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)

Truth to power...

...thanks Mr. Clarke. America, wake up!

More hype than actual criticism

Although I enjoyed this audiobook, especially for its grappling account of the hours following 9/11 in the first chapter, I was looking for deeper insights into why the Administration was looking for a way to link Saddham to 9/11. Unfortunately, the book contains mostly stories and anecdotes which, although they make great segments on "60-minutes", tend to be a little bit long after a while. This book is enjoyable but do not expect great revelations.

Best book I've read this year

Readable and informative.

Should be 'No Stars' ...

A very transparent and one-sided recreation of reality. Read it and you'll want ... no demand ... your money back. (Unless you're a Dean-i-ac). The book let's Clinton off the hook for 8 years of 'fighting terrorism' and lays the blame squarely on the Bush. Even if you're a Democrat, you cannot believe this guy's story. Simply amazing that he can offer this 'piece' as any type of fact ... and do it with a straight face.

Hope he enjoys his royalites!

Yeah, ok.

During the years that the author served as the chief officer for counter terrosrism for this country, we suffered enormously while our adversaries grew stronger by the minute. In 1990, the murder of a rabbi in NY started the ball rolling, but it wasn't the first infiltration by radicals in the US. In 1993, the WTC was attacked. In 1994, the FBI stopped a plot to bomb NY landmarks. In 1994, Oplan Bojinka was foiled by the mistakes of Ramzi Youseff, the WTC bomber. In 1995, the #2 in Al Quaeda completed a fund raising tour in the US. In 1996, Khobar Towers was bombed. In 1998, the US embassies in Africa were bombed. In 1999, only the suspicion of an alert Customs agent foiled the bombing of LAX. In 2000, the USS Cole was bombed. Where was the author during all of this? There are a number of much better books on the topic out there. This one strikes me as a self serving attempt to rewrite history and make himself seem more valuable than his achievements merit. It's an interesting read, but don't depend on it being the truth. This is a very colored view of the world, written for blatant self interest and self serving reasons.