Lucky: How Joe Biden Barely Won the Presidency
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- Author：Jonathan Allen
- ISBN：0525574220
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Summary
Almost no one thought Joe Biden could make it back to the White House—not Donald Trump， not the two dozen Democratic rivals who sought to take down a weak front-runner， not the mega-donors and key endorsers who feared he could not beat Bernie Sanders， not even Barack Obama。 The story of Biden’s cathartic victory in the 2020 election is the story of a Democratic Party at odds with itself， torn between the single-minded goal of removing Donald Trump and the push for a bold progressive agenda that threatened to alienate as many voters as it drew。
In Lucky， #1 New York Times bestselling authors Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes use their unparalleled access to key players inside the Democratic and Republican campaigns to unfold how Biden’s nail-biting run for the presidency vexed his own party as much as it did Trump。 Having premised his path on unlocking the black vote in South Carolina， Biden nearly imploded before he got there after a relentless string of misfires left him free falling in polls and nearly broke。
Allen and Parnes brilliantly detail the remarkable string of chance events that saved him， from the botched Iowa caucus tally that concealed his terrible result， to the pandemic lock-down that kept him off the stump， where he was often at his worst。 More powerfully， Lucky unfolds the pitched struggle within Biden’s general election campaign to downplay the very issues that many Democrats believed would drive voters to the polls， especially in the wake of Trump’s response to nationwide protests following the murder of George Floyd。 Even Biden’s victory did not salve his party’s wounds; instead， it revealed a surprising， complicated portrait of American voters and crushed Democrats’ belief in the inevitability of a blue wave。
A thrilling masterpiece of political reporting， Lucky is essential reading for understanding the most important election in American history and the future that will come of it。
In Lucky， #1 New York Times bestselling authors Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes use their unparalleled access to key players inside the Democratic and Republican campaigns to unfold how Biden’s nail-biting run for the presidency vexed his own party as much as it did Trump。 Having premised his path on unlocking the black vote in South Carolina， Biden nearly imploded before he got there after a relentless string of misfires left him free falling in polls and nearly broke。
Allen and Parnes brilliantly detail the remarkable string of chance events that saved him， from the botched Iowa caucus tally that concealed his terrible result， to the pandemic lock-down that kept him off the stump， where he was often at his worst。 More powerfully， Lucky unfolds the pitched struggle within Biden’s general election campaign to downplay the very issues that many Democrats believed would drive voters to the polls， especially in the wake of Trump’s response to nationwide protests following the murder of George Floyd。 Even Biden’s victory did not salve his party’s wounds; instead， it revealed a surprising， complicated portrait of American voters and crushed Democrats’ belief in the inevitability of a blue wave。
A thrilling masterpiece of political reporting， Lucky is essential reading for understanding the most important election in American history and the future that will come of it。
Reviews
George
，
Did a good job at showing how lucky Biden actually was。 Clearly the authors are not trump fans。 So this isn’t a conservative view on what happens。 When people on Biden’s actual campaign say “coronavirus is the best thing the that happens to Biden” it’s clear things broke very good for him。
Hasan
，
Having read a number of campaign books， it was obvious to me that this book lacked additional sources and the authors rushed to complete the book to be the first ones out in the market with a 2020 presidential campaign book。 Their sources were pretty good in the Joe Biden campaign， decent within the Bernie Sanders campaign but largely poor everywhere including the sitting-POTUS who was a massive part of the story。 The book also doesn't cover the Georgia runoffs and the Capitol insurrection， whic Having read a number of campaign books， it was obvious to me that this book lacked additional sources and the authors rushed to complete the book to be the first ones out in the market with a 2020 presidential campaign book。 Their sources were pretty good in the Joe Biden campaign， decent within the Bernie Sanders campaign but largely poor everywhere including the sitting-POTUS who was a massive part of the story。 The book also doesn't cover the Georgia runoffs and the Capitol insurrection， which seems like a mistake。That being said， this book provided additional context and new reporting behind a lot of the events that took place during the 2020 election。 It is an engaging read。 。。。more
