Promises to Keep: On Life and Politics
by Joe Biden
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Book Summary Information
Author: Joe BidenEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-08-28
ISBN: 0812976215
Number of pages: 400
Publisher: RANDO
Book Reviews of Promises to Keep: On Life and Politics
Book Review: Flashback to 2008...
Summary: 4 Stars
For most of the younger voters out there, not many were familiar with Joe Biden, except for snippets about him running for the Presidency. That ignorance was broken when the news media descended upon him and his family yet again when he was announced as the Vice Presidential candidate for Barack Obama, which lead to news copters, "analysis", and Neil Cavuto speculating how much his house was worth and whether they forgot Grandma at home or not. In the days and weeks to come, people would learn more about Biden, senator to his home state of Delaware since 1972 and former Presidential hopeful both in the 1988 and 2008 elections. If you were to ask him what the difference was between then and now, he would tell you that in '88 he had no clue how he'd lead but he knew how to campaign. In 2007, at the end of his memoir "Promises to Keep", he said as much, but also pointed out that at the time of his writing the book he felt he knew how he'd lead but had no clue how he'd run his campaign.
It is this type of insightful remembrance and candor that make this book a truly great read. The Vice President elect basically covers every square inch he can of his life. From his riches to rags childhood to his courtship of his first wife, Neilia, all the way up to the squabbles in the Bush Administration that defined where we are today in Iraq, the book covers 60+ years in 365 pages. Make no mistake about it, Joe Biden is a natural storyteller, and he's a great speaker. So good in fact, that it was all the more disappointing to some when he accidentally plagiarized Neil Kinnock's speech for the Labour Party during his bid for the Democratic Nomination for the 1988 election. Biden is quite apologetic for this in his book, and sets the record as straight as he can with his account of the situation.
Later on, in perhaps the most insightful portion of the book, Senator Biden recounts 9/11 and the days after, in which he and other senators pushed not only to get back to work, but to swiftly act on the threats that America was just waking up to. His portrait of the Bush Administration is that of an administration divided into old school (Colin Powell) and new school (Cheney/Rumsfeld) diplomacy, and the struggle between them. His take on Bush was that he wasn't all that stupid, he just surrounded himself with the wrong people and let the right people take a backseat in policy decisions. The Conservative/Neo Conservative tug of war that would lead to Powell's resignation is one that the American public only caught a glimpse of in the media, but in "Promises to Keep" the Senator is able to show us a little more than what we were previously privy to. It is this information that makes our current reality in Iraq all the more depressing.
Finally, one of the most interesting aspects of the book though is Biden's mixture of personal and professional life. True, political memoirs are a dime a dozen, but the advantage this book has is that Joe Biden seems genuinely friendly, and as such it's easier to get to know about his life. It isn't a "mea culpa" like Robert McNamara's books; it isn't an 800 page tome that in the end doesn't tell you much outside what you didn't know, it's just one man telling as many sides of the story to his life as he can. One final disclaimer, "Promises to Keep" isn't a quick read. It's denser than usual, and is best to take on a chapter by chapter basis. But it is well worth reading, simply because it shows just how human and how fit for the vice presidency Joe the Senator really is.
Summary of Promises to Keep: On Life and Politics
?Nearly forty years after I first got involved, I remain captivated by the possibilities of politics and public service. In fact, I believe that my chosen profession is a noble calling. That?s why I wanted to be a part of it.??Joe Biden
As a United States senator from Delaware since 1973, Joe Biden has been an intimate witness to the major events of the past four decades and a relentless actor in trying to shape recent American history. He has seen up close the tragic mistake of the Vietnam War, the Watergate and Iran-contra scandals, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the reunification of Germany, the disintegration of the Soviet Union, the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, a presidential impeachment, a presidential resignation, and a presidential election decided by the Supreme Court. He?s observed Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Clinton, and two Bushes wrestling with the presidency; he?s traveled to war zones in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa and seen firsthand the devastation of genocide. He played a vital role by standing up to Ronald Reagan?s effort to seat Judge Robert Bork on the Supreme Court, fighting for legislation that protects women against domestic violence, and galvanizing America?s response (and the world?s) to Slobodan Milosevic?s genocidal march in the Balkans. In Promises to Keep, Biden reveals what these experiences taught him about himself, his colleagues, and the institutions of government.
With his customary candor, Biden movingly recounts growing up in a staunchly Catholic multigenerational household in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and Wilmington, Delaware; overcoming a demoralizing stutter; marriage, fatherhood, and the tragic death of his wife Neilia and infant daughter Naomi; remarriage and re-forming a family with his second wife, Jill; success and failure in the Senate and on the campaign trail; two life-threatening aneurysms; his relations with fellow lawmakers on both sides of the aisle; and his leadership of powerful Senate committees.
Through these and other recollections, Biden shows us how the guiding principles he learned early in life?the obligation to work to make people?s lives better, to honor family and faith, to get up and do the right thing no matter how hard you?ve been knocked down, to be honest and straightforward, and, above all, to keep your promises?are the foundations on which he has based his life?s work as husband, father, and public servant.
Promises to Keep is the story of a man who faced down personal challenges and tragedy to become one of our most effective leaders. It is also an intimate series of reflections from a public servant who refuses to be cynical about political leadership, and a testament to the promise of the United States.
From the Hardcover edition.
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