"Martin and Burns have chronicled a tumultuous time with precision and scope and their tireless reporting unearths revealing new details. Their wide-angle lens reminds us how much was-- and remains-- at stake. Masterful !" -- George Stephanopoulos, ABC News anchor "What an account of these extraordinary times. Martin and Burns deliver reporting from deep inside both parties with fresh facts and new details on nearly every page about a political system pushed to the brink. When future historians chronicle this time of crisis they will turn to this book as a deeply valuable account of our all too human leaders." -- Peggy Noonan, The Wall Street Journal "This is an enthralling and at times frightening account that weaves together the Trump implosion and the roller coaster ride of Biden's first year. Deeply reported, it combines amazing inside scoops with a fine feel for the historic forces that have roiled our times. By helping us understand what happened, it provides insight about where we are heading.
" -- Walter Isaacson, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Code Breaker "Alex Burns and Jonathan Martin are two of our best sourced, most insightful and honest chroniclers of American politics . Their book takes us not only through those harrowing final days of the Trump-era but is the first to deeply explore the central tension of President Biden's presidency thus far: that of a man who is trying to balance 'national reconciliation' with his 'aspiration to craft a presidency of grand and lasting impact.' The writing, full of luscious details and newsy nuggets, allows the reader an 'in the room where it happened' experience." -- Amy Walter, Publisher & Editor-in-Chief, The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter "An impressively sourced and consistently revealing chronicle of America's 'political emergency' in the months between the onset of the coronavirus pandemic and the start of President Biden's second year in office.What emerges is a clear-eyed and often dramatic portrait of two major political parties animated as much by internal divisions as by cross-aisle discord.Revelations abound--of Kevin McCarthy's initial plan to call on Trump to resign after the Capitol riot; of Republican efforts to lure Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema into switching parties--as do sharp character sketches. Politics junkies should consider this required reading." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) "Red meat for politics watchers, unsparing in its depiction of a time of torment.
" -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review).