Ron Nurmi
，
A look at how Joe Biden won the nomination and then the election。 This is a "little inside baseball" look at what happened。 A look at how Joe Biden won the nomination and then the election。 This is a "little inside baseball" look at what happened。 。。。more
Jay Gabler
，
Thank you Random House for the free book。 Not just a chronicle of the Biden campaign， “Lucky” is an inside look at an election year like none other。 Even though I knew how it would end， I couldn’t put it down。
Stephen Morrissey
，
If you thought Joe Biden's victory in 2020 was inevitable， think again！ Jonathan Allen and Ami Parnes， following up on their insider account of the 2016 Hillary Clinton campaign， stretch the tension wire from Biden's decision to announce his candidacy， through the primaries， and all the way through the harrowing days-long election of 2020。 "Lucky" is an apt title for the book: Biden， despite being the frontrunner in national polls， somewhat stumbled into the nomination according to sources used If you thought Joe Biden's victory in 2020 was inevitable， think again！ Jonathan Allen and Ami Parnes， following up on their insider account of the 2016 Hillary Clinton campaign， stretch the tension wire from Biden's decision to announce his candidacy， through the primaries， and all the way through the harrowing days-long election of 2020。 "Lucky" is an apt title for the book: Biden， despite being the frontrunner in national polls， somewhat stumbled into the nomination according to sources used by Parnes and Allen。 Biden's organization suffered from that original sin of all veteran politicos: the inner-circle vs the hired guns。 The Biden poo-bahs， including Mike Donolin and Steve Richhetti， are integral players in the campaign from start to finish， with Donilon being the primary gatekeeper of the Biden Brand。 Then， there are the newcomers: O'Malley-Dillon， the eventual campaign manager suffused with the glow of Obama's prior victories; Symone Sanders， a key pick-up in the early primary days; and staffers from Obama's 2008 and 2012 campaigns that constantly ragged on the inefficiencies of Biden's primary operation。Perhaps the most surprising revelation is the tension between Obama and Biden throughout the primaries and even into the general election。 Obama kept his stance from Biden in the crowded Democratic primary field， more concerned about Biden potentially embarrassing himself than anything else。 Even in the general election season， when cash was desperately needed to get Biden's message out within the swirl of Trump news， Michelle Obama was incredibly difficult for the Biden Campaign t book for fundraising and other events。There are a few lenses to look at the 2020 election: Biden ultimately triumphed， a sort of morality play of American politics and the trajectory of history bending towards good （or， at least， better）; a narrow squeaker， where Biden almost lost to a historically-poor-performing president， with frightening answers to many "what if" battleground state questions; and， something a bit in-between: that Biden won in a solid， lunch-pail fashion， sticking to a disciplined strategy and a sense that a win must be achieved， despite all the hurdles thrown up by COVID， far-right shenanigans and a law-breaking president。Whatever narrative becomes the norm， Allen and Parnes have made a convincing case that Biden's win was closer than many of us care to think about。 。。。more
Ryan
，
Great behind the scenes account of the 2020 presidential election。
Tom Schulte
，
The primaries for the 2020 election before Biden secured the Democratic nomination over his closest rival Sanders was competitive overwhelming for being the largest field of candidates for any political party in the modern era of American politics。 One of this candidates， Senator Kamala Harris from California， became the first African-American， first Asian-American， and third female vice presidential nominee on a major party ticket。 The general election itself was much closer than the electoral The primaries for the 2020 election before Biden secured the Democratic nomination over his closest rival Sanders was competitive overwhelming for being the largest field of candidates for any political party in the modern era of American politics。 One of this candidates， Senator Kamala Harris from California， became the first African-American， first Asian-American， and third female vice presidential nominee on a major party ticket。 The general election itself was much closer than the electoral college results suggest。 This detailed study does a great job making engaging and enlightening all the twists and turns of lucky breaks for Joe as his party's base recoiled from radicalism and opted for the comforting centrist。 Biden often proclaims a close relationship with Obama and this study suggests from Obama's words and actions how that is not an accurate assessment， which is among the more interesting points made here， to me。 。。。more
