The opening image of
Versailles on the Potomac well sums up the thesis of this book. The
aristocracy who lived in Versailles were completely divorced from the
people they ruled. They led extravagant lives while the common people
starved.
This is to a large
extent what the political class in Washington does. They live lives
inside the Beltway seldom seeing the people who vote for them and not trying to understand their concerns. Of
course, this is not the case with all our congresspeople and
senators, but there are glaring examples. Fields tells the stories of
several of these elitist politicians: Harry Reid, Nancy Pelosi, Joe
Bieden, the Clintons, and the list goes on. Being even
handed, Fields also includes a long section on Jeb Bush receiving
favored treatment because of his famous family.
Probably the best
part of this book is the attention paid to what the Founders wanted
for the republic they created. They were against any kind of an
aristocracy, they believed people should serve the country because
they believed in creating good laws, not to get rich.
Bureaucrats like
Lois Learner and political appointees like Eric Holder are not
exempt, nor is the press. They also believe in their elitist entitlement.The culture in Washington is so insular
that the press parties and plays with the politicians making it
difficult to ask the hard questions and be a watchdog on the process
of legislation.
The final section of
the book gives remedies for this problem: term limits, restraining
lobbying, and reducing the size of government. It will not be easy to
get the privileged class to forgo their perks, but actions need to be
taken so that the average American has a better chance to be
understood and helped by our government.
I received this book
from Blogging for Books for this review.
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