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Herding Donkeys: The Fight to Rebuild the Democratic Party and Reshape American Politics
With a New Afterword
In 2008, Barack Obama's groundbreaking presidential campaign seemingly rewrote all the rules in electoral politics and heralded a new progressive era in America. What has become of the thrilling grassroots political movement that defined Obama's campaign and reshaped the electoral map? Ari Berman's Herding Donkeys answers and illuminates this vital question, mapping the evolution of modern American politics from Howard Dean to the Tea Party, and painting a vivid picture of the fight for political power in America today.
In 2008, Barack Obama's groundbreaking presidential campaign seemingly rewrote all the rules in electoral politics and heralded a new progressive era in America. What has become of the thrilling grassroots political movement that defined Obama's campaign and reshaped the electoral map? Ari Berman's Herding Donkeys answers and illuminates this vital question, mapping the evolution of modern American politics from Howard Dean to the Tea Party, and painting a vivid picture of the fight for political power in America today.
384 pages, Paperback
First published September 28, 2010
10 people are currently reading
237 people want to read
About the author
Ari Berman
6 books101 followersAri Berman is a senior contributing writer for The Nation magazine and a Reporting Fellow at The Nation Institute. Business Insider named Berman one of the “50 most influential political pundits” in the US. He’s written extensively about American politics, civil rights, and the intersection of money and politics. His stories have also appeared in The New York Times, Rolling Stone, The Atlantic, Politico and The Guardian, and he is a frequent guest and political commentator on MSNBC, NPR and C-Span. He’s lectured extensively around the country, including at the White House, Congress and the Supreme Court.
His new book, Give Us the Ballot: The Modern Struggle for Voting Rights in America , was published in August 2015 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux and in paperback by Picador. It was named one of the best books of 2015 by the New York Times, Washington Post, NPR, the Boston Globe and Kirkus Reviews. Give Us the Ballot was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for nonfiction and a nominee for the American Library Association’s Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence. Writing in the Washington Post, Congressman John Lewis called the book “a must read” and “a primer for every American.”
Berman’s first book, Herding Donkeys: The Fight to Rebuild the Democratic Party and Reshape American Politics , was published in October 2010 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. He graduated from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University with a degree in journalism and political science.
His new book, Give Us the Ballot: The Modern Struggle for Voting Rights in America , was published in August 2015 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux and in paperback by Picador. It was named one of the best books of 2015 by the New York Times, Washington Post, NPR, the Boston Globe and Kirkus Reviews. Give Us the Ballot was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for nonfiction and a nominee for the American Library Association’s Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence. Writing in the Washington Post, Congressman John Lewis called the book “a must read” and “a primer for every American.”
Berman’s first book, Herding Donkeys: The Fight to Rebuild the Democratic Party and Reshape American Politics , was published in October 2010 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux. He graduated from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University with a degree in journalism and political science.
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
May 13, 2024
BOOK REVIEW: Can a glimpse into the past give us insight into the future? I hope so!
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My Reading List for May to Nov. 2024.
===========================
READ Herding Donkeys by Ari Berman
+An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
+Black AF History by Michael Harriot
READ Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow
+The Impending Crisis by David M. Potter
+Bleeding Kansas by Nicole Etcheson
+12 Years A Slave by Solomon Northup
READ Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
READ Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell
READ Yellow Wife by Sadeqa Johnson
+Minority Rule by Ari Berman
+Strongmen by Ruth Ben-Ghait
+Devil in the Grove by Gilbert King
+Reading the Constitution by Stephen Breyer
+Allow Me to Retort by Elie Mystal
+Believing by Anita Hill
+How to Survive a Plague by David France
+The Blue Between Sky and Water by Susan Abulhawa
READ All the Rivers by Dorit Rabinyan
+Extra Life by Steven Johnson
===========================
===========================
My Reading List for May to Nov. 2024.