Hamish
，
Felt like a fairly definitive account， though it got a little repetitive/like they were trying to hit their word-counts。 Would have have liked to have seen more behind the scenes stuff from the big moments， but I guess you'll have to wait a few years before that can happen。 The ending was disheartening！ Felt like a fairly definitive account， though it got a little repetitive/like they were trying to hit their word-counts。 Would have have liked to have seen more behind the scenes stuff from the big moments， but I guess you'll have to wait a few years before that can happen。 The ending was disheartening！ 。。。more
Leo
，
This book is just second hand gossip。 Reading it， I got nothing on political strategy or insight on how to run a good campaign。 Just gossip and bad talking people。
Caroline
，
A flew through this book just as I did with their prior book ‘Shattered’。 Well written and easy to comprehend。 The pace keeps you interested throughout。 This book takes you into the campaign as they move toward Election Day with behind the scenes information I found to be quite enlightening。 Thoroughly enjoyed this one from beginning to end。
Susan
，
Once I finally got past the South Carolina primary and Super Tuesday， I found the book to be a little more interesting。 （And that was close to 40% into the book。） The beginning spent a bit too much time on the tensions in the campaign itself， which for some reason I didn't find compelling。 But after Biden's campaign picked up momentum， the book's momentum picked up as well and I began to enjoy the last part as the election itself approached。 The authors managed to get comments from campaign staf Once I finally got past the South Carolina primary and Super Tuesday， I found the book to be a little more interesting。 （And that was close to 40% into the book。） The beginning spent a bit too much time on the tensions in the campaign itself， which for some reason I didn't find compelling。 But after Biden's campaign picked up momentum， the book's momentum picked up as well and I began to enjoy the last part as the election itself approached。 The authors managed to get comments from campaign staffers from both the Biden and Trump campaigns which was really interesting to see how the folks on opposite sides saw things differently。 Worth a read if you are a political junkie。 。。。more
Budd Margolis
，
Extremely well written and filled with Election 2020 insights。 I agree with how each candidate is described and their strategies forensically dissected in a political landscape mired in division， tinged with racial discord and feudal infighting。 Jonathan Allen cuts through the propaganda fog and provides crystal clear analysis， with moments of humor and loads of background and stories one does not know or can recall among all the media bias。What many do not realize， including myself，m was how ve Extremely well written and filled with Election 2020 insights。 I agree with how each candidate is described and their strategies forensically dissected in a political landscape mired in division， tinged with racial discord and feudal infighting。 Jonathan Allen cuts through the propaganda fog and provides crystal clear analysis， with moments of humor and loads of background and stories one does not know or can recall among all the media bias。What many do not realize， including myself，m was how very close the Biden victory was。 It was a surprise to learn that his margin was less than Trump's in 2018。 Biden was painted as too old to run， few thought he would make it， or be able to fight in the social media virtual campaign times， But he proved， despite mistakes， that when compared to any other alternative， most importantly the threat of a 2nd Trump term， he was most suited to succeed despite himself。This approach surprised me， then delighted my fascination with how this first ever pandemic inspired virtual campaign progressed。 It is beneficial to have all the stories so well crafted in one book and I know， for those politico's， this will be of great interest。 。。。more
Mary
，
Loved it！ I thought this was super juicy， but I'm a little bit of a political junkie。 I particularly enjoyed the behind the scenes info on the primary。 Loved it！ I thought this was super juicy， but I'm a little bit of a political junkie。 I particularly enjoyed the behind the scenes info on the primary。 。。。more
Mcangelo
，
First half about primary was great and interesting to read。 Once it shifts to general election with trump， the book lost me。 The book is too long as well。
Greg Stoll
，
