Review

Peter Schweizer is the president of the Government Accountability Institute and former William J. Casey Fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution. He has now written several times addressing the question: How do politicians do so well financially, given their modest compensation? Having public power, and thus influence, provides temptations to leverage that power for the direct benefit of oneself, family, friends, and important donors. More power equals more influence. Given this axiom and the fact that Progressive politicians all favor a rapid and radical expansion of federal political power, it follows that this would dramatically increase the power inequality between the political class and the rest of America. Schweizer states that, therefore, "it seems fair to ask: How have they individually exercised whatever public power they have held so far? Have they been good stewards of their vested power or have they wielded that saber for personal benefit, including benefits extending to family and friends? What secret entanglements do they hold?" Focusing on aspirants for higher office, Schweizer answers these questions for eight politicians, six of whom are/were announced candidates for the U.S. presidency. They are Kamala Harris, Joe Biden, Cory Booker, Elizabeth Warren, Sherrod Brown, Bernie Sanders, Amy Klobuchar, and Eric Garcetti, and Schweizer devotes a chapter to each. Readers will be surprised and disappointed at the tactics employed by this group to raise money for the benefit of themselves, their families, and friends/sponsors. You'll learn how Bernie Sanders became a millionaire in office, the breadth of Joe Biden's efforts to enrich himself and five members of his family, not just son Hunter and the Ukraine connection. In 2019, Biden declared "I never talked with my son or my brother or anyone else... even distant family... about their business interests. Period." To which Schweizer comments "As we will see, this is an impossibility." Readers will learn how Elizabeth Warren uses the very corporations she scorches to raise money for herself and family. Amy Klobuchar has a reputation for being anything but nice to her subordinates and she has the highest level of staff turnover in the Senate. I heard Schweizer interviewed about this book and he said that he had 12 investigators working for 18 months (there are about 100 pages of Notes cited). Readers should take notice.

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