Dereliction of Duty: The Eyewitness Account of How Bill Clinton Compromised America's National Security

Author - Robert Patterson ... [Goo?] [Posters]

This Paperback Book item from Regnery Publishing, Inc. was reviewed on 7-Oct-2008.

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1) Paperback Book Dereliction of Duty: The Eyewitness Account of How Bill Clinton Compromised America's National Security by Regnery Publishing, Inc.. "Dereliction of Duty" was written to summarize the author´s concerns that arose while serving as a military aide to President Clinton. Examples follow, but first a bit of insight into "the football."

The football is a hard-cased container, about 2´X3´ and concealed in a leather outer case and weighing about 45 lbs. It contains nuclear launch plans, options, and codes. An aide with the football is on duty at all times, within feet of the president.

Another interesting tidbit - Air Force 1 (747) has room for 68 people, including the first family.

Patterson opens by relating an instance when President Clinton declined to respond to his National Security Advisor´s request for authorization for airstrikes on Iraq. The president was too wrapped up in a golf tourney at which he was a spectator. Similarly, in the fall of 1998, Clinton dithered so long thinking about an opportunity to strike or capture bin Laden that the opportunity passed.

Other problems include Clinton´s losing the nuclear codes, Hillary and her brothers abusiveness towards all staff (especially the military), and Clinton´s foreign travel costing about $500 million over his 8 years (per a GAO report) - not including those of Mrs. Clinton. A 1998 trip to Africa totaled 1,302 people.

Once President Clinton inappropriately touched one of the female stewards on Air Force I; often donors were invited along. Patterson is also upset that Clinton forced integration of women into combat and pilot roles, reduced the military by 1/3 - 1/2, denied tank and armored vehicles to those in Somalia, and supported Gore´s decision to NOT profile airline passengers.

Patterson is particularly incensed that Clinton did not respond aggressively towards various terrorist attacks - eg. Somalia and the U.S.S. Cole, and compares Clinton negatively to President Reagan. However, Patterson´s comparison is more than a bit selective, forgetting Reagan´s failure to respond to two large bombings in Lebanon that killed over 300 people.¤

2) Paperback Book Dereliction of Duty: The Eyewitness Account of How Bill Clinton Compromised America's National Security by Regnery Publishing, Inc.. If you look at the tally of this book´s reviews, you´ll see that it reflects the polarizing effect of the Clintons: reading this book without one´s reaction to it being affected by personal bias is virtually impossible. Having read some of the cheering and much of the jeering for Dereliction of Duty, I will also agree with many critics that what Patterson offers, although based on fact, is not an in-depth and dispassionate analysis. Therein lays the fundamental drawback of Patterson´s work: the words on the jacket are a little too ambitious for what he has in store. However, those same critics conveniently forget some of the most egregious lapses of our former president, several of which are recorded in this book. One example worthy of note is the loss of the "nuclear biscuit", something a military officer could be court-marshaled for, but Clinton shrugged off as no big deal.

In fact, if this book has a unique merit, it is to capture fairly accurately the frustration and disappointment of many professionals who served in the military during the Clinton years. While this is not a message that will easily resonate with those who have never worn a uniform, as a retired senior officer, I, for one, certainly understand Patterson´s motivation to write his book, even though I don´t agree with all of his reasoning. It is perhaps worth clarifying that most service members, myself and Patterson included, accept without qualms the civilian control of the military. However, when that control is exercised with ignorance, arrogance and disrespect for those who serve, the results can only be perplexity and indignation. If the examples Patterson chooses to illustrate these traits in the Clintons are nothing new and may even appear petty to some, they will nonetheless evoke unpleasantly familiar feelings in most veterans who served in that era.

The objection may be raised that, when it comes to ignorance and arrogance, other administrations have been just as guilty, but that is besides the point: this book is about two years of experience in the Clintons´ White House, so it is their ignorance and their arrogance that take center stage. And while the author often uses his personal observations as springboards for unwarranted pontification, the aggregate of those observations does capture the general atmosphere. Patterson openly admits to being captivated by Clinton´s charm, but also provides enough behind-the-scenes insight to offer a limited glimpse of Bill´s and, to a lesser extent, Hillary´s quirks. Their privileged mentality, as well as their perceived right to treat all others as lesser beings (whom they owe no accountability), comes through clearly enough.

