Matthews recalls how fatally John V. Lindsay of New York and John B. Connally of Texas were hurt by switching party allegiances. There’s another lesson on playing ball in the chapter on the art of accepting favors, ''It's Better to Receive Than to Give,'' where he reviews how JFK became President by asking his country what it could do for him. In chapter called "Spin!", Matthews states that "to mass, uninformed and unanalytical audiences, the moral imagery always outdazzles the scientific."(pg 178) This is quite a sad statement about the public, but I suppose it’s generally true and it’s all a part of playing ball in Washington, or any place for that matter.The book seems to be intermittently based on the author's own 17 years experience (up to that time) in Washington as, among other roles, an aide to Senator Frank E. Moss of Utah, a speechwriter for President Carter and, for six years, chief spokesman for former House Speaker Tip. O’Neill. Although the book is more anecdotal than autobiographical, most of its material seems so fresh and original. I am having a hard time believing that this book was actually written in 1988. But then again, I guess the tactics of politics are timeless. In chapter 4 he describes a scenario that makes it seem like he wrote this book sometime in the last two months. It says, "Did you ever notice that swings in the economy nearly correspond to the political calendar? Recessions usually occur in the first year after a president wins an election. Recoveries are timed to reach full vigor as the country is poised for a new political season. A president knows that he must complete his term on an economic upswing. If he is going to squeeze out the inflation and cut some benefit programs, he'd better do it right up front so that the pain is forgotten by the next election." (pp. 83-84) That point really stood out to me because it seems to fit right into the current situation of the econom...
