I Ain't Got Time to Bleed

May 3, 1999
Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura describes his politics and his life with a simplicity that his supporters will cheer as fist-shaking bolts of truth and that his detractors will pan as loud, flippant and glib. The text first outlines Ventura's political platform ("less government is more" just about sums it up), then tracks his life through roles as blue-collar bad boy, Navy Seal, pro wrestler, wrestling commentator, film star, mayor, talk-radio host and, finally, campaigner and governor. Ventura likes to play the angry man in the bar complaining about the bums in office. Like most Reform Party candidates, he doesn't believe government can do much anyway. Eighty percent of the book is autobiography, a series of American success stories about the man who doesn't believe in the word can't. His ego appears to play such a large role in his persona that even his claim that he doesn't want to be called upon to be president exudes a scent of sham modesty. Ventura fan or not, any reader can appreciate the story of this man's desire to unseat "the old boy network" and engage the people. But the chapters on his entertainment years, and Ventura's incessant name-dropping, ultimately undermine his premise--that he isn't a politician, just a private-sector Joe. At times, Ventura is so entertaining that readers might forget, temporarily, that he's a celebrity politician employing the advantage of his fame.