===========================
READ Herding Donkeys by Ari Berman
+An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
+Black AF History by Michael Harriot
READ Alexander Hamilton by Ron Chernow
+The Impending Crisis by David M. Potter
+Bleeding Kansas by Nicole Etcheson
+12 Years A Slave by Solomon Northup
READ Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
READ Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell
READ Yellow Wife by Sadeqa Johnson
+Minority Rule by Ari Berman
+Strongmen by Ruth Ben-Ghait
+Devil in the Grove by Gilbert King
+Reading the Constitution by Stephen Breyer
+Allow Me to Retort by Elie Mystal
+Believing by Anita Hill
+How to Survive a Plague by David France
+The Blue Between Sky and Water by Susan Abulhawa
READ All the Rivers by Dorit Rabinyan
+Extra Life by Steven Johnson
===========================
February 27, 2011
It's a good history of Dean's fifty state strategy and how it was implemented. I gained some persepective on how insular the Democratic party has been in the past and is currently. I learned some unflattering things about people I admired and had my negative opinion of certain other people reinforced. It felt like a depressing read in part because there was a sense of opportunity wasted.
As a book about the future of the party it left a lot to be desired. At the end I was left feeling like it was a good history lesson but the book lacked any real analysis of the effectiveness of the strategy as far as governance is concerned. (It's clearly effective as a purely electoral strategy). Berman does ask Dean about the reprecussions of electing Democrats who actually vote against most tradionally Democratic positions but Dean just says that it was important to win first and now he might trade 5 non traditional Democrats for 5 Republicans (as one supporter points out, a Republican in office can motiviate voters. A Democrat in office who votes like a Republican just depresses voters).
There's no real examination of what it means to elect Democrats who don't take traditional Democratic positions. This is especially problematic in light of the fact that the current political climate requires a supermajority in the Senate to get anything done. If the years since President Obama's election have taught us anything it's that Senate Minority Leader is the most powerful position in government. Arguably the Democrats would have been better off if they'd been in the minority in the Senate.
I think there's also an argument to be made about whether Dean's strategy simply wasn't given enough time to produce results. Maybe some of the people who were elected at a local level will eventually be elected to a federal position and take traditional Democratic positions. Unoforunately, Berman makes it pretty clear that after Obama's election and Dean's term was over the fifty state strategy was largely abandoned so we may never know how effective it might have been in future years.
In the end I'm left with the feeling that the fifty state stategy was a flash in the pan, its effectiveness as a governing strategy still untested.
As a non-wealthy self-identified Liberal in a blue state I'm left feeling that I never had a place in the Democratic party and unfortunately I still don't.
As a book about the future of the party it left a lot to be desired. At the end I was left feeling like it was a good history lesson but the book lacked any real analysis of the effectiveness of the strategy as far as governance is concerned. (It's clearly effective as a purely electoral strategy). Berman does ask Dean about the reprecussions of electing Democrats who actually vote against most tradionally Democratic positions but Dean just says that it was important to win first and now he might trade 5 non traditional Democrats for 5 Republicans (as one supporter points out, a Republican in office can motiviate voters. A Democrat in office who votes like a Republican just depresses voters).
There's no real examination of what it means to elect Democrats who don't take traditional Democratic positions. This is especially problematic in light of the fact that the current political climate requires a supermajority in the Senate to get anything done. If the years since President Obama's election have taught us anything it's that Senate Minority Leader is the most powerful position in government. Arguably the Democrats would have been better off if they'd been in the minority in the Senate.
I think there's also an argument to be made about whether Dean's strategy simply wasn't given enough time to produce results. Maybe some of the people who were elected at a local level will eventually be elected to a federal position and take traditional Democratic positions. Unoforunately, Berman makes it pretty clear that after Obama's election and Dean's term was over the fifty state strategy was largely abandoned so we may never know how effective it might have been in future years.
In the end I'm left with the feeling that the fifty state stategy was a flash in the pan, its effectiveness as a governing strategy still untested.
As a non-wealthy self-identified Liberal in a blue state I'm left feeling that I never had a place in the Democratic party and unfortunately I still don't.
