The Cynic: The Political Education of Mitch McConnell Paperback – December 23, 2014

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is the embodiment of the saying attributed to Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi: "Winning isn't everything. It's the only thing."That is the takeaway from journalist Alec MacGillis' "The Cynic: The Political Education of Mitch McConnell," a concise, enlightening biography of the man who just tried taking healthcare from millions of Americans in order to fund tax cuts for wealthy people and corporations.MacGillis paints a vivid word picture of an empty shell of a human being whose grand passion is winning elections to the US Senate-and winning elections within that body in order to keep power as Senate Republican leader. McConnell is an introvert who enters politics simply to seek the spotlight. He will say anything in order to win; early in his political career, when running for a county judge/executive position in Kentucky, he promised to push for collective bargaining for public employees, but never followed through on that promise, which he later acknowledged as pandering to unions. As time passes, he surrenders to the Republican Party's hard-right shift that began with Ronald Reagan.McConnell's only other animating passion is keeping big money in politics-not only so he can secure Republican victories, but also so he can buy his own Senate seat and avoid face-to-face interaction with the people he claims to represent. Indeed, his drive to shred part of America's social safety net for the sake of tax cuts for the rich is consistent with MacGillis' portrait of a man who courts those deep-pocketed donors in advance of election cycles. That pursuit of money even seems to extend to his personal life: his second wife, current Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, is the daughter of a Chinese shipping magnate who later contributes to his campaigns.MacGillis also sheds new light on McConnell's hatred of President Barack Obama, which really does have nothing to do with racism. According to the author, Obama could barely conceal his "bored disdain" for the institution in which McConnell has spent most of his adult life. McConnell saw Obama as an outsider lacking proper reverence for the Senate.In closing, MacGillis accuses McConnell of being responsible for the "permanent campaign" mode which now permeates Washington-a constant trolling for big bucks and an aversion to considering controversial legislation for fear of damaging re-election chances. He also observes that this sad state of affairs seems to be fine with our savvy, fabulous, hard-hitting journalists, who would rather have fun covering entertaining horse-race elections than report on serious public policy matters.For readers who want to begin understanding how and why our politics are broken, "The Cynic" is a fine place to start.

I liked the book. First of all, I am a recovered Republican. Probably I would be classified as a secular liberal - a pariah by many standards. But it documents McConnell's "evolution" from a moderate Republican to a conservative one - socially and economically. He early on decided that money and negative politics were the best way to advance politically, if you were really smart but not particularly attractive ( as I am not), nor charismatic ( as I am not, either) . He has done both extremely well, and ruthlessly. He is known for his expertise in exploiting perceived or real weaknesses in opponents, and having boo-goo dollars with which to exploit it with. It will be interesting to see if there is anything left of his youthful idealism that will direct him toward decisions that are good for all of the country, vs good just for his moneyed friends. Will he go down as a whore in history, or as a statesman?

This was a quick read. It's a look at the political career of Mitch McConnell - starting with his elections in high school and college and moving on through his career in Kentucky and Washington, DC. It's a sad book in a way, because it explains some of the reason we can't seem to have any cooperation between the parties on Washington, DC. When someone's goal is to make sure the president doesn't succeed, just because he is from a different party, even if his policies help Americans, I think we are nearing the point of no return. It is also distressing to see now much influence people and organizations with money have on what happens in Congress.

MacGillis uses and site from the author, John David Dyche's 2009 biography, Republican Leader. Although MacGillis has more negative bent than Dyche, MacGillis does rely on facts and important supportive person testimonials of those that are quite candid. Both books allow the reader to formulate their own opinion about McConnell.

If you are looking to understand Mitch and everything he did, I highly recommend this read. I’m doing a lot of research on Mitch and this is so far my favorite source.If you’re interested in another good read, I think LBJ Master of the Senate (by Caro) is a great companion piece, because you can really contrast two of the most influential Majority/Minority leaders ever.

As a Kentuckian, I have long wondered why a man with Mitch McConnell's considerable political skill would refuse to use his talents to improve America and, for that matter, to help Kentucky. "The Cynic" succinctly connects the dots and helps the reader understand why Kentucky's senior senator, for all his political cunning, is more interested in winning elections, enhancing his own power and helping his rich corporate friends than in doing anything specific to help ordinary Kentuckians. The book is well-researched and written in a fast-paced style that keeps the reader's attention. I wish I could afford to mail a copy to every registered voter in Kentucky before the November election.

Mitch McConnell is one of the most powerful men alive and deserves a good biography. I definitely learned background details about his early life and career that were lacking in other accounts (which is why I bought it). But the author doesn't like McConnell. In fact, his thesis is that McConnell is the person most responsible for gridlock in Washington. The author doesn't like Republicans or conservatives either. Credit to him for not trying to hide it; demerit for thinking we cared about his opinions or could somehow benefit from them. Good biographers don't get in the way of revealing their subjects.