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Books by and about 2020 presidential candidates |
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Crippled America,
by Donald J. Trump (2015) |
United,
by Cory Booker (2016) |
The Truths We Hold,
by Kamala Harris (2019) |
Smart on Crime,
by Kamala Harris (2010) |
Guide to Political Revolution,
by Bernie Sanders (2017) |
Where We Go From Here,
by Bernie Sanders (2018) |
Promise Me, Dad ,
by Joe Biden (2017) |
Conscience of a Conservative,
by Jeff Flake (2017) |
Two Paths,
by Gov. John Kasich (2017) |
Every Other Monday,
by Rep. John Kasich (2010) |
Courage is Contagious,
by John Kasich (1998) |
Shortest Way Home,
by Pete Buttigieg (2019) |
The Book of Joe ,
by Jeff Wilser (2019; biography of Joe Biden) |
Becoming,
by Michelle Obama (2018) |
Our Revolution,
by Bernie Sanders (2016) |
This Fight Is Our Fight,
by Elizabeth Warren (2017) |
Higher Loyalty,
by James Comey (2018) |
The Making of Donald Trump,
by David Cay Johnston (2017) |
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Books by and about the 2016 presidential election |
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What Happened ,
by Hillary Clinton (2017) |
Higher Loyalty ,
by James Comey (2018) |
Trump vs. Hillary On The Issues ,
by Jesse Gordon (2016) |
Hard Choices,
by Hillary Clinton (2014) |
Becoming ,
by Michelle Obama (2018) |
Outsider in the White House,
by Bernie Sanders (2015) |
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Book Reviews |
(from Amazon.com) |
(click a book cover for a review or other books by or about the presidency from Amazon.com)
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On My Honor
Why the American Values of the Boy Scouts Are Worth Fighting For
by Rick Perry
(Click for Amazon book review)
OnTheIssues.org BOOK REVIEW:
This is a political book about the Boy Scouts. You'd think that the Boy Scouts were a symbol for some larger issues, but no, in fact, it's just about the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), and the troubles they have had excluding girls, gays, and godlessness over the years. Gov. Rick Perry was an Eagle Scout, the highest level of Boy Scout (calling it "the greatest extracurricular constant for most of us boys", p. 17), and defends the Boy Scouts as symbolic of everything good about American values.
Yes, there is a larger issue: the "Culture War," but Perry only extends the book's concepts to the larger issue in one slim chapter ("Taking Inventory of Society", pp. 171-178). That chapter begins, "Is American society going to hell in a handbasket?", which sums up Perry's attitude in the rest of the book, too. Excluding gays and godlessness is the real political issue -- although excluding girls brought some lawsuits too -- and Perry's theme revolves around how those exclusions hurt the boys involved and hurt America.
The lawsuits against BSA regarding gays and godlessness constitute the primary political issue. Perry details these lawsuits as a long-term plan of the ACLU, the American Civil Liberties Union, to promote gay rights and atheism. The book serves as an outline of how to beat the ACLU in future court battles.
On the positive side, Perry details the values that Boy Scouting promotes. These values strengthen American values, according to Perry, and hence we should all support Scouting:
- "Boy Scouts keep score" (measure success, not just effort, p. 34)
- "Be Prepared" (the Scout motto, p. 26)
- "Do a good turn daily" (the Scout slogan, p. 26)
- "They Didn't Forget the Girls" (the co-founding of the Girl Scouts, p. 42)
- "On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country" (the Scout oath, p. 45)
Perry indicates nothing in this book about running for President. It was written while Perry was governor of Texas, in the waning months of the presidential reign of the previous Governor of Texas. Perry's purpose in this book seems more to establish his Christian conservative credentials -- he keeps his policy prescriptions out, detailing those in his newer book Fed Up. Of course, Perry knew in 2008 that establishing his Christian conservative credentials would become essential to the 2011-2012 primary, and this book accomplishes that purpose in a relevant and interesting way. For voters seeking to understand Perry as a presidential candidate, this book provides a solid underpinning.
-- Jesse Gordon, editor-in-chief, OnTheIssues.org, August 2011
| OnTheIssues.org excerpts: (click on issues for details)
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Civil Rights
Newt Gingrich: ACLU lawsuits designed to drain resources of Boy Scouts.
Rick Perry: Suing for girls in Boy Scouts is part of strategic assault.
Rick Perry: Homosexuals are inappropriate role model for adolescent boys.
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Drugs
Rick Perry: ACLU shouldn't protest random drug sweeps in public housing.
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Education
Rick Perry: My parents didn't sue when I was paddled at school.
Rick Perry: Boy Scouts granted right to use schools in 2002 NCLB law.
Rick Perry: New discoveries make evolutionary explanation less plausible.
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Energy & Oil
Rick Perry: Manmade global warming: "It's-All-Our-Fault" theory.
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Families & Children
Rick Perry: War on the Boy Scouts is a microcosm of larger culture war.
Rick Perry: We gravitate to bad behavior unless we revere authority.
Rick Perry: Free speech for "Coming Out Day" but not "Family Values"?
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Government Reform
Rick Perry: What's wrong with restricting ex-felons from voting?
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Homeland Security
Rick Perry: 1976: Vietnam-era C-130 pilot in US Air Force.
Rick Perry: 2004: DoD only unofficially supports Boy Scout Jamboree.
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Principles & Values
Donald Rumsfeld: Scouting builds perseverance despite distractions.
Mitt Romney: Shut out Boy Scouts from Olympics due to age requirements.
Rick Perry: Hometown of Paint Creek TX is a "throw-back in time".
Rick Perry: Entered politics in 1984; 5th generation in political family.
Rick Perry: It's about freedom OF religion, not freedom FROM religion.
Rick Perry: Romney disallowed Boy Scouts to participate in Olympics.
Rick Perry: No state-sponsored morality; but sponsor value organizations.
Rick Perry: Secular humanism emanates out of man's sin of pride.
Ross Perot: Scouting teaches leadership, and improves our country.
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Welfare & Poverty
Rick Perry: Many homeless chose their lifestyle; take a hard approach.
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The above quotations are from On My Honor
Why the American Values of the Boy Scouts Are Worth Fighting For
by Rick Perry.
Autobiographies for 2012 GOP primary candidates:
- No Apology, by Gov. Mitt Romney, Mar 2, 2010
- Real Change, by Speaker Newt Gingrich, Dec 18, 2007
Biographies:
- CEO of SELF, by Herman Cain, 2001
- Joe Biden: A Life of Trial and Redemption, by Jules Witcover, 2010
- Rick Santorum: A Senator Speaks Out on Life, Freedom, and Responsibility, 2005
- Michele Bachmann: Why She Will Win, by Ron Paul Jones, 2011
- A Mormon in the White House? 10 Things Every American Should Know about Mitt Romney, by Hugh Hewitt
- Mitt Romney: The Man, His Values and His Vision, by Lisa Ray Turner and Kimberly Field
- Deliver Us from Evil, by Sean Hannity
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Policy books:
- Confidence Men, by Ron Suskind, 2011
- Core of Conviction, by Rep. Michele Bachmann, 2011
- It Takes a Family, by Sen. Rick Santorum, 2005
- On My Honor, by Gov. Rick Perry, 2008
- End The Fed, by Rep. Ron Paul, Sep 16, 2009
- Gold, Peace, and Prosperity: The Birth of a New Currency, by Ron Paul, 2007
- My Journey to the White House, by Herman Cain, 2011
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Page last edited: Feb 20, 2019
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