The Dictatorship of Boredom, pp. 27-48 Summary and Analysis

O'Rourke begins the sub-section "Attack of the Midget Vote-suckers" by comparing conventions to high-school reunions, seeing both venues as populated with once-relevant faces. He recalls the fall of 1988 and the candidacy of Michael Dukakis. O'Rourke argues that Massachusetts, the state for Dukakis was the governor, was far from a model of success. He observes that Massachusetts' high-tech boom of 1988 would soon collapse; much like Dukakis's bid for the presidency.

O'Rourke mocks Michael Dukakis and running mate Lloyd Bentsen, characterizing the former as a political neat-freak, and the latter as something of a finance slob; together they are a ridiculous "odd couple." O'Rourke casts George Bush, meanwhile, as a playboy turned Republican hero, a vague president heading an incompetent and somewhat corrupt administration. George Bush played to the basest Republican base so...