First published 2021
Washington Post journalists Yasmeen Abutaleb and Damian Paletta chronicle Donald Trump's disastrous handling of the COVID-19 pandemic from January 2020 through Election Day. The authors take readers inside the White House to reveal how the administration waged war against health agencies, doctors, and scientists while attempting to dismiss the worst global pandemic in a century. Trump refused accountability, rejected his own task force's guidance, insisted the virus would disappear, ridiculed safety advocates, and pushed his supporters to ignore public health measures. Officials repeatedly tried to prevent Trump from following his most destructive instincts as he defied expert recommendations and even his own staff's advice. Cabinet members, aides, and staff engaged in backstabbing and rivalry that created a poisonous atmosphere of blame and political pressure, severely damaging crucial public health institutions. Even after a fall outbreak infected the White House and Trump himself, he maintained his defiant stance toward the virus, likely contributing to his electoral defeat. Drawing from extensive reporting and hundreds of interviews across all levels of government, the book reveals how federal leadership failed Americans during their greatest need.
Genres: politics, non-fiction, 21st-century, journalism, current-affairs, american-history
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: unreliable-narrator
Setting: Washington, White House
Period: 2020
496 pages · Hardcover · Harper
Content warnings: anxiety, depression, mental-illness