Sooner or later, some thoughtful conservative will no doubt publish a balanced critique of the Bush administration, with appropriate nods to judicial appointments and tax policy and careful scrutiny of the War on Terrorism and, especially, domestic spending. “Reclaiming Conservatism” (Oxford University Press, 240 pages, $21.95), by Mickey Edwards, a former congressman from Oklahoma, is not that book. Essentially an expanded version of an article he penned in 2006 for the Nation (!), this book purports to indict the president for violations of civil liberties, usurpation of powers rightly belonging to Congress and the courts, adventurism abroad, and aggressive pursuit of a socially conservative agenda. To a large extent, it’s boilerplate libertarianism, although Mr. Edwards strenuously denies that he is a libertarian. It’s also exceptionally mean-spirited in tone. Karl Rove is not only roughed up for the substance of his counsel to the president, but dissed as a “college drop-out.” Newt Gingrich was not only wrongheaded, but the evil genius who knifed Mr. Edwards’s congressional mentor, the colorless Bob Michel of Illinois. President Bush is referred to sarcastically as “Majesty.” For an author who repeatedly and sharply accuses his targets of arrogance, Mr. Edwards demonstrates very little humility of his own.

Because he claims throughout this book that he is an authentic conservative revolted by what the neoconservatives and social conservatives have wrought, it is important to provide some background on Mr. Edwards’s career and record. An eight-term congressman from the 5th District in Oklahoma, he was summarily turned out of office in 1992 when he finished third in a GOP primary. For an incumbent to finish this poorly in a primary is, to say the least, exceptionally rare. But Mr. Edwards was sunk by reports that he was among the worst offenders in bouncing checks in the House Bank scandal ($54,000 worth, according to contemporary accounts). Interestingly, he makes no reference to his exit from public life, although his book provides extensive career anecdotes of a more flattering nature.

Since leaving office, Mr. Edwards has been swanning around some unusual precincts for a conservative — the Kennedy School at Harvard, the Aspen Institute, and, most recently, the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton. He is a go-to “conservative” for liberal newspapers, appearing in the New York Times last April, where he was quoted on dire days ahead for the GOP, and on the op-ed page of the Washington Post this past Saturday, where he penned a column whacking Vice President Cheney. In fact, although he was present at the creation of the Heritage Foundation and was a one-time national chairman of the American Conservative Union, Mr. Edwards has not been relevant in mainstream conservative thought for some years. That in itself is not a problem, except when he claims to represent the conservative center.

As for his positions on the issues, Mr. Edwards’s “reclaimed conservatism” would be an unusual stew. He wishes to restore the bipartisanship advocated by the sainted Mr. Michel — the ultimate get-along, go-along insider — and effectively guarantee minority status for the GOP. He particularly disdains the Gingrich brainchild, Contract With America, which brought Republicans to power after decades in the wilderness. He is really keen to restrict the president’s ability to authorize surveillance in wartime. As for the War on Terrorism, he advocates a return to Ronald Reagan’s “Peace Through Strength,” but he doesn’t explain how conventional deterrence will work in the dangerous new world in which we find ourselves. He wants to send the social conservatives packing, but doesn’t explain who would be replacing them at the polls; libertarians are, in the end, smarter than they are numerous.

Above all, he wants more power for Congress, an institution he reveres, and on which he believes conservatives have inflicted serious damage:

“The Constitution obligated Congress to sign off on international treaties, but conservatives supported legislation to strip Congress of the right to amend treaties that the White House negotiated. The Constitution charges Congress with setting budget levels and spending priorities, but conservatives supported legislation transferring de facto control over spending to the president.” Mr. Edwards shows no enthusiasm for measures to reform Congress. He wants nothing to do with term limits. He also makes no mention of the need for more ethical oversight in Congress, despite all the evidence that the GOP gained control of the House in large part because of public perceptions of corruption, and then lost control in part because of ethics scandals when they were in charge.

Some conservatives, as well as most liberals, would argue that the balance has shifted too far, that the Bush administration has overreached in its efforts and not just on national security. These are debatable points and will be argued for years. But the demonizing of the president by his opponents doesn’t easily wash in light of the far more extreme steps taken by his predecessors in wartime. As Mr. Edwards himself notes, Abraham Lincoln proclaimed martial law and asserted the right to seize property and suppress newspapers. He also suspended habeas corpus. Woodrow Wilson suppressed free speech in World War I and Franklin Roosevelt interned 120,000 Japanese Americans in World War II. Harry Truman introduced a loyalty oath for federal employees during the Cold War.

Mr. Bush will face the judgment of history soon enough. When he does, Mickey Edwards won’t even rate a mention in the footnotes.

Mr. Willcox, a former editor in chief of Reader’s Digest, lives in Ridgefield, Conn.