audiobook Jeb! and the Bush Crime Family: The Inside Story of an American Dynasty by Roger Stone; Saint John Hunt in History

Review

279 of 295 people found the following review helpful. The toughest question when examining the Bush family dynasty: Where to start?By Z8First off: life-long republican; here.This book is packed with information. The sheer quantity of Bush ties to some of the worst moments in American/world history is a bit sickening. The amount of Bush corporate endeavors; board memberships; financial fronts; secret societies; unholy political alliances; underhandedness; passive-aggressive viciousness; criminal prosecutions; and just plain weird appearances and coincidences is shocking. Barbara's matriarchal influence and family tree is interesting too; but mostly left beyond the scope of the book.Stone has a daunting task: where to start? He jumps in with Jeb! The Jeb chapters; though laced with general adolescent bad behavior like petty drug trafficking; graduating to real estate cronyism and a love for big government; was the least interesting part of the book. Jebs' self-proclaimed favorite president of all; LBJ; says it all. Jeb comes across as a Bush crime wannabe; who doesn't possess the raw talent; blood thirst; or penchant for pure-bred marrying which seems required to extend familial profiting and epic misconduct. His foibles in Venezuelan money laundering almost break the threshold of notable mischievousness. Perhaps Jebs' greatest achievement is doubling the State of Florida's debt from $17.8B to $36.4B. Foreshadowing?Samuel Prescott and Prescott Sheldon Bush come next and are the most interesting characters in the book. These chapters are the most revealing as the Prescotts establish the fractal repetitions that later define the family model for success: ambition; self-aggrandizement; ghastly alliances; secret deals and back-stabbing; using fronts and banking for money laundering; track-covering and other sordid behaviors; followed by some sort of colossal failure and finally; crony-cajoled legal and financial bailouts. Another odd family tradition seems to be the propensity for forgettable political debate performances; punctuated with the occasional run-ending gaff.Stone starts with the Prescott Bush wartime fables; including self-awarding false medals for fabricated heroism followed by embarrassing retractions; bankrolling their favorite cause: eugenic racial purity culminating in his founding of Planned Parenthood; plus massive arms shipments to the Third Reich through their shipping lines; numerous Nazi business partners and social ties. And who could forget conscious profiteering from slave labor; including an alleged 30% stake in the infamous Auschwitz labor camp's av-gas; steel and coal production? Uhg; hard to digest. And then... inevitably it seems... the family pattern of failure: criminal prosecution for money laundering to an impressive list of Hitler-propping corporations and fronts by FDR under the "Trading With the Enemy Act" in October of 1942. Ultimately; after being shut down; and a subsequent FDR assassination scheme; Prescott lucks his way into a 1950's $1.5M payout (about 15M today) of the family's seized wartime assets. Presto; Prescott is back!G.H.W. Bush 41 is discussed next and appears to have the family genes in spades. His list of wartime oddities and torrid accomplishments astonishingly repeats; and even rivals Prescott. From his widely promoted over-water bailout from a machined-gunned WWII fighter bomber; abandoning his crew of two according to his wingman flying 100 feet in trail; to his uncomfortable but not entirely clear CIA involvement in the planning and execution of JFK's ambush--an act that anointed his son's would-be favorite President; LBJ--to financing the Watergate Hotel team; to unaccountable CIA drug running schemes; to intricate involvement in an assassination attempt that should have crowned himself President--if Reagan had died like he was supposed to--to failed Savings Loan scandals resulting in enormous bailout payouts to his more inept and less known sons; are all; perhaps; equally alarming. The list goes on and on... and on...G.W. Bush 43; with shoes too big to fill; turns out to be more interesting than Jeb and a more worthy successor to the book's dark side. His ability to create inbred corporate and political alliances; find the beginnings of acquired wealth and then destroy it; continues the family pattern. W gets painted as a big time Presidential spender; who is more of a closet democrat than fiscal conservative. Stone points out that Bush 41 + 43 account for 72% of our National debt. Bush 41 + 43's consummate feeding of the military-industrial complex is; of course; legendary. Stone gives both Bush Presidents credit for paving-over Ronald Reagan's political impact.The last chapter explores a chain of Bush-Clinton ties and circuitous lines of intertwined associates; real estate cronyism and drug trafficking; with some bizarre financial tentacles. It is brief but interesting.Stone expanded; filled-in gaps and tied-up loose ends in my knowledge of the Bush dynasty. One warning to future readers: like his book; "The Clinton's War on Women;" the material gets vile at times; and the amount presented in rapid succession can cause some intellectual indigestion. I don't blame Mr. Stone for the amount of information he needs to work through to be comprehensive in a book of reasonable size; but realize that many of the digs; within an avalanche of insinuations; are openly discussed as hearsay. Still; Stone's fully developed material is plentiful; engaging; reminiscent for older readers and kept relevant for today; so I give this book 5-stars.Finally; the beginning of the book mentions another possible ending or sequel: Jeb Bush's son; John Ellis Bush; Jr. who is now being groomed for his own presidential run.39 of 40 people found the following review helpful. IT'LL MAKE YOU NAUSEOUS.By Robert A. CastilloIt made me feel bad; I voted for the Bushes 3 times; one for H W and twice for W. At the time the Bushes had kept it all very well covered; on the second term of W's tenure; in an interview performed in the Art Bell Show; a female journalist; and a Yale contemporary of W. she described the deception W was. She talk about a phenomenon that occurred in the 60's at Yale dubbed the 'Yale Thing' which consisted in snorting huge amounts of Cocaine and performing fellatio; and guess who was one of the main participants of the phenomenon; our beloved president.She also talked about Skull and Bones and how recruitment was performed; if the bonesmen wanted you; there was no way out. In one instance a student went to hide in a bathroom stalls and his persecutors came in broke the door and dragged him to the initiation; She also pointed out that 70% of the CIA personnel are Yale graduates; the rest are vets from elite military outfits that work as field operatives. Stone's book reinforces many of the loose talk one hears around.The book is a must read; it hurts; but so does the truth. Remember; the only bush you can trust is the one burning.There's also a book; from the same author; about the blood the Clinton's have spilled in order to keep the secrecy of their actions.149 of 169 people found the following review helpful. Just Ordered BookBy W. GrahamSee link at lamecherryblog and scroll down to learn of the Bush plan to take down Trump using cash and the other candidates. It is partly complete: RIP: Walker; Perry; Jindal; Fiorina; Christie; Carson. Next to go will be Kasich and then Rubio. Jeb will use Cruz for the final take down at Cleveland if Trump fails to prevail on the first ballot.Note the many times Jeb has assured us that Trump will not be the nominee. He knows of the massive forces supporting him to destroy Trump. Unfortunately for Jeb's handers; Trump knows all this too. His former associate Roger Stone is coming out with a book next week that exposes the Bush mob from as far back as Prescott Sr. It will fly to #1 on best seller lists and consume the media. The Bush family is a 8 decade criminal enterprise that makes the Clintons seem like rookies. The book will immediately put the Bushes on defense; and Poppy (HW) will not be able to save them.[HW was photographed in Dallas at the Book Depository as a CIA operative during the JFK assassination and recruited several of the shooters and team members; he created a false alibi that doesn't pass scrutiny. HW is the one President who has publicly called for a New World Order with the US surrendering its sovereignty to an international government. This is why We the People are allowed to vote only for ineligible candidates or those with secret pasts which can be held over their heads (Obama; Cruz; Rubio; Clintons). TRUMP's laundry has all been hung out to dry; TRUMP terrifies them!]