As the first term of President Donald Kells draws to a close, his prospects for reelection seem grim. Burdened with high inflation, a murky economic outlook, and an unpopular foreign policy, he is not expected to survive a reelection bid against a Republican challenger.But the greatest threat to the President is closer at hand than he knows. Vice President Bill Rawlins - the handsome, liberal, blindly ambitious scion of a Texas oil dynasty - plans to challenge Kells in the primary, a profoundly divisive action not seen in this country since Aaron Burr broke with Thomas Jefferson.Rawlins's ace in the hole is a Faustian deal struck with intelligence operatives of a formidable foreign power, a deal that will, he thinks, ensure his reelection. He is in way over his head, however, too consumed by his own lust for Presidential office to see that he is only a pawn in a much larger game, a geopolitical power play with global implications. Events rapidly spiral out of control, as his plan triggers a deadly series of events that threaten national security at the highest level and shake the nation's capital to its foundations.Protect and Defend is a complex and spell-binding tale of political ambition of the highest, most dangerous order, a story of real-life Washington politics, of lobbyists and campaign money, of the White House press corps and television journalists, of Presidential campaigning that is both hardball and high risk. It's a fast-moving political adventure that is virtually impossible to put down. Read Less