Peril (book)

Last updated

Peril
Peril (Bob Woodward and Robert Costa).png
Author Bob Woodward and Robert Costa
CountryUnited States
Subjects Presidency of Donald Trump
2020 United States presidential election
Presidential transition of Joe Biden
Presidency of Joe Biden
GenreNon-fiction
PublishedSeptember 21, 2021
Publisher Simon & Schuster
Media typePrint, e-book, audiobook
Pages512
ISBN 9781982182915 (Hardcover)
OCLC 1267411961

Peril is a non-fiction book by American journalists Bob Woodward and Robert Costa about the outgoing Trump Administration, as well as the presidential transition and early presidency of Joe Biden. The book was published on September 21, 2021, by Simon & Schuster.

Contents

Considered the culmination of Woodward's reporting on Donald Trump, Peril takes its title from an excerpt of Biden's inaugural address. [1] In the speech, Biden proclaimed that Americans "will press forward with speed and urgency, for we have much to do in this winter of peril and possibility." [2] This contrasts with Woodward's previous books about the Trump administration, Fear and Rage, which took their titles from Trump's comments from a March 2016 interview conducted by Woodward and Costa. [3]

Background

Following the publication of Woodward's previous two Trump books, Fear and Rage, Peril acts as the final installment in Woodward's Donald Trump trilogy. Longtime Washington Post national political reporter and Washington Week host Robert Costa serves as the co-author of Peril. Having previously collaborated with Woodward in interviews with Donald Trump, Costa has described Woodward as a mentor. [4] The majority of the book was written as an exposé during the final months of Trump's presidency, detailing the administration's response to COVID-19, attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election, and efforts to delay the presidential transition of Joe Biden.

Content

Peril has two narratives: one following Trump's reelection campaign, and the other following Joe Biden's campaign as he defeats his primary opponent Bernie Sanders and later faces Trump himself.

The conversation between Mark Milley and Chinese general Li Zuocheng is one of the subjects of Peril. The book also reveals further new details behind the outgoing Trump administration's efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. [5] [6]

Reception

Peril received mixed reviews from critics. Chris Megerian of The Los Angeles Times panned it as a "tedious" read, criticizing Woodward and Costa for "spending more time stacking up anecdotes like bricks than generating new insights into a presidency that has already received exhaustive coverage." [7]

Slate 's Fred Kaplan wrote that Peril lacks narrative structure: "Like many of Woodward's past works, this is less a cohesive book than a string of anecdotes, some hair-raising, some less so than they appear to be. Perhaps because it was churned out so quickly, this book contains some very intriguing bits—the hints of a story, but not quite the follow-through—that someone should investigate more thoroughly." [6]

In his New York Times review, John Williams wrote, "Like an installment of a deathless Marvel franchise, for all its spectacle 'Peril' ends with a dismaying sense of prologue." [8]

In a positive appraisal of the book, Kirkus Reviews called Peril "[a] solid work of investigation that, while treading well-covered ground, offers plenty of surprises." [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Woodward</span> American investigative journalist and associate editor (born 1943)

Robert Upshur Woodward is an American investigative journalist. He started working for The Washington Post as a reporter in 1971 and now holds the title of associate editor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Claremont Institute</span> American conservative think tank

The Claremont Institute is a conservative think tank based in Upland, California. The institute was founded in 1979 by four students of Harry V. Jaffa. It produces the Claremont Review of Books,The American Mind, and other publications.

In the United States, a presidential transition is the process during which the president-elect of the United States prepares to take over the administration of the federal government of the United States from the incumbent president. Though planning for transition by a non-incumbent candidate can start at any time before a presidential election and in the days following, the transition formally starts when the General Services Administration (GSA) declares an “apparent winner” of the election, thereby releasing the funds appropriated by Congress for the transition, and continues until inauguration day, when the president-elect takes the oath of office, at which point the powers, immunities, and responsibilities of the presidency are legally transferred to the new president.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Milley</span> U.S. Army general (born 1958)

Mark Alexander Milley is a retired United States Army general who last served as the 20th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from October 1, 2019, to September 30, 2023. He previously served as the 39th chief of staff of the Army from August 14, 2015, to August 9, 2019, and held multiple command and staff positions in eight divisions and special forces throughout his military career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Costa (journalist)</span> American investigative journalist

