Fred Barnes, sycophant-in-chief.

• Position: 10 MILES SQUARE - Rebel-in-Chief: The Bold and Controversial Presidency of George W. Bush - Excerpt

When it comes to supporting President Bush, few people exhibit the stalwartness of Fred Barnes, a Weekly Standard editor and Fox News pundit. Now the most pro-Bush journalist in America has a forthcoming book about his hero, Rebel-in-Chief: The Bold and Controversial presidency of George IN. Bush. We here at The Washington Monthly thought that our readers deserved a sneak-peek.

Getting to the Bottom of Issues

--"In policy discussions, Bush often poses fundamental questions. He once asked what the function of the Defense Department was."

A Remarkable Response to Hurricane Katrina

--"President Bush revealed his proactive tendencies after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans and coastal Mississippi in the late summer of 2005."

--"Bush was so fixated on the devastation and suffering in the region that he failed to sense a conservative backlash."

Leadership, the De(orating Kind

--"[Bush's] job, he told me, is to 'stay out of the minutiae, keep the big picture in mind, but also make sure that I know enough about what's going on to get the best information possible. 'To stress the point, during our interview in the Oval Office Bush called my attention to the rug; he had been surprised, he said, to learn that the first decision a president is expected to make is what color the rug should be. 'l wasn't aware that presidents were rug designers,' he told me. So he delegated the task, to Laura. Typical of his governing style, though, he gave a clear principle as guidance: he wanted the rug to express the view that an'...