''Bush at War'' is a 2002 book by ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' reporter

Bob Woodward Robert Upshur Woodward (born March 26, 1943) is an American investigative journalist. He started working for ''The Washington Post'' as a reporter in 1971 and now holds the title of associate editor. While a young reporter for ''The Washingto ...

recounting President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

's responses to the

September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercia ...

and his administration's handling of the subsequent

War in Afghanistan War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to: *Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC) *Muslim conquests of Afghanistan (637–709) *Conquest of Afghanistan by the Mongol Empire (13th century), see als ...

. Much of the book recounts events in meetings of the

United States National Security Council The United States National Security Council (NSC) is the principal forum used by the President of the United States for consideration of national security, military, and foreign policy matters. Based in the White House, it is part of the Execu ...

(NSC), with the major players in the story, including the President,

Dick Cheney Richard Bruce Cheney ( ; born January 30, 1941) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 46th vice president of the United States from 2001 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. He is currently the oldest living former U ...

Colin Powell Colin Luther Powell ( ; April 5, 1937 – October 18, 2021) was an American politician, statesman, diplomat, and United States Army officer who served as the 65th United States Secretary of State from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African ...

George Tenet George John Tenet (born January 5, 1953) is an American intelligence official and academic who served as the Director of Central Intelligence (DCI) for the United States Central Intelligence Agency, as well as a Distinguished Professor in the P ...

and

Condoleezza Rice Condoleezza Rice ( ; born November 14, 1954) is an American diplomat and political scientist who is the current director of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served as the 66th Uni ...

, developed from NSC meeting notes and Woodward's own interviews with administration officials. Woodward especially focuses on the administration's decision to go to war in Afghanistan and its strategic and tactical decisions. As one of the first detailed accounts of these decisions, prior to inside accounts like Richard A. Clarke's ''

Against All Enemies ''Against All Enemies: Inside America's War on Terror'' () is a 2004 award-winning2005,(Index to lists of winners through 2006). Retrieved July 7, 2012. book by former U.S. chief counter-terrorism advisor Richard A. Clarke, criticizing past and ...

'', Woodward's book was widely acclaimed, getting praise from ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' and other major papers. The book was criticized by

Michael Scheuer Michael F. Scheuer (pronounced "SHOY-er"), (born 1952) is an American former intelligence officer for the Central Intelligence Agency, blogger, author, commentator and former adjunct professor at Georgetown University's Center for Peace and Sec ...

, former

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

chief of the Bin Laden station, in his book ''

Imperial Hubris ''Imperial Hubris: Why the West is Losing the War on Terror'' (Brassey's, 2004; ) is a book originally published anonymously, but later revealed to have been authored by Michael Scheuer, a CIA veteran with 22 years service, who ran the Counter ...

'' for offering a platform for government leaks, which he deemed harmful to national security: "After reading Mr. Woodward's ''Bush at War'', it seems to me that the U.S. officials who either approved or participated in passing the information—in documents and via interviews—that is the heart of Mr. Woodward's book, gave an untold measure of aid and comfort to the enemy."

External links

* ''The Times'
discussion
of the book. {{Bob Woodward 2002 non-fiction books Books by Bob Woodward Books about George W. Bush War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) books Books about the 2003 invasion of Iraq War on Terror books American non-fiction books Cultural depictions of George W. Bush