Scott McClellan comes from his original book proposal:
Many of the social conservative opinion leaders are well-intentioned individuals, but their strong-held political stances helped move the focus away from the issues that impact ordinary Americans to ones that were more narrowly focused to motivate their constituencies. In short, their influence has pushed politicians, including the President, at times to focus on more divisive issues that pit people against one another at the expense of keeping attention focused on issues that unite the broader public. By doing so, they have set back their own cause. I will talk about how.
The neo-conservatives emboldened the President to pursue a new and riskier foreign policy, including the decision to invade Iraq and topple a brutal dictator. Has that approach helped advance the interests of our Nation, or has it hurt them as critics contend? I will explore that further as I discuss the President’s thinking when it comes to our national security, and take a closer look at the Iraq War.
The influence of social and neo-conservatives did not necessarily change the President, but they did push bipartisanship further down the list of priorities and changed the way he so successfully governed in Texas.
Scott McClellan may have a political future after all — do I hear the McCain campaign calling?