This book is pure guilty pleasure - lots of gossip， and since it was mostly sourced on background I'd be willing to bet some of it is exaggerated。 （see this Perry Bacon Jr。 article on the danger of unnamed sources） But it's a pretty quick read， and it's been long enough since the election that I was happy to relive some parts of it。The main thesis of the book is that Biden was unusually lucky to win the primary and the general election。 I'm not sure I buy it - sure， he was lucky in a number of w This book is pure guilty pleasure - lots of gossip， and since it was mostly sourced on background I'd be willing to bet some of it is exaggerated。 （see this Perry Bacon Jr。 article on the danger of unnamed sources） But it's a pretty quick read， and it's been long enough since the election that I was happy to relive some parts of it。The main thesis of the book is that Biden was unusually lucky to win the primary and the general election。 I'm not sure I buy it - sure， he was lucky in a number of ways， but so is every candidate that wins， right？ Maybe he was a little luckier than most but I don't think it was a dramatic difference。 Although the final result was so close， I suppose you could argue that every lucky break he got was necessary？And maybe this is just the style of books like this， but the authors seem to go out of their way to say negative stuff about everyone involved。Odds and ends:- Sanders supporters were notorious for having a toxic online presence in 2016， insulting Clinton and Clinton supporters。 （some of whom， as we found out after the fact， where Russian bots， although this may have been true of aggressive Clinton supporters as well） When Bernie entered the race in 2020 he condemned "bullying and harassment"， but at the same time was taking advice and later hired David Sirota， one of the more aggressive people on Twitter。- In October 2019 （when it was basically down to Biden， Sanders， Warren， and Buttigieg）， Obama made some private remarks where he sort of endorsed Warren！- The whole fiasco around the final Des Moines Register poll did help Biden - he was in fourth place （the results were Sanders 22， Warren 18， Buttigieg 16， Biden 13）， but since the results didn't get released his supporters didn't jump ship， and it didn't give Sanders a boost that he probably would have gotten。- The book recounts Warren's dislike of Bloomberg and her preparation for the Nevada debate where she eviscerated him。 （I realize the trope of one person "destroying" another one have become so common as to be passe， but I think it fits here！） Other than making me smile remembering how all that went， this was another "lucky" point for Biden， as it seemed like Bloomberg was poised to lure a chunk of Biden voters。 The book also mentions that after the debate， each candidate had a staff member assigned to escort them back to a holding room， but no one came to pick up Bloomberg so he stood alone by himself just offstage🙂- I wasn't a huge fan of Biden saying he would nominate a Black woman to the Supreme Court at the time （it seemed like pandering to me， although I agree it's a good idea）， but the book recounts how Jim Clyburn kept pressing Biden to announce this， including running up to Biden during a commercial break in the debate before the South Carolina primary to lecture him to do it tonight。 （and Biden did！）- This is not at all surprising， but it is interesting to hear how Biden and Obama called Buttigieg right after he dropped out to ask him to endorse Biden。 （Obama pointed out that Buttigieg would never have more clout than he did right then） Apparently Obama tried to make a similar call to Klobuchar， but she realized what was going on and dodged his calls🙂- The swing towards Biden between South Carolina and Super Tuesday sure appeared dramatic from the outside， and although winning South Carolina and gaining momentum from that was Biden's plan， a senior adviser said that stuff was "nuts and incomparable to anything I've ever seen"。- Just as the primary was effectively wrapping up， Biden changed campaign managers and hired Jen O'Malley Dillon。 I missed all of this， which isn't a surprise because this was mid-March when the coronavirus started hitting the US， so her first action was to hold an all-staff meeting at headquarters， introduce herself， and announce that headquarters was shutting down！- The book says that Biden had a lot of trouble acknowledging that his past statements or positions were wrong （not unlike Trump！）， but he was quick to offer personal apologies to people who felt harmed by him。 （very unlike Trump！） I hadn't quite noticed this duality。。。- The book posits that Biden running his campaign from his basement was good for Biden because it kept the focus on Trump， which made the election more like a referendum on Trump than a choice between two candidates。 Which feels right to me。 The book says that this was another way Biden was lucky， which sort of makes sense， although I think even in normal times Trump sucks up a lot of oxygen so I'm not sure Biden would have made a ton of news。- Trump's first big indoor rally after the pandemic hit the US was an indoor one in Tulsa in mid-June。 The story at the time was that a million people signed up for tickets， but most of these people were TikTok users trying to mess with the Trump campaign， which is why the actual attendance was embarrassingly less than that。 The book says that Brad Parscale （Trump's campaign manager at the time） thought there were 100，000 people that had signed up that were within 50 miles of the rally， so a big crowd was very possible。 