In Fraud, leading political and media analyst Paul Waldman exposes the truth behind the rise of George W. Bush. What is revealed is more shocking than just a pattern of lies and incompetence. It is the story of how a clever political machine built a high-stakes game of deception, a policy of lies to capture the highest office in the free world, a fraud that continues to this day.

How to Build a Fraud:

• Portray son of one of America's most influential families as down-home Texan
• Berate media as "liberal" until they stop asking tough questions
• Take advantage of reporters' tendency to not check the facts
• Mask reactionary policies in compassionate words and pictures
• Push false stories from right-wing media into mainstream media
• Extol the virtues of workers while systematically pushing an anti-labor agenda
• Propose a series of tax cuts aimed at the wealthy, but sell them as a boon to ordinary Americans
• Disguise destructive initiatives with friendly sounding names
• Befriend media with "genuine guy" routine
• Keep the public from accessing information
• Maintain message discipline at all times
• Question patriotism of anyone who disagrees
• Repeat above until it all seems true

At some point, George W. Bush took a good long look at who he was and what he wanted for the country and decided that the American people would never buy it if he gave it to them straight. So Bush and his political machine made their decision: the American people would have to be lied to.

They would construct a persona that would be everything Bush was not.

They would take the same reactionary agenda and cloak it in comforting catchphrases and pleasing visuals, presenting to the public a false image of sympathy.

And they would repeat this message endlessly.

The power of the fraud lies in the ability of the Bush machine to manipulate the press, and thereby avoid having the truth exposed. Waldman's findings reveal an astonishing record of how the nation's media has not only given Bush a pass again and again, but have failed to follow up on even the most openly dishonest parts of the Bush agenda.

For all Americans who have been uneasy about the honesty of the Bush administration, but unsure what it means or how far it goes, Fraud is a shocking wake-up call.

The Bush II presidency, argues political and media commentator Waldman, is an epic fraud founded on a media enabled myth of George W. Bush as an amiable dunce. He argues that nearly everything the Bush administration does, from its "Clean Air" initiative to the war in Iraq is predicated on simplistic rhetoric that is purposely designed to manipulate the American public. He explores the strategies Bush and his handlers have used to obscure the facts behind his war, economic initiatives, and attacks on democracy and examines the way the administration has managed to make the media fear them.
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"Waldman gets right to the heart of the con." Greg Palast, author of the New York Times bestseller The Best Democracy Money Can Buy

In this scathing indictment of the president's integrity, Waldman maintains that George W. Bush has executed a comprehensive and sustained plan of deception to mislead America.

Paul Waldman is a rising star in the world of political commentary. Formerly the associate director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center, he is currently the executive editor of The Gadflyer, an Internet magazine about politics launched on January 2004. Waldman's writing has appeared in the American Prospect, the Washington Post, Newsday, and a wide variety of scholarly journals and edited volumes. He holds a Ph.D. in communication from the University of Pennsylvania's renowned Annenberg School and has been analyzing the interplay of media and politics for the last decade.

Introduction vii
Chapter 1: Just a Good Old Boy, Never Meanin' No Harm: Constructing the Myth of "Dubya" 1
Chapter 2: Dodging Bullets: Triumphs of Spin Control 23
Chapter 3: "That's Trustworthiness": A Strategy of Lies 55
Chapter 4: The Emperor's Fashion Critics: How to Make the Press Love You 99
Chapter 5: Working the "Liberal" Media: How to Make the Press Fear You 139
Chapter 6: Putting the Con in Compassionate Conservative: Bush's Ideological Two-Step 157
Chapter 7: New-Doo Economics: George W. Bush and Taxes 199
Chapter 8: Bushocracy: The New Face of Democracy 235
Epilogue: Fool Me Twice 277
Appendix: The Elements of Fraud: A Guide to Key Lies and Misdirections 285
Index 297
Acknowledgments 309
About the Author 311