Title

Standing firm: a vice-presidential memoir.

Description

Standing Firm leaves no doubt that Dan Quayle is the most misjudged figure in modern political history. Prior to 1988, Quayle had never lost an election. Not for Congress. Not even for the Senate. Heading into that year's Republican Convention, Quayle was considered one of the party's brightest young stars - a man of unusual political instincts who, when it came to campaigning, had a reputation as a giant killer. He would become the first in his generation to hold national office, but only after a tumultuous contest that frequently put him on the defensive.With gritty honesty and admirable self-deprecation, Quayle describes what it was like to weather that 1988 media storm, and the other squalls that followed. Poignantly, he also talks of the self-confidence and Christian faith that gave him the courage to stand firm and record some of the most noteworthy contributions of any Vice President ever. Among the high points: his coordination of America's response to a coup attempt in the Philippines, the details of which have never been reported; his bringing the family-values issue to the fore with the Murphy Brown speech - a call for action that, one year later, would even draw support from Democratic President Bill Clinton; his use of the White House Competitiveness Council to curtail harmful "overregulation"; his unreported diplomacy with Latin American leaders; and his championing of legal reform, which would earn him the strongest praise of his vice-presidency. Quayle pulls no punches when it comes to assessing himself and other players in the Bush administration - the men and women who were his allies, and sometimes his opponents, in helping George Bush spread democracy around the world. He shares entries from his diary of the Persian Gulf crisis, offers a surprising snapshot of what the typical Bush cabinet meeting was like, describes intramural battles waged by White House power brokers, and reveals his special relationship with the President. Quayle, a former journalist, interviewed several members of the press for this book, and their contributions form a vital part of its fabric. Standing Firm is perhaps most intriguing in its analysis of what went wrong in the 1992 election. Quayle does not hesitate to place blame where it is deserved - in fact, he reserves some of the strongest criticism for himself. Throughout, the portrait that emerges of the former Vice President is that of a man whose good humor is exceeded only by a competence for which he has never been fully credited.

Identifier

2500128

60177586

Creator

Quayle, Dan

Format

1st ed.

Source

Brian Lamb Booknotes Collection

Gift of Brian Lamb, 2011.

Catalog record

Language

eng

Date

1994

Program air date: July 24, 1994.

Publisher

HarperCollins Publishers

George Mason University. Libraries. Special Collections & Archives

Text

Transcription of Annotations
Extensive notes on front endpapers: Inauguration-Marilyn-sold family van p. 79. Close family after 4 years of V.P. Karl Jackson-Hudson Institute-consulting firm p. 89. Geor. Bush is the kind of man I would aspire to be myself, p. 95. John Sununu-will come out very well p. 99. Leaks. Cabinet meetings-an anachronism p. 100. Defining moments-jokes. Beckwith- p. 123 hard to make switch from press to V.P.. Ted Kennedy p. 155. Why surprise factor? Meeting with journalists before writing book. My father's bulldog tattoo. Hostility and Huntington--Did it work? Spontaneity--p. 50 fear of gaffe. Meg Greenfield--deer caught in headlights p. 65. Lesley Stahl--camera does funny things. George Will p. 66--What's this all about. Tucker passed along the jokes--SNL. Warren Rudman-a bit of a know it all p. 23. Bob Dole-complicated man-briefed instead of reading. Stu Spencer--Joe Canzeri--only interested in self-promotions no ideology. Sam Donaldson--a bit of a loud mouth. Jane Pauley p. 57. Jack Kemp-disappointed me p. 101. Dick Cheney -an ambitious insider, sometimes taciturn, 101. Paul Weyrich--I'm still disappointed in P.W. for the way he opposed J.T. p. 113. Maureen Dowd-doesn't let the facts get in her way, 127. T-Shirt-The Scream-p. 256. Ann Devroy p. 235-plugged in reporter. Cokie Roberts. [Verso] Sam Donaldson p. 322. His blatant bias was never more in evidence. Bill Kristol--reputation as a leaker p. 344. Carol Simpson--took character issue off the table p. 354. Notes on half-title: Politicians always want a win-win situation p. 217. Ghandi [Gandhi]--smash skull at funeral. Pix p. 244--How you exit is important, especially if you're thinking of coming back. Gorbachev/Raisa-Marilyn p. 168 reactive. NASA-Lenoir p. 180-blow up an engine. Al Gore-NASA and change p. 190 p 226 vote on Gulf. Dan Rather p. 216-Gulf. Mike Wallace-Recind law prohibiting assassination. Lee Atwater--too much has been made of his apology before his death p. 250. Woodward and Broder p. 257. Quayle fired Sununu p. 294. Rather/Devroy/Broder p. 304. Perot-Bush's relationship p. 310. Sydney Pollack-Greed and Reagan p. 363. Underlinings/notes: Underlinings about Quayle's campaigns, life in Washington and achievements in the House and Senate, relationship with and observations of George Bush, Qualye's thoughts on Ross Perot and the challenges of being VP. Notes: "Favorable press," Lamb marks passages about Quayles various campaign debates, relationship with God and prayer. "Bush asks about V.P.," "Needed more scrutiny from the press," "Quayle on infighting," "1992-Media set the agenda," "No faith in the media." Lamb also notes the names of various members of the press (Maureen Dowd, Ann Devroy, Woodward, Bryant Gumbel, Barbara Walters, Rather, Broder) in the margins with underlinings of examples of reporting/editorializing on Quayle.

Subject

"Quayle, Dan, 1947-"

"Vice-Presidents--United States--Biography."

Relation

Original Booknotes interview

Rights

This work may be protected by copyright laws and is provided for educational and research purposes only. Any infringing use may be subject to disciplinary action and/or civil or criminal liability as provided by law. If you believe that you are the rights-holder and object to Mason’s use of this image, please contact speccoll@gmu.edu.