House of Bush, House of Saud (ePub)

House of Bush, House of Saud begins with a politicallyexplosive question: How is it that two days after 9/11,when U.S. air traffic was tightly restricted, 140 Saudis,many immediate kin to Osama Bin Laden, were permitted toleave the country without being questioned by U.S. intelligence?

The answer lies in a hidden relationship that began in the1970s, when the oil-rich House of Saud began courtingAmerican politicians in a bid for military protection, influence,and investment opportunity. With the Bush family, the Saudishit a gusher -- direct access to presidents Reagan, George H.W.Bush, and George W. Bush. To trace the amazing weave of Saud-Bush connections, Unger interviewed three former directors ofthe CIA, top Saudi and Israeli intelligence officials, and morethan one hundred other sources. His access to major players isunparalleled and often exclusive -- including executives at theCarlyle Group, the giant investment firm where the House ofBush and the House of Saud each has a major stake.

Like Bob Woodward's The Veil, Unger's House of Bush, Houseof Saud features unprecedented reportage; like Michael Moore'sDude, Where's My Country? Unger's book offers a politicalcounter-narrative to official explanations; this deeply sourcedaccount has already been cited by Senators Hillary RodhamClinton and Charles Schumer, and sets 9/11, the two Gulf Wars,and the ongoing Middle East crisis in a new context: Whatreally happened when America's most powerful political familybecame seduced by its Saudi counterparts?