshing ideological experience in a generation." Now, in The Right Man, Frum becomes a front-row observer and participant. With honest admiration for President Bush, Frum tells the story of a remarkable year in the life of an American president as he witnessed it. Writes Frum: "Bush is no lightweight. He is rather a very unfamiliar sort of heavyweight. But he did not become a heavyweight all at once. The Right Man is the story of how he grew -- how his administration followed -- and what the consequences of this evolution will be for the future of American politics."

Not since Peggy Noonan's portrait of Ronald Reagan has an insider portrayed a sitting president with such precision and insight. The Right Man will command international attention for its thoughtful portrait of George W. Bush in the midst of his greatest challenge.

Synopsis:
With honest admiration for George W. Bush, the presidential speech writer credited with the phrase "axis of evil" tells the story of a remarkable year in the life of an American president as he witnessed it. In "The Right Man, " Frum becomes a front-row observer of a new president in the midst of his greatest challenge.

[Howlin]

With any luck, this one will be the final nail in Drudge's coffin.

None of the other reviews I've seen about this book indicate ANYTHING close to this.