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Title: Breaking the Deadlock: The 2000 Election, the Constitution, and the Courts by Richard A. Posner ISBN: 0-691-09073-4 Publisher: Princeton Univ Pr Pub. Date: 01 July, 2001 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $26.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.28 (25 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Dispassionate Analysis
Comment: This is another Posnerian tour de force in which he carefully analyzes both Florida and US election laws and demonstrates that, far from being a lawless body that stole an election, the US Supreme Court decision was right -- and that in any event Bush was better positioned to win any fight that would have ensued in Florida, Congress and elsewhere had the Supreme Court decision gone the other way.
But, readers may find his review of the performance of the so-called "experts" the most entertaining feature of this book. After you read how he takes apart Alan Dershowitz and others, you'll be sure to put less stock in their outlandish "expert" commentary in the future.
I highly recommend this book for those looking for a non-partisan, dispassionate analysis of the events in Florida.
Rating: 2
Summary: Thorough, but tedious reading
Comment: Unlike most of Posner's other writing (his judicial opinions included), this book lacks the verve and wit that marks his style. What is here is a thorough examination of the Bush-Gore contretemps, in which the author concludes, quite persuasively, that almost everybody was right. Yes, the Democrats had a point -- Gore might have gotten more votes, had they all been counted. But yes, Harris was within her discretion to stop the vote-counting. And yes, the Supreme Court majority made the right decision to close the whole show.
While his conclusions are interesting, the analysis makes for tedious reading as Posner drills down to the most mundane details of the vote-counting. It's almost like reading a political science text and times, and that's not a good thing if you are a general reader (Posner's target audience, I believe).
Rating: 4
Summary: Could be TOO thorough
Comment: People have been quick to dismiss this book as right wing apologia written by a sneaky Bush supporter under the guise of analysis. However, those same people see Dershowitz's "Supreme Injustice" as an objective, non-partisan account? Dershowitz is a defense lawyer. What do they use? Rhetoric. Posner is a judge. What do they use? REASON.
As one who did not voter for Bush, Gore or Nader, I can say that this is the most intellegent, thorough and fair accounts given of the 2000 fiasco. The one thing it's NOT is the most readable. If you don't want numbers, textual explanations of obscure state clauses and discourses on democratic theory, this one will be a doozy. If you DO want a beach read, I direct you to Bugliosi. Also, if it's conservative apologia you're after, do yourself a favor and just watch Fox News.
Posner is not a pundit, he is a judge. He does not defend Katherine Harris's decision not to accept late recounts as a 'conservative,' he does so because the law gave her discretion. He refrains from bashing the supreme court decision, not as a conservative (he correctly disagrees with their 'equal protection' reasoning), he does so as a judge realizing they did the best they could in the time they had.
The key thing to take from this book is that he doesn't slam anyone (except for some overzeolous pundits). Second guessing motive is a slippery slope and he admirably refrains from left or right bashing. What we are left with is facts. As mentioned earlier, Dershowitz, as a defense lawyer, has proven one of the most effective rhetoricists on the planet. My guess is that a major reason this book didn't sell so well is because the rhetoric is absent.
The major flaw is that if Posner wnated to write a book for the lay person, he failed. This book, if you've no coffee around will make you dizzy. My reccomendation, read Bugliosi for a warm-up, Dershowitz for a light jog, and these will have worked you up to Posner. This is serious business!!
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Title: An Affair of State: The Investigation, Impeachment, and Trial of President Clinton by Richard A. Posner ISBN: 0674003918 Publisher: Harvard Univ Pr Pub. Date: November, 2000 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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Title: Too Close to Call : The Thirty-Six-Day Battle to Decide the 2000 Election by Jeffrey Toobin ISBN: 0375761071 Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks Pub. Date: 08 October, 2002 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: Supreme Injustice: How the High Court Hijacked Election 2000 by Alan M. Dershowitz ISBN: 0195148274 Publisher: Oxford University Press Pub. Date: 18 June, 2001 List Price(USD): $28.00 |
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Title: Understanding the 2000 Election: A Guide to the Legal Battles That Decided the Presidency by Abner Greene ISBN: 0814731481 Publisher: New York University Press Pub. Date: October, 2001 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
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Title: Law, Pragmatism, and Democracy : by Richard A. Posner ISBN: 0674010817 Publisher: Harvard Univ Pr Pub. Date: 31 March, 2003 List Price(USD): $35.00 |
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