Ultimately, rather than an in-depth discussion or new revelations pertaining to Clinton´s mishandling of National Security matters, this book should have been portrayed less pretentiously as a collection of observations by an author who enjoyed a unique and close perspective of the Clinton presidency. The overambitious attempt at making it into anything more raises the reader´s expectations beyond Patterson´s ability to deliver. Even with all that, I found it an interesting account from one who wasn´t just close, but actually there.
¤

3) Paperback Book Dereliction of Duty: The Eyewitness Account of How Bill Clinton Compromised America's National Security by Regnery Publishing, Inc.. This books purports to show an insiders view, but it misses the mark. The author tries to emphasize his own importance and insiders view, but the book is rather slim, and overly padded, there are 150 pages of text in relatively large type with lots of space. This is an expose from someone who overheard conversations. This was certainly written by a conservative trying to make the point that we should fight a military war on terror, going to many countries. The book is full of inuendo and guesses. I thought these aides were supposed to sign an oath of confidentiality. A trash book.¤

4) Paperback Book Dereliction of Duty: The Eyewitness Account of How Bill Clinton Compromised America's National Security by Regnery Publishing, Inc.. This was a gift for my father. Didn´t get a chance to read it, but per his review, it was a great book. Highly recommend for anyone wanting to get a better insight into the Clintons.¤

5) Paperback Book Dereliction of Duty: The Eyewitness Account of How Bill Clinton Compromised America's National Security by Regnery Publishing, Inc.. It´s also very interesting that after I bought this book, when I looked for it in the store later, it had disappeared! I still look, and it´s still not there.

And to think 1/2 the democrats in this country want to give them another four years!¤

6) Paperback Book Dereliction of Duty: The Eyewitness Account of How Bill Clinton Compromised America's National Security by Regnery Publishing, Inc.. Here is the ultimate insider´s account from the highest and most sensitive levels of the Clinton administration, revealing how the irresponsible use of power can lead to a terrible price paid by all Americans.¤

7) Paperback Book Dereliction of Duty: The Eyewitness Account of How Bill Clinton Compromised America's National Security by Regnery Publishing, Inc.. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Robert "Buzz" Patterson was a military aide to President Clinton from May 1996 to May 1998 and one of five individuals entrusted with carrying the "nuclear football"—the bag containing the codes for launching nuclear weapons. This responsibility meant that he spent a considerable amount of time next to the president, giving him a unique perspective on the Clinton administration. Though he arrived at the job "filled with professional devotion and commitment to serve," he left believing that Clinton had "sown a whirlwind of destruction upon the integrity of our government, endangered our national security, and done enormous harm to the American military in which I served."

Dereliction of Duty is not a personal attack on President Clinton or a commentary on his various scandals; rather, it is a "frank indictment of his obvious—to an eyewitness—failure to lead our country with responsibility and honor." Lt. Col. Patterson offers a damning list of anecdotes and charges against the President, including how Clinton lost the nuclear codes and shrugged it off; how he stalled and lost the opportunity to launch a direct strike on Osama bin Laden at a confirmed location; how the President and the First Lady, and much of their staff, consistently treated members of the military with disrespect and disdain; and how Clinton groped a female Air Force enlisted member while aboard Air Force One, among other incidents large and small. A considerable portion of this slim book is devoted to the myriad ways in which President Clinton undermined the military, and hence the security, of the nation. He seriously questions Clinton´s decisions to send troops to Somalia, Rwanda, Haiti, and Bosnia to accomplish non-military tasks without clear objectives. Having participated in each of these engagements, Lt. Col. Patterson personally "experienced the frustration of needlessly wasted lives, effort, and national prestige" as well as the alarmingly low morale that Clinton inspired.

This is certainly not the first anti-Clinton book, but it is different in that Patterson does not seem to have a political ax to grind. In fact, at times, he appears apologetic about having to write about his ex-commander in chief. Yet, in the end, this retired soldier felt his last act of service should be to share his experience with his country. --Shawn Carkonen¤

Page Updated: Robert N. Goolsby, 4-Nov-2008, 08952606039780895260604, 740-030-510-770-790-640-KKB-8

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