Obama: The Call of History

by Peter Baker, Jon Meacham (Foreword by)

Overview

NEW EDITION WITH EXPANDED TEXT, WITH A FOREWORD BY JON MEACHAM: The original edition of Obama: The Call of History (2017) was the first full-fledged pictorial history of President Barack Obama's two terms in office to be published as he stepped down. Now comes an updated version that expands the narrative account and adds new perspective from author Peter Baker, Chief White House Correspondent for The New York Times.

In this new edition, Baker reports on new details about the final months of the Obama presidency as Russia sought to intervene in American democracy, and assesses the impact of Donald Trump's presidency on Barack Obama's legacy. Baker chronicles a period of great hope, tumult, accomplishments, and, yes, failure. This is the story of a young president who took on the worst financial disaster since the Great Depression, forged a controversial health care program, watched anxiously in the Situation Room after approving the raid that killed Osama Bin Laden and endured mid-term election defeats. In a presidency buffeted by one crisis after another, he struggled with the Syrian civil war, a Russian invasion of its neighbor, the rise of the Islamic State, and, at home, often violent racial strife and recalcitrant Congress.

"His first line in the history books was written the day he won office as the first African-American president, but he was determined to offer more than simply a new complexion in the Oval Office," writes Baker, Chief White House Correspondent for The New York Times, about the 44th president of the United States. Inspiring in a crowded stadium yet difficult behind the scenes, Obama was a master politician who loathed politics. To many, he was an enigma, often seen through the lens of the observer—a liberal zealot to the right, an overeager compromiser to the left. "I am a Rorschach test," he once noted. But he was the dominant figure of his age. After eight eventful years, he would never be the same—and neither would be his country.

Featuring expanded text , this fully updated chronicle of Obama: The Call of History is an in-depth account of Barack Obama's years in office, as well as an examination of his legacy as it stands today.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780935112788
Publisher:	Callaway
Publication date:	05/10/2019
Pages:	464
Sales rank:	1,121,873
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.80(d)

About the Author

Peter Baker is the Chief White House Correspondent for The New York Times responsible for covering President Trump and his administration. He has previously covered three other presidents for The Times and the Washington Post: Barak Obama, George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton. He is the author or co-author of five other books, including Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House, which was named one of the five Best Non-Fiction Books of 2013 by The New York Times Book Review. With his wife, Susan B. Glasser of the New Yorker he is working on a biography of former Secretary of State James A. Baker III for Doubleday. He has won the Gerald R. Ford Prize for Distinguished Coverage of the Presidency twice, the Aldo Beckman Memorial Award for White House Reporting twice and the Merriman Smith Award. He is also a political analyst for MSNBC. He lives in Washington D.C. with Susan B. Glasser, and their son, Theo.

Jon Meacham is a Pulitzer Prize–winning biographer and New York Times bestselling author. A distinguished visiting professor at Vanderbilt University, he is a contributing writer for The New York Times Book Review, and a fellow of the Society of American Historians.

Table of Contents

Foreword Jon Meacham 7

Prologue: 'Riding the Wave' 13

Chapter 1 'This Winter of Our Hardship' 21

Chapter 2 'The Hardest Option' 40

Chapter 3 'Bring Our Troops Home' 70

Chapter 4 'Time to Turn the Page' 96

Chapter 5 'Sleepless Nights' 116

Chapter 6 'A Shellacking' 135

Chapter 7 'Justice Has Been Done' 165

Chapter 8 'Fought Our Way Back' 193

Chapter 9 'Governing By Crisis' 228

Chapter 10 'Red Line' 248

Chapter 11 'Don't Do Stupid …' 268

Chapter 12 'Could Have Been Me' 291

Chapter 13 'Never Fear to Negotiate' 312

Chapter 14 'A Personal Insult' 333

Chapter 15 'Backed the Wrong Horse' 351

Epilogue: 'Forever President' 376

Acknowledgments 385

Bibliography 389

Notes 393

Index 440

What People are Saying About This

Douglas Brinkley author of Rightful Heritage: Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the Land of America

"A masterfully written and stunningly illustrated remembrance of our forty-fourth president. Baker has emerged as the go-to journalist and sage on recent U.S. presidential events. Obama is a full-bore testimonial to Baker's graceful prose style, judicious reporting, and sterling history-minded analysis. Highly recommended!"

presidential historian Michael Beschloss

"This is an elegant and evocative look back at the Obama years as history, combining narrative and commentary by Peter Baker, one of our most astute observers of the modern presidency."

Jon Meacham

"With his unique gifts as a diligent journalist and first-rate historian, Peter Baker has given us a compelling first look at a consequential presidency that will be studied forever. And here is where we will all start that conversation: with Baker's graceful and insightful account of Barak Obama's victories, defeats, and evolving legacy."

