Rush Limbaugh
An Army of One
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3.8 • 190 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
NATIONAL BESTSELLER! The bestselling biography of America’s Anchorman by the journalist who knew him best
"Chafets has seen more of the pundit's personal world than any other journalist." -The Washington Post
People tend to remember the moment they first heard The Rush Limbaugh Show on the radio. For Zev Chafets, it was in a car in Detroit. The braggadocio, the outrageous satire, the slaughtering of liberal sacred cows performed with the verve of a rock and roll DJ-it seemed fresh, funny, and completely subversive. "They're never going to let this guy stay on the air," he thought.
Almost two decades later Chafets met Rush and they spent hours together talking on the record about politics, sports, music, show business, religion, and modern American history. Rush opened his home and his world, introducing Chafets to his family, his closest friends, even his psychologist.
What has emerged after months of correspondence revealing Rush Limbaugh's thoughts, fears, and ambitions, is a uniquely personal look at the man who was not only the most popular voice on the radio, but also one of the most influential figures in the conservative movement.
Customer Reviews
Somewhat fair biography given the limits of anyone employed by the NY Times
Here's a great quote from the author that should give everyone a good idea just where the political class of NY publishing stands on the issue of Rush Limbaugh:
"I have been in the book-writing business a long time, but I was amazed to discover that almost no New York publisher wanted a book about Rush Limbaugh that didn't have the word "idiot" or "liar" in the title."
From that one small yet telling point you can imagine how hard it is for anyone from that culture to write about Rush if their goal is accuracy as well as a lengthy career and full social calendar. Given those boundaries Chafets does a great job at giving the reader a look at Rush Limbaugh that isn't filtered through the producers at MSNBC.
Not that his surroundings, or those of the editors, didn't fall through the cracks at times. Chafets mentions that 40 million "citizens" do not have health insurance. The only way anyone can reach the number of 40 million in that calculation is by including tens of millions of illegal aliens. It's subtle but if you think how much definitions matter on that topic it's an important error.
I will also note that the author mentions that the ideals of hard work etc promoted by Rush are mainly his father's and based on his experiences and not Rush's. That statement is a bit odd considering that by the time Rush appeared nationally in 1988 he had been working for 20 years. Did Rush learn nothing in over two decades of working in private industry?
Outside of those points I believe that this biography should give the average person a VERY different look a Rush versus what is allowed by the editorial board of The NY Times. It should send those sitting in faculty lounges into fits. More importantly the average Rush fan can finish the book without using the word "idiot" or "liar" when referring to the author.
Wow you liberals are all the same
You have nothing better to do with your time, so you criticize this book. Zev Chaffits is actully a hardcore Democrat. I'm 15 and have listened to Limbaugh all my life. He is a good man. I applaud Mr Chaffits for doing his own research on rush. This is a great book. F*^** Obama. I hope he fails.
Rush's Voice Shines Through
It is amazing that Zev Chafets was able to get an accurate and mostly unbiased book about Rush published. It is wholly unsurprising that he has received zero media coverage to promote this book. The media silence should be enough to tell you how good this story of the man behind the golden microphone reads. Most Rush fans will find a lot of the material familiar, but the insight into Rush's life and who he is for the other 21 hours a day makes this book worth purchasing.