No Way to Pick A President: How Money and Hired Guns Have Debased American Elections

A seasoned political writer who has covered every presidential election since Eisenhower, Jules Witcover has seen it all: from powerful party chieftains to political analysts, from the trenches of primary elections to the high-tech weapons of mass communication. InNo Way to Pick a President, he blasts the current process by which America chooses its president, denouncing the road to the White House as divisive, corrupt, noisy, and costly for the candidates and the public. As the United States marks its first presidential election of a new century, Witcover shows us how professional mercenaries -- with little party loyalty and diminished political principles, driven by an insatiable need for money -- are poisoning public life. At the same time, politicians themselves have condoned and even encouraged these developments, responding to the demands of a media-driven age in which the press corps pursues its own quest for celebrity and financial reward. Sharp, revealing, and rich withanecdotes,No Way to Pick a Presidentoffers a wealth of presidential history, from the role of the vice president's office (until the 25th Amendment, we didn't even bother to replace V.P.s when the office became empty), to campaign funds, television, and the electoral college. Speaking to every concerned citizen, Witcover concludes with prescriptions to improve our presidential politics and revive public confidence.