But Trump warned of protests and violence and that plus the police presence scared a lot of people away。 Hard to say if this is accurate or not。- Some of the people that had been with Biden's campaign from the beginning didn't like that O'Malley Dillon was the new campaign manager。 Apparently O'Malley Dillon's kids would frequently pop up when she was in meetings， and one "male campaign aide who did not have children" thought that she was bringing them in on purposes， like it was staged。 As someone who worked for a long time from home with young kids， that male campaign aide may go to hell。- Putting together a virtual Democratic National Convention was a big job which worked out pretty well in the end。 One idea was to have a map with lights to show where the current speaker was broadcasting from， to show the geographical diversity of the Democratic party。 This idea was scrapped when they realized how many speakers were broadcasting from places like Martha's Vineyard🙂- They asked Lin-Manuel Miranda to write and record a new song for the convention。 But some wires got crossed， and Miranda wrote an instrumental piece played on the piano， and the organizers couldn't find a good place to use it。 #ReleaseTheLinManuelMirandaSong- Especially after the recent allegations， there's an amusing bit where the organizers asked themselves the same question they apparently ask every four years about Andrew Cuomo: "How is he going to f*** us this time？" In 2016 he spoke for double his scheduled time。 This time， he was late delivering his recording， and it was more of a tribute to himself than to Biden。 The words "Joe Biden" were first spoken four minutes and fifty seconds into a five-minute speech！ And he refused to refilm it。 （did this actually get aired？ I don't know。。。）- The prose of the book is a bit heavy-handed at times， like this quote about the captain of Biden's analytics team on Election Day: "Siegel sipped coffee from Elixr， a small chain of boutique Philadelphia coffee shops that boasted of the 'transformative' power of their lights roasts。 She didn't want a transformation， just an outcome that fell within the expected range。" 🙄- The book points out that Trump lost by a total of 42，918 votes in three states （Arizona， Georgia， and Wisconsin）， and flipping those states would have given him a victory。 This irritated me because I had already done this calculation for my state election map and came up with a different number。 But it turns out the book was right （not a big surprise！） and this prompted me to find some bugs in the map， about which I'll write later🙂 。。。more
Bill Shannon
，
Lucky is the kind of book that I hope will replace the Heilman/Halperin election books of the past。 It takes a strangely non-partisan approach， given how damning the foreward is in opposition to the January 6 insurrection that was encouraged by ape-in-a-suit Trump， blobfish Ted Cruz and fist-brandishing soft-Nazi Josh Hawley。The title could be seen as a Trump-esque pejorative -- that Biden was lucky to win， like an inferior team that beats a great team on a buzzer-beater or a hail mary pass -- b Lucky is the kind of book that I hope will replace the Heilman/Halperin election books of the past。 It takes a strangely non-partisan approach， given how damning the foreward is in opposition to the January 6 insurrection that was encouraged by ape-in-a-suit Trump， blobfish Ted Cruz and fist-brandishing soft-Nazi Josh Hawley。The title could be seen as a Trump-esque pejorative -- that Biden was lucky to win， like an inferior team that beats a great team on a buzzer-beater or a hail mary pass -- but the book is compelling in recounting all the breaks that went Biden's way， mostly stemming from Trump's own embarrassing incompetence。It's a good sign of a book that I was disappointed that I only had a little bit left to go: I usually can't wait for a damn book to end， so the fact that I was so into Lucky tells me that I'll probably read it again later。 。。。more
Steve
，
Even knowing the outcome， it's still thrilling （and chilling） to read how it all came about。 The authors have to pick the moments that they feel propel the narrative forward， if they were to include all the details and threads the book would be four times as long。 I couldn't put the book down。 Even knowing the outcome， it's still thrilling （and chilling） to read how it all came about。 The authors have to pick the moments that they feel propel the narrative forward， if they were to include all the details and threads the book would be four times as long。 I couldn't put the book down。 。。。more
Caroline
，
As fun as gossiping with high school friends， but about this: “Publicly， Biden’s team struck the posture that he had won a big victory。 Privately， campaign officials acknowledged that they had hung on by their fingernails。”
Dana Hiscock
，
A good blow-by-blow recounting of the 2020 Presidential election。 While pedestrian at times， it really does a good job of showing how Biden’s team pulled it out。