Robert Costa is an American political reporter who is the chief election and campaign correspondent for CBS News. Prior to joining CBS in 2022, Costa was a longtime national political reporter for The Washington Post. Previously, he was a political analyst for NBC News and MSNBC and the moderator and managing editor of Washington Week on PBS. He is the co-author with Bob Woodward of Peril, a # 1 New York Times bestseller on the final days of the Trump presidency, including the 2021 United States Capitol attack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 United States presidential election</span> 59th quadrennial U.S. presidential election

The 2020 United States presidential election was the 59th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. The Democratic ticket of former vice president Joe Biden and the junior U.S. senator from California Kamala Harris defeated the incumbent Republican president, Donald Trump, and vice president, Mike Pence. The election took place against the backdrop of the global COVID-19 pandemic and related recession. The election saw the highest voter turnout by percentage since 1900, with each of the two main tickets receiving more than 74 million votes, surpassing Barack Obama's record of 69.5 million votes from 2008. Biden received more than 81 million votes, the most votes ever cast for a candidate in a U.S. presidential election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kayleigh McEnany</span> American political commentator and author (born 1988)

Kayleigh McEnany is an American conservative political commentator, television journalist, and writer who served the administration of Donald Trump as the 33rd White House press secretary from April 2020 to January 2021.

<i>Fear: Trump in the White House</i> 2018 non-fiction book by Bob Woodward about Donald Trumps presidency

Fear: Trump in the White House is a non-fiction book by American journalist Bob Woodward about the presidency of Donald Trump. The book was released on September 11, 2018. Woodward based the book on hundreds of hours of interviews with members of the Trump administration. The book's publisher Simon & Schuster announced that it had sold 1.1 million copies in the first week of its release, making it the fastest selling opener in the company's history.

<i>Rage</i> (Woodward book) 2020 book by Bob Woodward

Rage is a book by the American journalist Bob Woodward about the presidency of Donald Trump, published on September 15, 2020, by Simon & Schuster. The book is largely critical of Trump, focusing on his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, his strained relationship with military brass and high-level officials such as Jim Mattis and Dan Coats, his handling of racial unrest, and his relationships with the leaders of Russia and North Korea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of the Donald Trump presidency (2020 Q4–January 2021)</span>

The following is a timeline of the presidency of Donald Trump during the fourth and last quarter of 2020, from October 1 to December 31, 2020. This is also during the final month of his presidency from January 1 to 20, 2021, when Trump left office. To navigate quarters, see timeline of the Donald Trump presidency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Presidency of Joe Biden</span> U.S. presidential administration from 2021 to present

Joe Biden's tenure as the 46th president of the United States began with his inauguration on January 20, 2021. Biden, a Democrat from Delaware who previously served as vice president under Barack Obama, took office following his victory in the 2020 presidential election over Republican incumbent president Donald Trump. Upon his inauguration, he became the oldest president in American history, breaking the record set by his predecessor Trump. Biden entered office amid the COVID-19 pandemic, an economic crisis, and increased political polarization.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Presidential transition of Joe Biden</span> Transfer of presidential power from Donald Trump to Joe Biden

The presidential transition of Joe Biden began on November 7, 2020, and ended on January 20, 2021. Unlike previous presidential transitions, which normally take place during the roughly 10-week period between the election in the first week of November and the inauguration on January 20, Biden's presidential transition was shortened somewhat because the General Services Administration under the outgoing Trump administration did not recognize Biden as the "apparent winner" until November 23.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Attempts to overturn the 2020 United States presidential election</span> U.S. historical and political event

After Democratic nominee Joe Biden won the 2020 United States presidential election, Republican nominee and then-incumbent President Donald Trump pursued an unprecedented effort to overturn the election, with support and assistance from his campaign, proxies, political allies, and many of his supporters. These efforts culminated in the January 6 United States Capitol attack by Trump supporters, which was widely described as an attempted coup d'état. One week later, Trump was impeached for incitement of insurrection but was acquitted by the Senate by a vote of 57–43, 10 votes short of the 67 votes required to convict him.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2021 United States Electoral College vote count</span> Last step of 2020 presidential election

