Against All Enemies

Inside America's War on Terror

By: Richard A. Clarke

Narrated by: Richard A. Clarke

Length: 6 hrs and 14 mins

Publisher's summary

The real war on terror has happened largely behind closed doors, run by the White House, drawing on secret intelligence and operations around the world. There is no man who knows more about it than Richard Clarke, the former Counterterrorism Czar for both George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, the man who has led our efforts against al Qaeda and all other terrorist enemies for years, serving under seven presidents and in the White House for George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George W. Bush, until he resigned in March 2003. He has had a front-row seat at every major battle in this war, from the first World Trade Center bombing, to 9/11, to Afghanistan, to Iraq.

Clarke knows the secret stories of Bill Clinton's great victories (shutting down anti-U.S. terrorism sponsored by Iran and Iraq) and his great frustrations (failing to kill Osama Bin Laden despite many attempts). When President Bush took office, Clarke was ready to present him with a master plan to roll back and destroy al Qaeda, yet the president did not grant a briefing for months. His aides had little interest in Osama Bin Laden, preferring to talk about Saddam Hussein at every turn. Clarke knows why we failed to shut down terrorist financing within our borders prior to 2001.

After ignoring existing plans to attack al Qaeda when he first took office, George Bush made disastrous decisions when he finally did pay attention. Thanks to the determined, even conspiratorial views of Wolfowitz, Rumsfeld, and Bush, we went after the wrong enemy.

The charges Clarke levels against the current administration must be taken seriously by every American, Democrat or Republican. Our security depends upon it.

Listen to Richard Clarke's testimony before the 9-11 Commission.

©2004 RAC Enterprises, Inc. (P)2004 Simon & Schuster, Inc. AUDIOWORKS is an imprint of Simon & Schuster Audio Division, Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Critic reviews

• Audie Award Winner, Narration by the Author or Authors, 2005

"The explosive details about President Bush's obsession with Iraq in the immediate aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks captured the headlines in the days after the book's release, but Against All Enemies offers more. It is a rarity among Washington-insider memoirs: it's a thumping good read." (The New York Times Book Review)
"The level of detail Clarke includes is impressive....Clarke delivers it like a pro. With his deep tenor and weighty pauses, Clarke never lets listeners forget the gravity of the situation....Compelling." (Publishers Weekly)
"Clarke tells an insider's story of our government's awakening to a threat we had never faced before. Because the written words are his own, every pause and emphasized phrase serve to hone his intended meaning as no contracted narrator could do. Although this is an abridgement, none of the meat or spice in this hot dish seems left out." (AudioFile)

Good background information

I expected the book to get a lot of backlash about partisanship based on Clarke's testimony but not from the people who actually read the book. I found it to be helpful in figuring out how we got here, in this mess with al-Quaeda. Richard Clarke's career started in the Reagan Administration and he told about the unintended consequences (that no one could forsee) of the Cold War and Reagan's efforts to bring down the Soviet Union.

Clarke himself acknowledges that it is likely that no one could have prevented 9/11. Those he criticizes most for not preventing 9/11 are the CIA and FBI and their entrenched, territorial view of their jobs.
He says that he knew it would take body bags for them to listen. He faults Congress and the Clinton Adminstration for not adequately funding anti-terrorism efforts. He does fault the Bush Administration for Iraq, which he views as a distraction from the war on terror, but that is not the purpose of the book.

I found the behind-the-scenes view of the inner workings of our government fascinating and an interesting read for that reason alone. Clarke's frustration at trying to "turn the battleship" is evident throughout the book - in all the Adminstrations in which he served.

Insiders view of what is really going on

The book is very informative, clear and balanced. Clarke has a long history with Republican and Democratic Presidents. Describes first hand how event unfolded and the mistakes of both the Clinton and the Bush administration. Listen with an open mind and not what is presented in the press.

THE TRUTH WILL PREVAIL -AT LAST

A book that reveals the what really happened on 9 11...Operation IGNORE was the policy of This presidents White House. The White House adopted a policy before 9 11 to totally ignore anything that would gaurd against the terrible events of 9 11 ....Richard Clarke walks us through the whole sad story... He was there...He was put incharge the day it happened...The president was in hiding in Nebraska...Cheney was hiding in his bunker along with Condi...The straight story from the man who was there.... Great Story and too bad it is all TRUE....

Someone please make a movie

Like Bowden's "Blackhawk Down", this book would make a terrific movie script. Very few Non-fiction books are as riveting as this one. I wonder if anyone in Hollywood has the courage to make the movie?

It certainly deserves all the awards!

What's really amazing...

...is that people can watch the news, listen to the 9/11 committee hearings, read this book, and still believe that going to war with Iraq had anything to do with fighting terrorism. Open your eyes, citizens! Our government, every government, lies to us every day... But Bush and his cronies tell the biggest whoppers you'll ever hear.

Against All Enemies

This is a must read if you are going to make an informed decision when you vote in November; no matter your party affiliation. It's scary to think that some of our high level decisions are made the way they are and Clarke tells it like it is.

I didn't really find this book biased; rather, a factual reporting of what happened up to and after 9-11. Maybe some people in Washington should be reading this now!

Amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank goodness an insider like Richard Clarke had the balls to tell the truth about the politics that get in the way of our national security.

If you want to know what really happened leading up to 9/11, you should read this book!

Great Tell All and Eventful Account.

An in depth and payful narration about the events that have lead us down a very slippery slope. We just don't learn.

Great book!

My HSEM teacher recommended this book and I absolutely loved it. Very easy to follow and gives you an idea of the behind the scenes of 9/11.

Poor reviews

Obviously, two of the reviewers did not read the book. The plan that was ultimately approved by Bush on September 4, 2001 was hatched under Clinton in December of 2000 and presented to Rice in early 2001 during several briefings that were arranged by members of the Clinton administration to get her up to speed on several national security issues.