Bush on the Couch: Inside the Mind of the President

By Justin A. Frank and Justin Frank

Book Overview

With the Bush administration in permanent crisis, a renowned Washington psychoanalyst updates his portrait of George W.'s public persona--and how it has damaged the presidency. Insightful and accessible, courageous and controversial, Bush on the Couch sheds startling new light on George W. Bush's psyche and its impact on the way he governs, tackling head-on the question few seem willing to ask: Is our president psychologically fit to run the country With an eye for the subtleties of human behavior sharpened by thirty years of clinical practice, Dr. Justin A. Frank traces the development of Bush's character from childhood through his presidency, identifying and analyzing his patterns of thought, action, and communication. The result is a troubling portrait filled with important revelations about our nation's leader--including disturbing new insights into: How Bush reacted to the 2006 Democratic sweep in Congress with a new surge of troops into Iraq His telling habits and coping strategies--from his persistent mangling of English to his tendency to "go blank" in the midst of crisis The tearful public breakdown of his father, George H. W. Bush, and what it says about the former president's relationship to his prominent sons The debacle of Katrina--the moment when Bush's arrogance finally failed him With a new introduction and afterword, Bush on the Couch offers the most thorough and candid portrait to date of arguably the most psychologically damaged president since Nixon.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060736712
• ISBN13: 9780060736712
• Release Date: July 2005
• Publisher: Harper Perennial
• Length: 290 Pages
• Weight: 0.92 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.5" x 0.7" x 5.3"

Customer Reviews

Helps me understand Bush

This is an in depth analysis of George Bush's personality and really helps me understand him better. I have turned my utter disdain for George Bush into empathy.

Our National Denial about ADHD Hurts Everyone; This Book Explains

The reader who keeps an open mind about Adult ADHD (Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) will find this book an eye-opener and its author incredibly astute and prescient. Dr. Frank extensively and authoritatively documents his suggestion that Bush has Adult AD/HD. In fact, he does an astounding job linking untreated ADHD symptoms with Bush's lifelong patterns. In so doing, he demonstrates that, when ADHD is not recognized (in the child or the parent), fatal personality flaws might develop from what initially were minor or at least treatable symptoms. For that reason alone, this book should be at the top of the bestseller list. Bob Woodward's book excellently records the facts of all that's transpired during this administration, but what's missing in his and all the other accounts is the WHY. The pundits always seem so flummoxed as to why Bush has done the things he's done - as if his actions have been deliberate and calculated, not unwitting but troubling neurobehaviors. I read the first edition when it came out, so my memory is a bit foggy about that version. But I seem to recall that edition as being a more heavily swayed by the psychoanalytic side, which disappointed me. Moreover, psychoanalytic theory too often misses the genetic inheritance; that is, that the child has most likely inherited his or her brain "wiring" from one or both parents. For example, if the mother is narcissistic, did her behavior make the child narcissistic or did the child inherit the neurogenetic tendency to be narcissistic? After all, low empathy is a function of the brain; and narcissism is associated with low empathy. Could anyone witness Bush during Katrina (and many other examples) and not shudder at his obvious lack of empathy? It was quite obvious to me that he simply did not, could not, feel any. To those long befuddled about why Bush motivations and "persona," here are some very good answers. The irony is, when it comes to neuroscience, too many in the "liberal media" are as anti-science as some of the people they criticize in their writing. But if you're going to argue for evolution, you should argue for science as it affects the brain, too. PLEASE keep in mind that ADHD has many different manifestations. It is a syndrome. There is no one-size-fits-all descriptions for ADHD, and most people ADHD are not like Bush or even close! But, as Dr. Frank makes clear, Bush suffers from his own personal variation of the core deficits of impulsivity, hyperactivity, inattention, and dysregulation of temper -- complicated by an unusual family situation (to say the least). Yet, to many Americans, Bush's impulsivity and impatience at working through ponderous details initially looked like "decisiveness." His inability to accurately assess risk and apply forethought was seen as "confidence." His intolerance for sustained mental effort was seen as a "CEO President" doing a heckuva job delegating. But oh, how dangerously wrong those perceptions were. Until