The count of the Electoral College ballots during a joint session of the 117th United States Congress, pursuant to the Electoral Count Act, on January 6–7, 2021, was the final step to confirm President-elect Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential election over President Donald Trump, the incumbent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First 100 days of Joe Biden's presidency</span> Beginning of Joe Bidens presidency

The first 100 days of Joe Biden's presidency began on January 20, 2021, the day Joe Biden was inaugurated as the 46th president of the United States. The first 100 days of a presidential term took on symbolic significance during Franklin D. Roosevelt's first term in office, and the period is considered a benchmark to measure the early success of a president. The 100th day of his presidency ended at noon on April 30, 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eastman memos</span> Memos outlining debunked legal theories to overturn the 2020 US presidential election

The Eastman memos, also known as the "coup memo", are documents by John Eastman, an American law professor retained by then-President Donald Trump advancing the fringe legal theory that a U.S. Vice President has unilateral authority to reject certified State electors. This would have the effect of nullifying an election in order to produce an outcome personally desired by the Vice President, such as a result in the Vice President's own party's favor, including retaining himself as Vice President, or if the Vice President is himself the presidential candidate, then to unilaterally make himself president.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeffrey Clark letter</span>

The Jeffrey Clark letter was a draft letter that falsely claimed the Department of Justice had been investigating "various irregularities in the 2020 election."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle for the Soul of the Nation speech</span> 2022 speech by US President Joe Biden

The Battle for the Soul of the Nation was a speech given by U.S. President Joe Biden on September 1, 2022, two months before the 2022 midterm elections. It was televised during prime time from the front of Philadelphia's Independence Hall. Biden was critical of Donald Trump and Republicans adhering to the Make America Great Again movement.

<i>The Trump Tapes</i> 2022 audiobook release of interviews between Bob Woodward and Donald Trump

The Trump Tapes: Bob Woodward's Twenty Interviews with President Donald Trump is a 2022 non-fiction audiobook of 20 interviews between journalist Bob Woodward and Donald Trump conducted from 2016 to 2020. In addition to the interviews between Woodward and Trump, The Trump Tapes also includes the raw transcripts of 27 letters between Trump and North Korean Chairman Kim Jong Un, 25 of which were previously obtained by Woodward in 2020 for use in Rage. In total, the book contains around 11 and a half hours of audio. Originally released as an audiobook, the transcript was later published in both print and digital formats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timeline of the Joe Biden presidency (2023 Q4)</span>

The following is a timeline of the presidency of Joe Biden during the fourth quarter of 2023, from October 1 to December 31, 2023. To navigate between quarters, see timeline of the Joe Biden presidency.

References

  1. Gangel, Jamie; Stuart, Eizabeth (August 17, 2021). "Exclusive: Title, cover and details of new Trump book from Bob Woodward and Robert Costa revealed". CNN . Retrieved November 12, 2021.
  2. Biden, Joe (January 20, 2021). Joe Biden's Inaugural Address (Speech).
  3. Kavi, Aishvarya (September 9, 2020). "5 Takeaways From 'Rage,' Bob Woodward's New Book About Trump". The New York Times . ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  4. Chotiner, Isaac (April 12, 2016). "Bob Woodward of the Washington Post on Trump, Bush, and web journalism". Slate.com. Retrieved April 24, 2017.
  5. Gangel, Jamie; Herb, Jeremy (September 20, 2021). "Memo shows Trump lawyer's six-step plan for Pence to overturn the election". CNN . Retrieved September 21, 2021.
  6. 1 2 Kaplan, Fred (September 21, 2021). "The Most Confounding Part of Bob Woodward's New Trump Book Is What It Doesn't Say - It's heavy on scoops and light on analysis". Slate . Retrieved September 21, 2021.
  7. Megerian, Chris (September 17, 2021). "Review: 'Peril' is a damning — and tedious — portrait of American democracy on the brink". The Los Angeles Times . Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  8. Williams, John (September 17, 2021). "Bob Woodward Extends His Trump Chronicles With the Chaotic Transfer of Power". The New York Times . Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  9. "PERIL". Kirkus Reviews . Retrieved November 13, 2021.