by David S. Broder
And now for some more heartening political news: In some respects the system still works. In this unexpectedly optimistic book, Broder, national political correspondent at the Washington Post, discusses an attractive group of young politicians who became activists because they were concerned with social problems. White House adviser Sarah Weddington started as a pro-abortionist, California Congressman Norman Mineta as a civil rights advocate, Mexican-American leader Vilma Martínez as an NAACP lawyer. Such people not only gain power despite entrenched forces and party machines, but use it in effective ways. At a time when presidential candidates are repeating clichés, Broder assures us a better breed—such as Equal Employment Opportunity Commissioner Eleanor Holmes Norton, Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton and New York Congressman Jack Kemp—is in the wings. They, the author suggests, are ready to move up. (Simon and Schuster, $14.95)
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