Michael Beschloss

"This is an elegant and evocative look back at the Obama years as history, combining narrative and commentary by Peter Baker, one of the most astute observers of the modern presidency, with striking, well-chosen paragraphs."

Jon Meacham

"With his unique gifts as a diligent journalist and a first-rate historian, Peter Baker has given us a compelling first look at a consequential presidency—an eight-year reign that will be studied forever. And here is where we will all start that conversation: with Baker's graceful and insightful account of Barack Obama's victories, defeats, and evolving legacy."

author of Destiny and Power: The American Odys Jon Meacham

"With his unique gifts as a diligent journalist and a first-rate historian, Peter Baker has given us a compelling first look at a consequential presidency—an eight-year reign that will be studied forever. And here is where we will all start that conversation: with Baker's graceful and insightful account of Barack Obama's victories, defeats, and evolving legacy."

Douglas Brinkley author of Rightful Heritage: Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the Land of America

"A masterfully written and stunningly illustrated remembrance of our forty-fourth president. Baker has emerged as the go-to journalist and sage on recent U.S. presidential events. Obama is a full-bore testimonial to Baker's graceful prose style, judicious reporting, and sterling history-minded analysis. Highly recommended!"

Editorial Reviews

"This is the best book about Obama I've ever read. It's totally objective but beautifully written and filled with new little nuggets that even I, who covered the Administration from start to finish, never knew."

Executive Producer of "Face the Nation" Mary Hager

It does not matter what Obama is doing…Integrity like his cannot be photoshopped or feigned…[Baker] is neither fanboy nor debunker…Line by line, issue after issue, Baker balances opportunities and obstacles, promises and results, criticism and praise.

The New York Times Book Review - James Goodman

"This is the best book about President Obama I’ve ever read – it’s totally objective but beautifully written and filled with new little nuggets that even I, who covered the administration from start to finish, never knew."

Executive Producer, Face the Nation - Mary Hager

"Peter Baker's Obama: The Call of History is a masterfully written and stunningly illustrated remembrance of our forty-fourth president. Baker has emerged as the go-to journalist and sage on recent U.S. presidential events. Obama is a full-bore testimonial to Baker's graceful prose style, judicious reporting, and sterling history-minded analysis. Highly recommended!"

author of Rightful Heritage: Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the Land of America - Douglas Brinkley

"Peter Baker dug up the best and worst moments of President Barack
Obama's two terms in office to masterfully weave into a condensed
account."

The Daily Beast - Lyne Lucien

Journalism may be history's first draft, but Baker's words might qualify as prophecy's first blush...Both a compelling biography and a coffee-table, large format work with beautiful photography commemorating the Obama years.

The Washington Post - Michael Eric Dyson Michael Eric Dyson

"This is an elegant and evocative look back at the Obama years as history, combining narrative and commentary by Peter Baker, one of our most astute observers of the modern presidency, with striking, well-chosen photographs and other illustrations."

presidential historian Michael Beschloss

"With his unique gifts as a diligent journalist and a first-rate historian, Peter Baker has given us a compelling first look at a consequential presidency—an eight-year reign that will be studied forever. And here is where we will all start that conversation: with Baker's graceful and insightful account of Barack Obama's victories, defeats, and evolving legacy."

Jon Meacham

"Peter Baker’s Obama is a coffee-table book, chock-a-block with stunning photos, that rises above its genre thanks to the quality of the author’s reporting and analysis."

Foreign Affairs - Joe Klein

Journalism may be history's first draft, but Baker's words might qualify as prophecy's first blush...Both a compelling biography and a coffee-table, large format work with beautiful photography commemorating the Obama years.

The Washington Post - Michael Eric Dyson

"With his unique gifts as a diligent journalist and a first-rate historian, Peter Baker has given us a compelling first look at a consequential presidency—an eight-year reign that will be studied forever. And here is where we will all start that conversation: with Baker's graceful and insightful account of Barack Obama's victories, defeats, and evolving legacy."

author of Destiny and Power: The American Odys Jon Meacham

"Peter Baker's Obama: The Call of History is a masterfully written and stunningly illustrated remembrance of our forty-fourth president. Baker has emerged as the go-to journalist and sage on recent U.S. presidential events. Obama is a full-bore testimonial to Baker's graceful prose style, judicious reporting, and sterling history-minded analysis. Highly recommended!"

author of Rightful Heritage: Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the Land of America - Douglas Brinkley

"Peter Baker's Obama: The Call of History is a masterfully written and stunningly illustrated remembrance of our forty-fourth president. Baker has emerged as the go-to journalist and sage on recent U.S. presidential events. Obama is a full-bore testimonial to Baker's graceful prose style, judicious reporting, and sterling history-minded analysis. Highly recommended!"

author of Rightful Heritage: Franklin Delano R Douglas Brinkley