A Case for the American People: The United States v. Donald J. Trump

Bought a pre-pub version, found I couldnt put it down and immediately read it cover to cover. I was expecting a detailed, lawyerly account of just what the lawsuit and impeachment effort was all about… instead, I found it to be a warm, often funny, personal view of what it was like for Mr. Eisen, who was at or near the center of the House Impeachment inquiry, to go through that process. Great to read! This is an often delightful and always interesting account of what it was like on the Democratic side of the House. For example of how Eisen is NOT writing a diatribe: I well remembered Barr writing his summary of the Mueller Report saying there was no obstruction, and then many days later Muellers own summary of his report came out, saying precisely the opposite. Eisen doesnt go deeply into the details of precisely what Barr says and what the Mueller Report says; rather, he descibed the tumult that resulted from Barrs initial mischaracterizations of Muellers report, the consternation among those who believed Trump may have done impeachable things yet here is the Atty General saying that Mueller had cleared Trump, the determination of a few (e.g. Rep. Nadler) that Barr was lying, the failed attempts to hold back the press from universally saying Trump is vindicated, etc. It was frankly exciting, very interesting to read the insiders account of going through all that. The process, the trip, not a highly detailed argument. Thats how this book reads. It is truly great to find someone who was very up on the details of the issues of his day, yet is able to sit down and write a thrilling, readable book that focuses mostly on the forest and not so much on the trees and tweeting birds. And, the story is perfect on a human scale. (I can actually see it being the basis of a movie…) As I read it, I first thought this book was going to be a narrative of how great Mr. Eisen is, sort of the way Kissingers books all lavish self-praise. Actually, once Eisen establishes his credentials, it is very honest, showing the glitches and errors in judgement he and others made along the way, and corrections they had to make, in what appears to be a very true account of the process. And frankly, the personality of the guy comes through: warm, friendly, chatty, with plenty of humor thrown in here and there if youre willing to look for it as you speed read with your heart thumping. If you are the sort of pro-Trump supporter who blithely waves away evidence of his wrongdoing, I cant tell whether youll like this book or not. Eisen does open the book saying, clearly, that after all hes seen from Trump, he hopes you will have enough respect for democracy and the Constitution to vote against someone who clearly has no respect for either. So Trump supporters may be annoyed initially. But remember, this guy lived through all the details of the wrongful actions taken by Trump and his people, to a level of raw detail you or I never experienced simply by reading newspapers or watching TV news. Again, it was definitely not written to be an anti-Trump tirade. If it says Trump violated the Constitution, heck, its because he did. If it says Trump exceeded the Watergate standards for impeachment, heck, its because he did. But the book doesnt dwell on that. It is an account of people going through that overwhelming process, from a true insider, that is refreshing, insightful, fun to read, a page turner. And definitely a keeper that I will some day give to my kids to read, on my bookshelf right next to Woodward & Bernsteins All The Presidents Men. First book Ive found in that category. So in case you wonder, am I some dyed in the wool Democrat? Hardly. My votes have been definitely divided over the past few decades, caught in what I would call the compassion vs pragmatism debate. In fact, I plan to vote Republican some time in the future as soon as every last vestige of white supremacy and Trumpism is purged from that party. Take that for what its worth. Democrat or Republican, buy this book, its a good one.

A quick read but one that provided little information not previously reported in the media. The author has an annoying, self promoting style and an ingratiating approach to the members of Congress and key staff members. Since the book was published without an index or notes ( available online only), the author and publisher apparently rushed the publication in an effort to increase sales as the first insider account on the impeachment proceedings As a result, the book serves only as a personal memoir, not a scholarly account of the impeachment proceedings.

I was hoping for some real inside information, but there was precious little if any. Norm comes across as a pleasant hard working attorney, and I am convinced of his passion and enthusiasm for the law, but the book, for me, was disappointing. I didn\’t learn anything new, Trump is corrupt we know that. We know he was impeached by the Democrats in Congress and then it was shot down by the Republicans in the Senate, as was expected. The book takes you through the process with a lot of redundancy due to having heard most of it in the news. I was left flipping some pages out of boredom and couldn\’t help but feel the author was self-serving and just wanted to make a buck off the story.

The story line is driven by the belief of the author and those dedicated citizens and civil servants who came together and gave their all to this effort. The insights into the tedious, difficult, and time-limited efforts necessary to forward these efforts made any NCSI plot appear dull in comparison. As a former employee of HHS, I can only hope that we will give recognition to these individuals and the thousands who fought to protect our democracy when this dark chapter is over.

Author Norman Eisen writes clearly and definitively about Trump\’s misconduct throughout his tenure and into the present. He demonstrates Trump\’s lifelong pattern of denial, deflection, and destruction and goes behind the scenes to show how the Congressional committees worked to formulate and present the case. Eisen is the consummate storyteller so he keeps the reader engaged in understanding this important material, both through colorful detail and anecdotes. More importantly he recognizes the hard work and contributions of the many, many players in this historic event and documents how they put country ahead of politics and even personal events. The books ends with a discussion of the current pandemic crisis, highlighting how Trump continues to serve himself, not the American people. Eisen clearly makes the case and calls on us all to vote Trump out of office.

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