© National Journal Group Inc.
Thursday, Sept. 13, 2007

This is the seventh in a series of reviews on books written by the 2008 presidential contenders. See the archives for earlier reviews, and check back in the next few weeks for a look at John Edwards' "Ending Poverty In America." By John McCain with Mark Salter ISBN 978-0-446-58040-3 Twelve 456 pp. Purchase This Book

Call it the "truthiness" backlash.

After seven years with a White House governed by gut feelings, it seems every candidate for president is acutely aware that Americans may be yearning for a leader who bases decisions on more than the vibes he or she gets when looking into another person's eyes.

In many ways, the 2008 election is about process. Voter dissatisfaction with the Iraq war, which even many supporters agree was not particularly well-planned, has candidates striving to prove that, if faced with a similar situation in the future, they would act with prudence and well-informed judgment.

To that end, Republican presidential hopeful John McCain offers a window into his vision of what makes a great "decider" in his latest book. "Hard Call," written with McCain adviser Mark Salter, is a historical take on the decision-making process, using snapshots of "great decisions and the extraordinary people who made them" throughout history to illustrate the six qualities McCain feels are essential to making good decisions: awareness, foresight, timing, confidence, humility and inspiration.

Since it seems every candidate has to have a new book in print, "Hard Call" was a shrewd choice for McCain, who's already written several accounts of his life and career. Most voters probably feel they have a good handle on McCain the man and McCain the candidate. "Hard Call" is a glimpse into McCain the thinker; it attempts to address the question, "What Would John Do?"

The answer, however, is not as exhilarating as one might expect from the conductor of the "Straight Talk Express." The book is something of a dry read, with its abstract themes and long, detailed sketches of how great decisions are made -- not the kind of thing that's going to energize voters.

McCain is a man who believes in hard work, studiousness and the value of experience. He doesn't have much use for luck, instincts or hunches; those qualities will get you nowhere on the battlefield, he seems to be saying. Even when discussing concepts like "foresight" and "confidence," McCain makes the case that these are characteristics one consciously cultivates through years of study and practice.

Even after all that, however, McCain counsels humility, not blind conceit: "No matter how successful our previous decisions have been, we should never grow so confident that we invariably choose to 'go with our gut' when faced with the choice between our guts and known facts that argue against our inclination."

History buffs will appreciate the authors' meticulous attention to detail and their choice of great "deciders" across a broad spectrum of society: world leaders, military heroes, titans of commerce, sports legends and revered presidents. But the examples are disappointingly safe, and in some cases all too obvious, coming from a notorious "maverick" like McCain. There's Winston Churchill, Douglas MacArthur and Abraham Lincoln, for example. And of course the obligatory nod to Ronald Reagan. More interesting are the present-day commentaries, including critiques of the Iraq war and the U.S. education system, that McCain and Salter scatter throughout the book.

After chapter upon chapter of extraordinary figures throughout history, the book ends with a refreshingly familiar story: an average Joe's daring rescue of another man in peril at a New York City subway station earlier this year. McCain's moving account of Wesley Autrey's split-second decision to risk his life to save another is a fitting endpoint with which to drive home his thesis: "It seems obvious that who decides is as important as what is decided."

--Irene Tsikitas, NationalJournal.com