André
，
Thoughts: Several hundred pages of lame beltway goss and tawdry horse-race bullshit。
Carlos
，
Having been glued to all the news of the 2020 election while it was unfolding， I was curious to see what Allen and Parnes could share about its behind-the-scenes developments。 While there were no radically enlightening revelations， the book did manage to capture the seemingly endless surprising moments that， combined with the pandemic and the tense long wait for the results and then Biden’s inauguration， managed to make this election feel endless。 Kicking off right after the 2018 midterm electio Having been glued to all the news of the 2020 election while it was unfolding， I was curious to see what Allen and Parnes could share about its behind-the-scenes developments。 While there were no radically enlightening revelations， the book did manage to capture the seemingly endless surprising moments that， combined with the pandemic and the tense long wait for the results and then Biden’s inauguration， managed to make this election feel endless。 Kicking off right after the 2018 midterm elections， the authors mainly follow Biden’s and Sander’s primary campaigns， dipping here and there into the “flavor of the month” candidates that ebbed and flowed until the South Carolina primary。 After that they follow Biden’s and Trump’s general election campaigns， the party conventions and the evolving pandemic and the George Floyd protests。 Overall， the book seemed to fulfill its role in capturing both the feeling and actions of the 2020 US presidential election。 。。。more
Thomas Terence
，
Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes are probably my favorite current political writers。 They do a great job of giving a good overview of presidential elections and getting their book to the presses fast。
Denise
，
Allen and Parnes provide a detailed post mortem of Joe Biden's ultimately successful 2020 campaign， pointing out missteps， flawed plans and flawed characters （evidently they decided that not a single person mentioned in the book should come out looking all that good - which， in most cases， fair enough）， and plenty of lucky breaks。 From my outsider's perspective， observing the campaigning and election process felt a lot like the lead-up to the 2016 election all over again - brief elation at heari Allen and Parnes provide a detailed post mortem of Joe Biden's ultimately successful 2020 campaign， pointing out missteps， flawed plans and flawed characters （evidently they decided that not a single person mentioned in the book should come out looking all that good - which， in most cases， fair enough）， and plenty of lucky breaks。 From my outsider's perspective， observing the campaigning and election process felt a lot like the lead-up to the 2016 election all over again - brief elation at hearing that exceedingly rare thing， a US politician espousing ideas and policies that I actually agree with and even embrace， which soon enough fizzled out as once again the Democratic party decided to pick a bland， centrist candidate who elicits precisely zero excitement and brings the election down to a choice of the lesser evil。 On the upside， this time they actually elected the lesser evil。。。 at least we're almost two months into Biden's first term and he hasn't done anything particularly terrible yet， so things are clearly going better than last time around。 。。。more
Kimberly Te
，
Solid election 2020 reference book。
Rohit
，
The story of the primary was relatively interesting， but the book lost significant steam as it headed towards the general。 It's especially jarring that the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg was not even mentioned。 Still feel it's worth the investment for the description of the primary （especially Iowa） and the Veep selection。 The story of the primary was relatively interesting， but the book lost significant steam as it headed towards the general。 It's especially jarring that the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg was not even mentioned。 Still feel it's worth the investment for the description of the primary （especially Iowa） and the Veep selection。 。。。more
Steve Nolan
，
Fuck 'em all。Unsurprising that most of the book's sources are from super party insiders， and I hate them all。 （There was no more oft repeated refrain than， "we have to stop Bernie。" Fuck 'em！！） It's also pretty bullshit that they took the "we lost because of defund！！" shit and just put it at the end of the book。 Editorialize a bit， my guys！ But I mean， not really a fault of the book， this is mostly， "hey this is what my sources said。" （It was because Trump sent out checks w/ his name on them and Fuck 'em all。Unsurprising that most of the book's sources are from super party insiders， and I hate them all。 （There was no more oft repeated refrain than， "we have to stop Bernie。" Fuck 'em！！） It's also pretty bullshit that they took the "we lost because of defund！！" shit and just put it at the end of the book。 Editorialize a bit， my guys！ But I mean， not really a fault of the book， this is mostly， "hey this is what my sources said。" （It was because Trump sent out checks w/ his name on them and the superdole， you idiots。 If you do things for people they will vote for you。） It was at least nice to continually see Elizabeth Warren eat shit。 Silver linings。 Oh， and it should have been more specific about Biden yelling at potential voters at his events。 "Listen， fat" is insanely funny and it should be in more books。 。。。more