November 2, 2012
I agree with the frequent remarks about this book. it's written in an easily read style for the general public. it's a detailed look at various changes in how Democrats did business, starting with Howard Dean and moving through the 2008 election and the rise of Obama and Organizing for America.
The appeal to me is the degree of detail and insight about the ground game, or what happens behind all the media attention on candidates, events and endless spin by poobahs and pundits. My personal interest was sparked by my own history as an organizer in the 1970s and '80s when I worked for unions in the labor movement.
I'm being a lazy reviewer here and I admit it. I've been interested though in how much media attention is given over to candidates, parties and policies when so few journalists have spent time going behind the scenes to view campaigns from the inside. This book does a credible job of filling in some of that information, at least for Democrats.
I haven't made any bold statements yet but here's one I can offer. Until you understand the ground game and what drives it, you don't understand a significant aspect of politics. And with that said I hope there's a follow up to Herding Donkeys that takes us through the 2012 campaign. There are stories to be told, many interesting and varied stories from every corner of every state. You may be surprised to find out what actually went on in your state.
The appeal to me is the degree of detail and insight about the ground game, or what happens behind all the media attention on candidates, events and endless spin by poobahs and pundits. My personal interest was sparked by my own history as an organizer in the 1970s and '80s when I worked for unions in the labor movement.
I'm being a lazy reviewer here and I admit it. I've been interested though in how much media attention is given over to candidates, parties and policies when so few journalists have spent time going behind the scenes to view campaigns from the inside. This book does a credible job of filling in some of that information, at least for Democrats.
I haven't made any bold statements yet but here's one I can offer. Until you understand the ground game and what drives it, you don't understand a significant aspect of politics. And with that said I hope there's a follow up to Herding Donkeys that takes us through the 2012 campaign. There are stories to be told, many interesting and varied stories from every corner of every state. You may be surprised to find out what actually went on in your state.
December 27, 2010
Loved this book. Well written. Insightful. Brought back great memories of the 2004 and 2008 campaigns.
February 2, 2011
Well written, in a popular-styled prose, and well researched. The subject matter is interesting, but can become redundant.
September 19, 2011
Fascinating look at the Howard Dean campaign and its unprecedented use of online grassroots organizing tools; and how the Obama campaign perfected these tools resulting in victory.
January 25, 2021
Great book on the decentralized grassroots organizing that put Obama in the White House, and how it was largely ignored once he won despite all the campaign rhetoric of “It’s not about me, it’s about you.”
September 20, 2021
The first part of this book was interesting, but as it continued, the repetition and cliches made it pretty tedious. Also, it felt dubious and one sided. The protagonists held all the answers against opponents who were inept and/or corrupt. I feel like some context and nuance was missing.
March 12, 2014
This book was okay...topic-wise, it's very important; as a book to read, though, I found it hard to get into--perhaps it's because the history portion in the front was a review of what many of us know and lived through.
I realize other ratings were higher than my 3-glad we have options and for sure, a venue to voice our opinions.
I realize other ratings were higher than my 3-glad we have options and for sure, a venue to voice our opinions.
October 29, 2010
The story of Howard Dean's involvement in national politics, and how his 50-state strategy was used in the 2008 in states such as North Carolina, Indiana, etc. Recommended for political junkies, not really general interest material.
February 2, 2016
Better than the average political narrative, Berman does a good job of weaving some untold stories of the 2004-2008 democratic revival as part of a larger narrative. Does a good job of crediting Howard Dean and the fifty state strategy for the rise of Obama.
Read
February 8, 2016How Democrats won the White House and Congress fueled by grassroots enthusiasm. Poses the questions of how to keep that enthusiasm as a governing party and will activists stay enthused about Blue Dog Democrats elected in GOP-leaning districts.
May 24, 2011
Mostly about Howard Dean and his strategy to organize the big tent. Good writing, would recommend.
July 28, 2013
Every progressive activist should read this book!
March 12, 2014
I found this to be a good read of the newly elected and first Obama administration. Interesting to see what was going on behind the scenes and how they/we got sidetracked...
February 14, 2011
It's pretty interesting.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews