Like No Other Time: The 107th Congress and the Two Years That Changed America Forever

The most interesting parts of this book are its descriptions of the goings-on inside the Capitol while the events of September 11, 2001 were unfolding. (In a word, it was chaos.) Also little anecdotal tidbits make reading this book more than worthwhile. My favorite among these was the Senator's report that upon their initial private meeting then President-elect George W. Bush said coldly to him, "You aren't going to lie to me, are you?" The irony in Like No Other Time is that while this book describes the very recent 107th Congress and talks throughout about events which transpired within this present decade, the narrative already reads like a discussion of distant political history. There is also the ironic fact that Like No Other Time ends with Senator Daschle preparing a run for the 2004 Presidential campaign, when in hindsight we know not only would this not occur, but the voters of his own home state, South Dakota, would vote him out of a job in a mere two years. Daschle and his ghost writer have crafted a nice, never-boring read that is about the right length and is refreshingly devoid of grandiosity and self-congratulations: Daschle comes across seeming very much a decent fellow. Like No Other Time introduces us to the personalities of Washington, in and out of the public arena, and provides an overview not only of the happenings within that history-making Congress, but shows some of what being a United States Senator entails. Ultimately it is a good book, even if it is somehow slightly anachronistic.

This book tells well of the two momentous years, 2001 and 2002, for most of which time the principal author was majority leader of the United States Senate. One gets a very good insight into the workings of the Senate, and the book is easy to read and full of logic and sensibleness. He explains well the reasons why he did what he did, and one finishes the book sad that South Dakota in 2004 rejected a man who had served his state so well for so many years.

Tom Daschle's memoir of the 107th Congress should ultimately be recognized as one of the best first person accounts of the critical two years following the 2000 election. Like No Other Time is an exceptionally good senatorial memoir. Daschle is a keen observer of people and of politics. Thus, his memoir is a candid and revealing look at the people and events that shaped America during two transformative years.Daschle offers some sharp assessments along the way. His nuanced and careful impressions of President Bush are very persuasive, contradicting both the idealized portrait of the right and the left's ridiculous notion of the President as an idiot. Daschle is no supporter of Bush, but is careful to note his strengths. Also of interest are the dynamics between senators as described here. Daschle's sometimes-cooperative, sometimes-conflictual relations with Trent Lott are described amply. One gets a sense of just how much the Senate relies on such relations (I regretted that the book was published too early to record his impressions of Bill Frist and certainly too early to record Frist's tacky visit to South Dakota to support John Thune against Daschle). Also explored in fascinating detail is the successful campaign to bring James Jeffords out of the GOP.Daschle writes with frustration about the decline of civility in the Senate and Congress as a whole - an early section details the change in tone wrought by Newt Gingrich. This trend has since been accelerated by the machinations of the White House - one section details just how much Bush committed himself to the Thune-Johnson race in South Dakota. With evident pain, Daschle also discusses how the emotional farewell service to Paul Wellstone inadvertently became a more partisan rally (his balanced account of the event is a nice corrective to polemical accounts from either side)Like other reviewers, I wish Daschle had commented about more topics. He declines to discuss the outcome of the Thune-Johnson race, but does imply that Bush's inattention to economic relief for South Dakota was a strong factor. Nor does the later victory of Mary Landrieu in Louisiana receive coverage. But his discussion of the Democratic Party's debate, in the fall of 2002, over going to war in Iraq is priceless. Daschle aptly conveys the slanderous attacks made against the party over Iraq and the Homeland Security bill. Though Daschle is clearly in a position of partisan authority, he makes a notable effort to keep his tone balanced and restrained. I was really impressed by this book and by its author. Whatever the outcome of his race this year - and I'd very much like to see Daschle reelected for the sake of South Dakota and this country - I hope that this is not the last book he writes about American politics. This is a book worth buying and reading for the insights it offers about American politics and the current tumultuous era.

A lot of tension in this book. Daschle was a participant in many of the major events described here: the Gore/Bush split vote, Trent Lott's apologized-and-rightly-so racism debacle, the Jim Jeffords defection, the 9/11 attacks, the anthrax attacks on Daschle's office, the Afghanistan and Iraq war decisions, and of course the dismal Democrat election defeats of 2002. I came away from each of these chapters impressed by the seriousness and emotional volatility of what was going down. Most of this stuff was the News to many of us; but to Daschle and other Congressmen, it was a series of almost daily make-or-break crises that had life-shattering and sometimes lethal consequences.A favorite chapter was the account of Daschle's first meeting with George Bush, fascinating if somewhat creepy. The Senator's view of the President is of course mostly negative, but he also does a fair job of describing Bush's character strengths. While the mudslinging and character assassinations that go on in national politics is common knowledge, it's disturbing to read about these things from an up-close perspective.It's not all negative. Daschle describes his thoughts on the function of Congress. He quotes a history that describes it as "designed by geniuses to be run by idiots". Why have both a House and a Senate? To "cool down" new legislation, like pouring hot coffee into a saucer.The current Congress strikes me as too divisive, though I'm sure that's been the case before. The Republicans clearly view themselves as the drivers. When they propose legislation, their approach is *the* approach; Democrats are imbeciles and traitors; divergent views aren't welcome. Dissenters should be pulverized, not reasoned with.I heard this one on abridged Audio CD.

The Senator from South Dakota gives us a great look at two very eventful years in our history, from the chair of what has to be one of the most difficult jobs in the world, the minority leader of the United States Senate. The period Senator Daschle writes about may be considered a turning point in the history of the United States, and the account, from his unique perspective, sheds much light on this troubled time. A very well told chronicle of these turbulent years.