The Whole Damn Deal; Robert Strauss and the Art of Politics

New York: PublicAffairs, 2011. First Edition [Stated], First Printing [Stated]. Hardcover. Very good/Very good. xxiv, 433, [3] pages. Illustrations. Abbreviations Used in Notes. Notes. Index. Kathryn McGarr is an assistant professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her research focuses on twentieth-century American political history. McGarr's current research is on the history of foreign policy reporters in Washington, D.C., from World War II through the early Cold War period. She traces how reporting practices and social networks among journalists built the capital's modern echo chamber and forged a consensus on America's foreign policy obligations-especially its responsibility for leading what became called the free world. McGarr wrote a biography of the Democratic power broker Bob Strauss, The Whole Damn Deal: Robert Strauss and the Art of Politics. Derived from a Kirkus review: A well-paced, exhaustively researched biography of Robert Strauss, the well-connected lawyer, politician, businessman and diplomat known in some circles as "Mr. Democrat." Readers will find McGarr's book packed with compelling stories about her subject's intriguing career, the evolution of the Democratic Party from the 1950s to the '90s and the changing tone in Washington. Strauss established himself as an important figure in state politics by the '50s, served as Chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 1972 to 1977, U.S. Trade Representative and special envoy to the Middle East under President Carter and U.S. ambassador to the Soviet Union/Russia under President George H.W. Bush. Strauss is McGarr's great-uncle. Her exclusive access to Strauss himself-as well as to dozens of high-level politicians and media personalities who worked with him strengthens the book. The book draws heavily on material provided by people who admire the subject. Strauss has a Texas-sized personality. It is worth reading to decide whether Strauss is a wise elder statesman or merely an effective practitioner of politics.