A Primer of Psychological Analysis a la Melanie Kline

Whether you love or hate President Bush, or believe or disbelieve the analysis here, this is a serious book about the application of the latest psychoanalytic techniques. That said, I found many of the author's examples of the President's behavior, just a bit too facile. Most of them could be explained equally as a result of his intense alcoholism or perhaps as a result of a brief but intense cocaine habit, neither of which were dwelled on at any length by the author. Thus the highlight of the book is not so much belief in the author's "psychoanalysis-at-a-distance," as it is in his comprehensive outline of, and use of Melanie Kline's paradigm for psychoanalysis. As one who did read Dr. Henry Murray's psychoanalysis of Hitler, as well as Valmik Volkan's analyses of Richard Nixon (A Psychobiography of Nixon) and Anthony Storr's excellent Freudian analysis of Sir Winston Churchill, Franz Kafka and Sir Isaac Newton, I can say without a doubt that the tools of a serious psychoanalyst are prominently on display here. The book is worth five stars alone for demonstrating how Kline's psychoanalytic framework is to be put to good professional use. If he had called his work "psychobiography," instead of "psychoanalysis," I would have felt better about the analysis, and perhaps would have given him a pass. Giving the author his just due, the outlines for a sound psychoanalysis are certainly in place here, especially in regards to the inconsistent, if not poor parenting received by George Jr., from Barbara and George senior. But as he so carefully notes, that was a function of the pre-Freudian times that they became parents. And while Kline's analysis places a preponderance of weight on developments during the formative years, they are far from the full story. There are still just too many other intervening variables that the author could not have "tapped into" that could have had an equally decisive impact on the development of the President's character and personality. At the very least a personal interview should have been required to confirm the author's findings. Otherwise these results must remain tentative and preliminary, if not just plain suspect. Despite these nitpicks, this is a fine piece of work, not at all the unbalanced piece I was expecting. Five stars

A chilling read about President George Bush's mental incompetence

Bush on the Couch Rev Ed: Inside the Mind of the President The author is a psychiatrist with extensive experience. If you think a shrink can only analyze his patient you are wrong. The author analyzes Bush's public speeches and Mr. Bush's mother's book. Both what his mother discloses about Mr. Bush's youth and President George Bush himself is quite revealing. Justin Frnk, M.D., the author, also analyzes Bush's college record. Apparently the President is quite satisfied with his "C" average. Bush is also proud that he doesn't read newspapers. His men read it for him and then tell him what the latest news is, including world events. The President seems proud to be a non-intellectual. That is how he manages to appeal to the masses. I believe Gore (more or less) lost the election because the American people (not the majority) saw him too much of an intellectual, which to them was very unappealing. Overall, the book is a page turner.

Thoughtful work that resonates

I perused this book originally thinking, "Nah...just some ill prepared pundit bandying about psychological terms and molding them to a preconceived idea." But Dr. Franks's credentials are impressive enough and the clincher for me was a review on the cover by Dr. Irvin Yalom, a modern pioneer in group therapy and psychiatry who I admire greatly. I am a Registered Nurse, and those of us who work with patients and families know that language and behavior matters. It often reveals much that a person could not and would not tell you otherwise. And as a Bush-watcher I have had more than one occasion to experience that frissom of alarm from Bush speech mannerisms and behaviors. And I think Dr. Frank would never say, "only base your opinion on my book." He is actually quite humble and, I think, quite scientific in stating the limitations of his review. But I for one think that the insights of this experienced clinician and researcher are quite acute and useful. They gave substance to those shudders of concern that some us feel when we watch and hear what Mr. Bush says and does. Dr. Frank is a Freudian psychoanalyst and so be prepared for passages that reference the theoretical framework in his thinking. For someone not greatly versed in psychoanalytic thinking these were challenging passages but also enlightening. For readers that are expecting shallow treatment of complexity, you won't find it here. I was also struck by the underlying compassion of Dr. Frank. He connects with Mr. Bush's anxiety that drives his to do what he does. At one level, Mr. Bush is in a considerable amount of distress on a daily basis. As an American, it alarms me that Bush seeks to assuage his anxiety at the expense of so many Americans and that is the heart of this book. Reading a psychological analysis will give anyone the sense of that individual being laid "bare-naked". I can sympathise that this might be acutely uncomfortable for Bush fans and supporters. I would surmise that had Dr. Frank seen fit to write a similar book regarding Bill Clinton the sensations might be equivalent for Clinton watchers. I am sure that Dr. Frank is not without psychiatric opinions about Mr. Clinton, but he felt Mr. Bush's psychologic state was significant in the way that it impacts his capacity and worldview as president. His comments on that are incisive and alarming. If you are concerned about this president and his policies, this book is a valuable contributor to your perspective on what's happening in America today.