Pure Goldwater
Barry Goldwater is a defining figure in American public life, a firebrand politician associated with an optimistic brand of conservatism. In an era in which American conservatism has lost his way, his legacy is more important than ever. For over 50 years, in those moments when he was away from the political fray, Senator Goldwater kept a private journal, recording his reflections on a rich political and personal life. Here bestselling author John Dean combines analysis with Goldwater's own...
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New York Times bestselling author John Dean and the son of conservative icon Barry Goldwater come together to show why Goldwater matters. Publishers Weekly Starred Review.Senator Barry Goldwater (1909-1998), whose 1960 best-seller Conscience of a Conservative helped define the modern conservative movement, was by 1996 describing himself and Bob Dole as "the new liberals of the Republican Party." Author Dean (Broken Government, Conservatives Without Conscience) and Goldwater Jr., the Senator's son and an eighth-term California congressman, explore the complicated figure in this "scrap book" of journal excerpts, correspondence, articles and other primary testimony. A Republican maverick who valued principle over political expediency, Goldwater can be predictable-maintaining loyalty toward Nixon even as the President edged him out of inner White House circles (as late as May 1973, Goldwater called for Jack Anderson's Pulitzer to be re-dubbed "the Benedict Arnold Award")-but he was neither an ideologue nor a mud-slinger: for instance, his hard-hitting fight against President Johnson stopped short of scandalizing LBJ's chief of staff, arrested for "disorderly" conduct in a men's toilet, and in 1994 he went against the powerful new GOP congress by saying publicly of Whitewater, "I haven't heard anything yet that says this is all that big of a deal." Covering personal life, career and retirement, including his 1964 bid for president, this is an invaluable chronicle of the times, told by an American who changed politics by being, simply, "an honest man who tried his damnedest."Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Preface ixThe Early YearsThe Boy Who Became the Man 3Journals and Opinions 15A Break from Business to Explore Arizona 23Military Life 45Political Beginnings 67The Senate Years: 1952-1965The First Senate Campaign 75Learning How Washington Worked 87Playing on the National Stage: 1959-1963 103After the 1964 Presidential RaceSetting the Record Straight 139Seeing the World and Spreading the Word 177Nixon and WatergateRecalling Nixon 197Nixon's Presidency: First Term 213Nixon's Presidency: Second Term 255Watergate 275On the IssuesAmerican Foreign Policy 331Domestic Issues 341Retirement Years 365Epilogue 373Chronology 379Acknowledgments 389Index 393
\ From Barnes & NobleRepublican candidate Barry Goldwater (1909-98) was soundly trounced in the 1964 presidential election, but this maverick Arizona senator helped create the conservative power base that dominated American politics for decades thereafter. Though the author of The Conscience of a Conservative was rightly regarded as a founder of the modern right-wing movement, his libertarian views often clashed with those of social conservatives on issues including, but not limited to, abortion, gays in the military, Iran-Contra, and Whitewater. For more than a half a century, he recorded his candid opinions on the pages of an extraordinary public journal. Pure Goldwater, edited by bestselling author John Dean and Goldwater's son and namesake, contains excerpts from that journal, in addition to correspondence, interviews, and behind-the-scenes conversations. A singular voice in our history.\ \ \ \ \ Publishers WeeklyStarred Review.\ Senator Barry Goldwater (1909-1998), whose 1960 best-seller Conscience of a Conservative helped define the modern conservative movement, was by 1996 describing himself and Bob Dole as "the new liberals of the Republican Party." Author Dean (Broken Government, Conservatives Without Conscience) and Goldwater Jr., the Senator's son and an eighth-term California congressman, explore the complicated figure in this "scrap book" of journal excerpts, correspondence, articles and other primary testimony. A Republican maverick who valued principle over political expediency, Goldwater can be predictable-maintaining loyalty toward Nixon even as the President edged him out of inner White House circles (as late as May 1973, Goldwater called for Jack Anderson's Pulitzer to be re-dubbed "the Benedict Arnold Award")-but he was neither an ideologue nor a mud-slinger: for instance, his hard-hitting fight against President Johnson stopped short of scandalizing LBJ's chief of staff, arrested for "disorderly" conduct in a men's toilet, and in 1994 he went against the powerful new GOP congress by saying publicly of Whitewater, "I haven't heard anything yet that says this is all that big of a deal." Covering personal life, career and retirement, including his 1964 bid for president, this is an invaluable chronicle of the times, told by an American who changed politics by being, simply, "an honest man who tried his damnedest."\ Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.\ \ \ \ Library JournalAlthough mostly remembered for his landslide loss in the 1964 presidential election, Barry Goldwater enjoyed a distinguished 30-year career in the Senate and a full and productive life. His son, an eight-term congressman, and Dean (Conservatives Without Conscience) compiled this collection of Goldwater's letters and selected diary entries across 60 years, letting Goldwater tell his own story. The result is an engaging, if selective, memoir that describes Goldwater's Arizona childhood, family life, politics, many nature hikes through his beloved Arizona, and the Presidents he knew, including JFK, whom he considered a good President, and Nixon, whom he came to loathe as a result of Watergate. The writings here were not intended for publication; Goldwater wrote them for his children. Some include funny, salty remarks that add to the folksy style. This icon of conservatism often mentions his contempt for large government and taxes but also reveals his pro-choice views, support for gay rights, environmental concern, and support for a state holiday honoring Martin Luther King. Not included is Goldwater's take on the 1964 election, other than blaming his pasting on the media and Lyndon Johnson's dirty tricks. The editors show Goldwater's ultimate success as being remembered as he hoped to be: "an honest man who tried his damndest." Recommended for public and academic libraries.-\ —Karl Helicher\ \ \ \ \ \ From the Publisher"An invaluable chronicle of the times." —-Publishers Weekly Starred Review\ \
