About the Program
Mr. Podhoretz, former speech writer for President Reagan and former special assistant in the Office of Drug Control Policy, discussed his book, Hell of a Ride: Backstage at the White House Follies 1989-93, published by Simon and Schuster. The book describes the White House from the perspective of mid-level staffers, from their euphoria immediately following the Persian Gulf War to the depression after the 1992 election loss.
Podhoretz believes that President Bush won the presidency by running on the record of President Reagan, but, once in office, he turned away from the style of government which had made Ronald Reagan so popular. In the conclusion he describes the Bush presidency as a "cosmic joke."