Profiles in Ignorance: How America's Politicians Got Dumb and Dumber
by Andy Borowitz
View on GoodreadsBorowitz writes it as satire, jokes and all. That said, the evidence underneath is documented: from Ronald Reagan's 1966 run for California governor to Trump's election, you watch American politics, led mostly by Republicans, move through three phases from tolerating incurious, underprepared candidates to rewarding them.
Core ideas
- The handlers: Operatives such as Roy Cohn, Stu Spencer, Roger Ailes, Lee Atwater and Karl Rove worked behind the scenes to limit the damage.
- Performance over thinking: Media came to reward the ability to perform over substance, while cultural and economic forces made intellect a stigma.
- Reversible, not settled: Quayle, George W. Bush and Palin lead to Greene, Gaetz, Boebert and Tuberville, yet the book ends with a call to act because the direction can still change.
Published2022
Pages320
ISBN9781668003886
ReadDec 2025