Autumn
，
Lucky tells the story of the 2020 election and the person who eventually， against all odds， came out on top of it。 Joe Biden， the man who was underestimated by everyone--his opponents， his friends， the media， and especially his former political partner， Barack Obama--had one of the most peculiar and unpredictable presidential runs in modern history。 As a political junkie， I had been hooked on the election since January 2019， and remember all the ways the pundit class had written Biden off--he wa Lucky tells the story of the 2020 election and the person who eventually， against all odds， came out on top of it。 Joe Biden， the man who was underestimated by everyone--his opponents， his friends， the media， and especially his former political partner， Barack Obama--had one of the most peculiar and unpredictable presidential runs in modern history。 As a political junkie， I had been hooked on the election since January 2019， and remember all the ways the pundit class had written Biden off--he was too old， too inarticulate， had too much baggage， made too many gaffes， was past his prime， didn't excite anyone。 Even as he consistently polled better than the rest of the field， the Democratic establishment didn't want him as their candidate; they wanted Kamala Harris， then Beto O'Rourke， then Elizabeth Warren， then Pete Buttigieg， then Mike Bloomberg， then Mayor Pete again。 Much like Trump in 2016， Biden was thrust upon his party by the voters， and the Democrats were faced with coalescing around him or giving Trump another four years in the White House。The world may have underestimated Joe Biden， but Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes assert that this was only one part of the story。 Rather than winning solely based on his political savvy， the pair contends that Biden stumbled upon a series of freak chances that allowed him to advance from a fourth-place finish in Iowa to the US presidency: a colossal vote-tallying malfunction that distracted from said results in Iowa， embarrassing debate performances from his top competitors， a timely endorsement from Representative Jim Clyburn， a narrowing of the field on the eve of Super Tuesday， a pandemic that allowed Biden to eschew in-person campaigning， and， most importantly， the continuous self-immolation of Donald Trump， who squandered every opportunity he had to improve his standing with the American people。 Put together， all this combined to give Biden the edge he needed in a handful of swing states to deliver him the presidency。Despite what leftwing critics may infer based on the book's title， Allen and Parnes are not conservatives。 Hillary Clinton did allow them to follow her around for not one， but two bestselling books about her political career， after all--HRC and Shattered--and they don't forget to mention how racist/sexist/xenophobic Trump is every fifty pages or so （although， in a rare slip-up for such accomplished journalists， they also propagate Trump's "very fine people on both sides" remark following the Charlottesville riot， which has since been heavily criticized for being taken out of context）。 They refuse to shy away from the many Democratic players' faults， however， which is part of what makes their work so consistently compelling。 Throughout Lucky， we see how today's politicians are acutely aware of everything being said about them online， how they mobilize their digital armies， and just how willing they are to take each other out。 Certain SNL parodies are revealed to have been not too far off base （Kamala the TV lawyer， Pete the Obama-drone） and there are plenty of revelations about the candidates' character and behavior。 Hillary still refuses to take any blame for her 2016 loss and was seriously considering another run as late as November 2019。 Amy Klobuchar despised both Buttigieg and Warren， and tried to thwart Warren's chances of being named VP by publicly encouraging Biden to choose a woman of color。 Kellyanne Conway correctly predicted that the crowded primary field would help Biden rather than hurt him， and that Trump's abrasive performance in the first debate would backfire。 Buttigieg's campaign manager successfully bullied a top pollster into withholding the Iowa poll results based on a technicality， which would have revealed Bernie's lead。 Despite publicly condemning online shenanigans， Bernie privately delighted in and encouraged the Bernie Bros--the fanatical Sanders' stans whom Allen and Parnes have no qualms dubbing the most abusive and obnoxious of all the candidates' supporters--in their harassment of other campaigns and reporters。 