From the jacket:

In the Oval Office, on the desk of President Ronald Reagan sat a round pewter paperweight with the inscription "The most important goal in my life is to have some significant impact in preserving and expanding the realm of personal freedom in the life of this country." The quote came from Richard Dudley Obenshain.

Near the corner of 2nd and East Grace Street in downtown Richmond, Virginia, stands a building known as the Richard D. Obenshain Center, the Headquarters of the Republican Party of Virginia. Yet those outside the circle of Virginia politics are unfamiliar with Mr. Obenshain.

A Spirit of Fire tells his story. Chronicling his humble small-town roots, growing up on a farm near Blacksburg to becoming the architect of the conservative realignment and the father of the modern Republican Party in Virginia. With passion, intellect, and determination he eventually fought his way up the party ranks in an attempt to capture the Republican nomination for the United States Senate. His ambition led to the largest political event in the history of the western hemisphere.

This is the story of the man who inspired a generation of household names in Virginia. “The Reagan of Virginia”, a man with a spirit of fire.