| HOW THE HELL DID THIS HAPPEN? The Election of 2016 P. J. O'Rourke New York: Atlantic Monthly Press, March 2017 |
Rating: 1.5 Poor |
|||
| ISBN-13 978-0-8021-2619-1 | ||||
| ISBN-10 0-8021-2619-7 | 216pp. | HC | $25.00 | |
How the hell did this book happen? P. J. O'Rourke is a talented writer, knows his history, and is capable of a humorous turn of phrase when so inclined. But this book is, in the main, inaccurate and mean-spirited. Consider this nonsensical rant:
"The proposed 2017 U.S. federal budget is $4.2 trillion. All the billionaires on earth (sic) put together could—if Washington is careful not to have any budget overruns—keep America going for eighteen months. "But we don't want the billionaires to do that. We want that money for ourselves. What candidates are really promising is, 'I'm going to take the money away from rich people and give it to you if you vote for me.' "Let's say there is a candidate who gets elected and does so. "If we take all the money away from every billionaire and divide that $6.5 trillion by the world's population of 7.125 billion, we each get a check for $912.28. *
* * "But everybody knows that all the money in the world really comes from America. Donald Trump has been telling us so. "Therefore the heck with 7.125 billion people. We'll take the $6.48 trillion and divide it among us 319 million Americans. We each get $20,313.48. That's more like it. If you've got a family of five (and, quick, adopt a few kids if you don't) we're talking $100 large. "We get $100,000. "Once. "Because now all the money is gone." – Page 125 |
A good many Republicans like to charge that "tax and spend Democrats" aim to take all the money the rich have and spread it around, thus destroying the economy. But I thought O'Rourke was smarter than that. I do like his general assessment of the GOP candidates:
The patients have taken over the GOP psychiatric ward. The shrink is on the couch. The loonies are thoughtfully stroking their chins, asking the sane Republican,1 "Why don't you think Barack Hussein Obama, who bows to Mecca five times each day, wasn't cloned by KGB agents in the jungles of Kenya?" – Page 85 |
The book is not a total loss; chapters 2, 22, and 30 have some substance and are worth reading (although 30 is a summary of world politics, not very relevant to America's 2016 election.) But the impression it left me with is that O'Rourke has contempt for all the Republican primary candidates, despises Trump, and loathes both Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton (often for exaggerated reasons.) He even devotes a chapter to how they dress. (Spoiler: he detests their attire.) Libertarian candidates Gary Johnson and Bill Weld get a few paragraphs on page 185. Jill Stein is not mentioned. I rate it a 1.5 and recommend you give it a miss.
To contact Chris Winter, send email to this address.