Like most journalists， the two have a soft spot for Warren and Buttigieg， although you can practically hear them rolling their eyes as they recount Warren's version of the conversation where Sanders supposedly "mansplained" why a woman couldn't beat Trump。The most caustic characterization in Lucky is of Kamala Harris， who is depicted as borderline-sociopathic。 The narrative never questions Harris' intelligence or drive， but it does paint her as a deeply cynical and manipulative politician who is addicted to the limelight， demeaning to her staff， reluctant to interact with her constituents， and not particularly well-liked by her colleagues。 Biden was deeply hurt by her attacks on him during the first debate， and was apparently desperate to find someone， anyone， who could fill the necessary qualifications for VP in her place， before eventually resigning himself to Harris， who had the best chance of pleasing Democratic voters。 We're told how Harris' primary campaign crashed and burned， and how her DNC speech failed to land （although， in a curious admission， Allen and Parnes fail to even mention her heated debate exchange with Tulsi Gabbard， where the latter sharply criticized the former's prosecutorial record， which was then followed by Harris' poll numbers plummeting shortly afterwards）。The image of Joe Biden is far less revelatory， but much more sympathetic。 It's impossible not to feel for the former Vice President， who suffered a string of humiliating blows before finally hitting his stride in South Carolina， or his campaign team， who stuck with him through thick or thin， only to find themselves overshadowed by big-league staff additions once he won the nomination。 Although Biden had his fair share of disastrous canvassing moments （see: "lying， dog-faced pony-soldier"） he was able to connect with working-class voters in a way the eluded most of the Democratic field。 Early on in Lucky， Biden notes that the working-class resents his party because they believe the Democrats look down on them。 As the election progresses， and it becomes clearer that working-class people of all races are slowly migrating towards Trump and the GOP， we're reminded that Biden， who often seems so out of place among a sea of young， "woke" liberals and progressives， is also among the last remnants of a generation of Democrats who were the party of the poor and struggling， and not the cosmopolitan and highly-educated。The writing in Lucky is strong， although it can be indulgent; we didn't need a full chapter about Trump's botched Tulsa rally， nor did we need an extended inner-monologue about Harris watching a fly rest on Mike Pence's head during the Vice Presidential debate。 Yet Lucky's greatest weakness isn't in what details it analyzed， but in the ones it left out: the sexual assault allegation lobbed at Biden and covered by every major news source right as he won the Democratic nomination， the task forces he established with Sanders to please progressives， Andrew Yang and his Yang Gang， Beto's epic flame-out， Obama taking a stand against wokeness， the controversy over Sanders receiving an endorsement from Joe Rogan， the personal insults exchanged onstage between Klobuchar and Buttigeig， the concerns over Biden's health， Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death and the rapid Supreme Court confirmation of Amy Coney Barret， several news outlets refusing to cover the Hunter Biden story in the weeks leading up the general election， the aforementioned Harris-Gabbard debate （or， more bizarrely， when Hillary Clinton accused Gabbard of being a Russian asset， leading to Gabbard dubbing Hillary the "queen of the warmongers" and Biden coming to Gabbard's defense when asked to comment during a press junket）。 All these episodes may have added more bulk to the book， but they capture much of the chaos and atmosphere of the 2020 election， and the story feels incomplete without much of it， especially for someone who watched it all happen in real-time。All this and more occurred against a backdrop of a massive pandemic， months-long lockdowns， protests and riots following the murder of George Floyd， and the continuation of a great political realignment that may well change both parties forever。 In the midst of it all， Joe Biden was a safe harbor for the American people--a calm and steady presence that promised to bring back some stability after years of turmoil。 Whether it lasts remains to be seen。 As of now， we can only hope for another inside account from Allen and Parnes in 2024。 。。。more
Paddy
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Well written， engaging account of the 2020 Democratic Nomination process and subsequent Presidential Election。 Finely detailed with clear insight into the workings of the political apparatus surrounding these events。 Highly recommended。
Casey
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