The One Percent Doctrine

Deep Inside America's Pursuit of Its Enemies Since 9/11

By: Ron Suskind

Narrated by: Edward Herrmann

Length: 6 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

What is the guiding principle of the world's most powerful nation as it searches for enemies at home and abroad? The One Percent Doctrine is the deeply secretive core of America's real playbook: a default strategy, designed by Dick Cheney, that separates America from its moorings, and has driven everything - from war in Afghanistan to war in Iraq to the global search for jihadists.

The story begins on September 12, 2001, the day America began to gather itself for a response to the unimaginable. Ultimately, that reply would shape the nation's very character.

Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and best-selling author Ron Suskind tells us what actually occurred over the next three years, from the inside out, by tracing the steps of the key actors; the notables, from the President and Vice President to George Tenet and Condoleezza Rice, who oversee the "war on terror" and report progress to an anxious nation; and the invisibles, the men and women just below the line of sight, left to improvise plans to defeat a new kind of enemy in an hour-by-hour race against disaster. The internal battles between these two teams (one, under the hot lights; the other, actually fighting the fight) reveal everything about what America faces, and what it has done, in this age of terror.

Who is actually running U.S. foreign policy? Is there an operational cell, armed with WMDs, inside the United States? Have some of the world's most dangerous terrorists, including leaders of al Qaeda, been caught and accidentally released? Can America prevail in this struggle against enemies who are patient, ingenious, certain, and have clear tactical advantage?

With his unparalleled access to senior officials, past and present, Ron Suskind, author of The Price of Loyalty, the most revealing book yet written on the Bush administration, finally answers the questions that keep Americans awake at night.

©2006 Ron Suskind (P)2006 Simon and Schuster Inc. All rights reserved.

Critic reviews

• Audie Award Finalist, Judges' Award: Politics, 2007

"Perhaps the most detailed, revealing account yet of American counterterrorism efforts and a hard-hitting critique of their direction." (Publishers Weekly)

1% Doctrine, an eye opening book

This book sheds some light on the thinking mentality of decision makers. To act with such resolute based on 1% chance is scary. In essence, a court of law could sentence someone with just 2 out of 12 jurors entering a guilty plea. While that is not the current state of affairs remember neither was the 1% doctrine.

Trust in our corrupt leaders render us defenseless

Found the book riveting.
Knowing the putrefaction of Chaney & Bush terrifying, left feeling betrayed.

Enlightening

This book confirms many of our fears about the incompetence and hubris of the Bush Administation.
It is obvious that Suskind has extraordinary access to many of the principals, especially George Tenet. This is a well written, carefully crafted, work that all should read.

Need more of the same

I really enjoyed listening to this book. Clear, concise, factual, but just not enough. I would have liked to hear the unabridged version (that is if there was an unabridged version. Great book!

news even now

For those looking for more answers as our adventure in Iraq goes on and on, this is an important read. Suskind provides information not found in the myriad of other books, to the best of my knowledge. IF you are waiting for George Tenet's book to come out, you can read some stuff that the press STILL hasn't pounced on here. Don't know if Tenet's version will get past the "security checks", so try this version.
I wish an unabridged version had been available. though the abridged editing was fine. otherwise would have given it 5 stars. Left me hungry for more!

The Agenda is Clear

If you're a Bush / Cheney basher, you'll like this book. If not, you'll be frustrated. Suskind's hindsight is great, but he makes no effort to acknowledge that the people
dealing with the crisis in real time had no such luxury. He doesn't bother to mention the creation of the dept. of Homeland Security or that it was created to address many of the concerns that he whines about. He drives home the point that no WMD were found in Iraq, but leaves out the fact that Saddam claimed to have them, had used them in the past, and ran the UN inspectors out of the country presumably to conceal them.

BORRRRING!

This book was excrutiating to get through! All in all, it sounds like it was written more as a hit piece for the Bush administration. It had facts scattered throughout, but those facts seemed to take a backseat to the droll storytelling. As interesting as it became at times and as scary as some of those facts were at times, it did come across as a fact based objective story.

Excellent Book

Excellent book..