Dick Cheney was originally in charge of the selection process for Bush's vice-presidential candidate: it was only the first of many circuits he would rewire so that power flowed his way. Secretive and unaccountable with unprecedented influence, he was a whole new kind of vice president. Barton Gellman's engrossing investigation explains how he succeeded in distorting both the US constitution and international law to his own ends, with stunning revelations of how Cheney steered the country from behind the scenes to bring war to Iraq and remove all checks on executive power. After eight years of the Angler's shadow presidency, this is a fascinating, disturbing account of how he managed it, and the damage he left behind.