A Book A Week

With the United States Election day only days away, I went into reading Bob Woodward's latest book Rage with a pretty clear idea of what to expect. I read Woodward's 2018 book Fear in which he documented President Trump's tumultuous election and first year in the White House. To say the things uncovered in that book were disturbing would be an understatement. Woodward gained prominence as one of the two journalists who broke Nixon's Watergate scandal. His previous work covering Donald Trump was meticulously reported and backed by verified sources, public interviews, and cross-referenced records. Still, Trump reverted to his usual tactic of calling any unfavorable reporting on him "fake news". To be fair, Woodward was never granted an interview with President Trump, but all of that has changed in this latest book. Donald Trump granted Woodward 18 recorded interviews over the course of several months. Buckle up, folks. This is a wild ride. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has been at the forefront of most American's lives since we were first told to quarantine in mid-March. Despite various attempts to re-open states and get back to a sense of normalcy, our country hasn't been able to effectively lower the number of positive cases. In fact, this week saw us hit a record number of reported positive cases for a single day. Naturally, much of the political debate surrounding this year's presidential election has focused on the government response to the health pandemic. The bombshell of Woodward's reporting in Rage centers upon what Donald Trump knew about the virus, when did he know it, and what was his response. Woodward reveals that the President was warned about the severity of the virus in January. His strategy has been recorded and quoted word for word by Woodward. "I wanted to always play it down. I still like playing it down, because I don't want to create panic."

Beyond the obvious mishandlings of the health pandemic, Rage provides some exclusive insights into the President's strange approach to foreign affairs. Despite warnings from both his Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense, Donald Trump began a bizarre relationship with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un. Woodward obtained letter correspondence between the two leaders. In the letters, both men gush about the brilliance of the other and their combined competence in forging an unprecedented relationship between their respective governments. It was widely reported that General Mattis resigned from his position after Trump took military action that was counter to Mattis's recommendations. While it ultimately seems like the worst ramifications of some of these actions have been avoided, it is the President's continued disregard for the informed advice of his advisers that continues to be one of the most disturbing parts of his presidency. 

If Fear was a stunning portrait of dysfunction within America's highest governing office, then Bob Woodward's Rage is the first-hand confirmation of those assertions. As Donald Trump's first tumultuous term as President of the United States comes to a close, it is one that will be more remembered for scandal than any legislative achievement. What I always find striking about books like this is that there really aren't any new revelations. Anyone paying attention is already aware of everything that this book confirms. As always, it is the direct quotes from the mouth of the President that are the most striking. Through the wide-ranging interviews that Woodward conducted, we see a man who is completely over his head in leading the country. Woodward says it best, "Trump is the wrong man for the job." It has been said time and again, but I'll say it one more time. Vote!

For more information visit the author's website and Goodreads. 

(2020, 45)

"He's an idiot. It's pointless to try to convince him of anything. He's gone off the rails. We're in crazytown."

Much has been written about the 2016 presidential election. Scholars and political commentators have devoted many pages to their take on how Donald Trump was elected to the highest political office in the country. It seems like each week brings a new insight into the dysfunctional goings on in the White House. As members of Trump's administration either step down or are fired, they each are ready to publish their "tell-all" book with firsthand accounts of just how defective the American political system has become. With each new revelation that would be considered shocking in any other administration, the President simply brushes them off as "fake news."

Enter two time Pulitzer winning journalist Bob Woodward. Woodward is like the antithesis of fake news. He was one of the key journalists involved in exposing the Watergate scandal during Nixon's presidency and has provided authoritative reporting about every president since. In his newest book Fear: Trump in the White House, Woodward presents a startling portrait of the way Trump leads the country.

I'll start by saying that Fear presents little in the way of new revelations. Rather, Woodward provides a meticulously documented portrait that confirms the things we already know and fear about our President. Woodward confirms that Trump has a short attention span, is prone to knee-jerk/uninformed decisions, and simply denies any claims of facts that are counter to what he is trying to do. "You've got to be strong. You've got to be aggressive. You've got to push back hard. You've got to deny anything that's said about you. Never admit it."

The true marvel of Woodward's Fear is not in the contents of its pages (although much of what is reported is pretty terrifying for anyone who believes in the order of the US government) but in the way in which it is documented. Michael Wolff's book Fire and Fury presented many of the same topics and retellings that Woodward's book does. Wolff's fatal flaw was that he did not document his sources. That simply doesn't work in Trump's era of fake news. Woodward remedies this by providing comprehensive footnotes and sources. Each quote or claim is backed by documented interviews, recordings, or press footage. Simply put, there is no denying that what Woodward has written is true. Fear, like the countless other books about Trump's White House, will likely do little to change the opinions of the President's supporters or detractors. It will, however, serve as verifiable historical documentation of the bizarre and downright insane reign of our current President.

For more information, visit the author's website, Amazon, and Goodreads.

(2018, 37)