Andrew Kreig uses his decades of investigative journalism talent to unmask the characters who have manipulated our democratic institutions. His formidable sources and sophisticated insights will enable elected officials, journalists, professors, and voters to evaluate the power interests at stake in the November 2012 elections. This is a frightening book that challenges all of us to act bravely. We must rouse ourselves to prevent a small number of wealthy, cynical men from usurping the power that rightfully belongs to the American citizen. He identifies these men, reveals their motives, shows us how they intended to accomplish their goals, and thus puts all of us on notice in this powerful exposé.

Lillian McEwen, author, D.C. Unmasked and Undressed

Andrew Kreig was for many years a celebrated reporter for the Hartford Courant and author of Spiked. He went on to lead with distinction the Wireless Communications Association and the Justice Integrity Project. These efforts help provide the intimate knowledge of the Washington, national, and global affairs required for such ambitious reporting.

Robert Ames Alden, former president of the National Press Club, co-founder and former president of the National Press Foundation, and former Washington Post World News editor

Thought provoking. Controversial. Presidential Puppetry is sure to raise lots of eyebrows. One of those books that inspires readers to look deep beneath the surface.

John Perkins, New York Times best-selling author of Confessions of an Economic Hit Man and other books

Four decades ago, I described shocking abuses of the troops and taxpayers when I went on-the-record with Jack Anderson following my resignation from CIA service in Indochina during the Vietnam era. The situation is far worse now.

John Kelly, former news editor at NBC-TV and CBS-TV, and former CIA officer

A look behind the scenes in an uncompromising account of U.S. presidential politics. It’s a must-read for international readers.

Eelco H. Dykstra M.D., chairman, International Katrina Project Europe, based in The Hague

Andrew Kreig’s keen investigative skills, outstanding authoring and established track record make his aptly titled, Presidential Puppetry, a ready source of vital information!

Ron Fisher, Captain, U.S. Navy (retired) and Chair, WeThePeople.now.org

Everybody should know that Andy Kreig is the man to see in Washington, DC to report the most important stories.

Dana Jill Simpson, progressive political analyst

One of the main reasons that the population of investigative reporters has not become extinct in Washington is because of the continued existence of Andrew Kreig. Most of the rest of the media population has undergone a subtle but systematic information terror campaign orchestrated by avaricious oligarchs that has hunted them down and expelled them from the media territory. All of us interested in the truth should be thankful that Andy’s talents continue to ensure that darkness of media manipulation is not the only characteristic that envelopes the issues in Washington and the world.

John Edward Hurley, Washington commentator, civic leader, and historian.

As I read key portions of Andrew Kreig’s book I had the feeling that its insights could make good leaders better, and could give bad ones serious concern that their ongoing injustices have been exposed in a way that demands remedial public action.

Clifford Arnebeck, public interest attorney who has challenged the integrity of the 2004 Ohio presidential election

This is clearly the worst of times in many decades, perhaps since the Civil War. The problem that a writer has is that you can write this, explain it, argue it, prove it. But, in the end, the reader and friends have to do something about it.

Sam Smith, Progressive Review publisher, DC Statehood movement co-founder, and author of books that include Shadows of Hope, Captive Capital, and Why Bother?

Buy and read this book. You’ll learn a lot more than you could have imagined, and you’ll start seeing the world, politics, and the justice system in a very different, clearer, smarter way. This book exposes the puppet masters who pull the strings of leading officials in both major U.S. parties, including Obama and Romney. Its entertaining, cutting-edge reporting provides the kind of information that we in the independent press believe vital to informed decision-making.

As a publisher of Andrew Kreig’s work, I confess to looking forward to publishing Andrew’s postings, because he is an investigative journalist combined with constitutional scholarship extraordinaire. This book takes his investigations to the next level, connecting the dots to unveil a big picture that is startling yet not surprising at all. The book goes into great depth, showing the connections behind the candidates. For example, I’ve written that Mitt Romney should be regarded as “Bishop Romney” because his experience in that LDS post is longer and more relevant to voters than his single term as governor. Kreig’s book amplifies that theme into a full historical context found nowhere else regarding Bishop Romney and his ascendancy within the revamped, tea party-oriented GOP. The book applies similar treatment to President Obama and many more U.S leaders.

The author has been a respected OpEd News contributor for years. So I am not surprised this book’s revelations have enduring and even global significance.

Rob Kall, publisher of OpEdNews.com, host of The Rob Kall Bottom-Up Radio Show, and blogger for Huffington Post

Justice Integrity Project

Kreig’s investigative reporting includes two articles that ultimately cost federal judges their jobs, while affording them a full opportunity to tell readers their side of the story. One documented a longtime bankruptcy’ judge’s ethical lapses during the course of an otherwise distinguished career. The other revealed an administrative law judge’s sexual harassment of staff.

Another exposé grew out of his coverage of a Hartford trial that marked the first major success of prosecutor Paul Coffey, who went on to lead the Justice Department’s national Strike Force on Organized Crime and Racketeering. After the trial Kreig asked City of Hartford officials: Who recommended for a gun permit a defendant convicted of racketeering? When they refused to answer, Kreig filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) action to compel disclosure—leading to a precedent-setting victory in the Connecticut Supreme Court decision City of Hartford v. Kreig. Disclosures enabled Kreig and the Courant to report that the city’s mayor and the state’s top lower court prosecutor had provided character recommendations for the gangster. The ruling helped solidify FOIA nationally as a way to obtain local records.

Exploring how an innocent person might be sentenced to death, Kreig authored a Courant editorial describing the death row ordeal of murder defendant Jerry Lee Banks, who tragically relied upon an incompetent defense lawyer during a frame-up by local police in Georgia.

Spiked: How Chain Management Corrupted America’s Oldest Newspaper

“To Spike”: Originally, to make a cannon useless by driving a spike into its fuse hole. In newspaper slang, to with hold information from publication — either by impaling as a typed story onto a spindle or by vaporizing words from a computer screen.

Each day across the country, clusters of editors meet to decide what the public should learn about “the news” — everything from sports to crime. Sensitive questions arise. For example, how hard should reporters try to ferret out the sex lives of a politician, judge or minister? People with a solid stake in their communities once ran these news conferences for the most part. But giant chains are taking over the American information industry. Their executives must respond to pressures from distant corporate headquarters and, ultimately, from Wall Street’s investors.

The first book of its kind, SPIKED is the inside account of one acquisition, that of the Hartford Courant in Connecticut. SPIKED shows how hidden imperatives and taboos corrupted America’s oldest newspaper after it was bought by one of the most respected media firms in the country, the Times Mirror Co. of Los Angeles. Learn how the chain’s executives:

As the chain twice transformed Connecticut’s dominant newspaper from top to bottom, a lavish advertising campaign kept telling readers, “We’re interested in what you think.”But behind the Madison Avenue glitz, a chilling real-life drama unfolded in secret.

Zealotry. Bungling. Conflicts of interest. Cruelty to the powerless. Deference to the powerful. Deceptive news stories and prize applications. Sexual pressure upon staff. Cover-up. This occurred in a sophisticated, high-income state known as “The Land of Steady Habits.” Yet it could be anywhere.

Throughout the print and broadcast industries, large firms are acquiring and transforming smaller ones. In revealing a pattern of grossly unethical conduct, SPIKED raises serious questions about whether anyone is watching our society’s watchdogs.

SPIKED is as timely as today’s headlines — and just as important.