The Year of Voting Dangerously: The Derangement of American Politics

by Maureen Dowd

Maureen Dowd's incendiary takes and takedowns from 2016--the most bizarre, disruptive and divisive Presidential race in modern history.

Trapped between two candidates with the highest recorded unfavorables, Americans are plunged into The Year of Voting Dangerously. In this perilous and shocking campaign season, The New York Times columnist traces the psychologies and pathologies in one of the nastiest and most significant battles of the sexes ever.

Dowd has covered Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton since the '90s. She was with the real estate mogul when he shyly approached his first Presidential rope line in 1999, and she won a Pulitzer prize that same year for her penetrating columns on the Clinton impeachment follies. Like her bestsellers, Bushworld and Are Men Necessary?, The Year of Voting Dangerously will feature Dowd's trademark cocktail of wry humor and acerbic analysis in dispatches from the political madhouse. If America is on the escalator to hell, then The Year of Voting Dangerously is the perfect guide for this surreal, insane ride.

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, Audiobook, Essays, History, Government, Humor

Audible Audio

First published September 13, 2016

About the author

Maureen Dowd is a Washington D.C.-based columnist for The New York Times. She has worked for the Times since 1983, when she joined as a metropolitan reporter. In 1999, she was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for her series of columns on the Monica Lewinsky scandal.

Dowd's columns are distinguished by an acerbic, often polemical writing style. Her columns often display a critical attitude towards powerful figures such as President George W. Bush, former President Bill Clinton, and Pope Benedict XVI.

Reviews

[aistė aidur · Rating 3 out of 5]

Extremely repetitive, but I can now see how a US citizen might not want to vote for Hillary even if it means Donald wins. And yes, I am now on first name basis with the presidential candidates, thank you very much.

[Scott Rhee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maureen Dowd, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and New York Times columnist, has been covering the Theater of the Absurd that we call Washington, D.C. for over thirty years. If anyone knows how fucked up our political system is, it’s her.

In “The Year of Voting Dangerously”, Dowd compiles some of her favorite and most apropos columns and articles she has written in 2016. Unfortunately, her book only covers columns up to July 31, 2016, leaving the most vital and ridiculous months of the campaign and the election out. One can only hope that Dowd will publish “The Year of Voting Dangerously, Part 2” soon.

Interspersed throughout the book are some of her news articles that she wrote during the administrations of Reagan, Bush the Elder, Bill Clinton, W., and Obama. It becomes quite clear that her purpose for doing so is to demonstrate the almost night and day differences between the political atmosphere and general attitudes that politicians of both parties had toward each other then versus now.

As loud and abusive as some of the public arguments and relationships between members of both parties became, at the end of the day, most if not all still had basic respect for each other.

Today, there is hardly even the pretense of respect between the aisles.

It truly is a dangerous time in American politics, as Dowd illustrates. Thankfully, she does it in her typically clever and scathingly humorous way. Her points hit closer to home when they are couched within satire or sarcasm.

While Dowd doesn’t hide her personal political leanings in her columns, she is nevertheless an equal opportunity critic, viciously downsizing and criticizing Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama with as much zeal as she does Donald Trump.

She coined the phrase “Clinton Slime Machine”, a brutally caustic but strangely appropriate description of the strategies, tactics, and political jockeying that the Clintons have utilized for self-aggrandizing and election purposes since both Hillary and Bill started pursuing political offices.

She criticizes Obama for his inability to work with Congress and his lackluster (a nice word) foreign policy. While she likes him, she acknowledges that being likable is not enough to be a decent president: “Barack Obama started off as a man self-consciously alone on stage and that’s how he is exiting. He is, for better and worse, too cool for school. His identity is defined by his desire to rise above the fray. Unfortunately, he is in politics, which is the fray. (p. 288)”

She even gets a few zingers in on “old news” Sarah Palin in her now-classic column from January 23, 2016 entitled “Sarah Palin Saves Feminism”: “But Palin has done us a favor by proving that a woman can stumble, babble incoherently on stage and spew snide garbage, and it isn’t a blot on the female copybook. (p. 155)”

As for Donald, she has plenty to say, but most of the time, all she has to do is copy Trump’s words verbatim and that’s enough to make him look like the moronic, fascist, narcissistic, pussy-grabbing misogynistic douchebag that he is.

If you’re a political news junkie, this book is a must read.

[Fred Klein · Rating 2 out of 5]

My feeling upon reading this is that it would have made a great book. I'm being sarcastic because it did not feel like a book so much as a collection of 20 years of Dowd's essays with no effort made to edit it into some kind of cohesive whole. Hence, it is very repetitive and often boring (especially a lengthy essay on Dowd's friendship with George H.W. Bush). As I see it, this is a cynical and lazy attempt by Dowd to cash in on this fascinating election.

The laziness that resulted in this book makes me so angry that I feel a need to put it in harsh terms. This books sucks! Not recommended, and certainly don't buy it because the author did not do the work to deserve your money.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

With nearly everyone I know tired of the 2016 presidential election coverage, the NYT calling the election "the most bizarre, disruptive and divisive presidential race in modern history.." NYT notable columnist and bestselling author/journalist Maureen Dowd offers her pointed shrewd political commentary and observations with her exciting informative new book (with its fun colorful cartoonish cover) "The Year of Voting Dangerously: The Derangement of American Politics".

Maureen Dowd is unwelcome at invitation only groups that President Obama holds for the press, offering further insight on his plans/policies; finding Dowd's critical writing of him disrespectful and offensive. Dowd's numerous essays and connections to the white house date back to her decades long (early 1990's) unlikely friendship with George Bush Sr. who implored that she "go easy on his son.." Dick Cheney told the media that Dowd "was too frequently out to lunch". Dowd was awarded a Pulitzer Prize (1999) in commentary for her coverage of Bill Clintons involvement with intern Monica Lewinsky, earning her top recognition and honors insuring her place at the NYT.
Some of the best parts of the book are when Dowd relates the stress of her job, and its effects on her health and personal life. In her early 60's, Dowd is a striking red head from an Irish-Catholic family in Washington D.C. Single, never married, childless, Dowd was closest to her elderly mother, a "news junkie" who inspired her passion for journalism, and passed away at 97.

The Clinton's and Trump's share a common history: both families are elite New Yorkers of extreme wealth and privilege. Trump has made contributions to Hillary's campaign and the Clinton Foundation, his daughter Ivanka and Chelsea Clinton are friends. The Clinton's were notable guests at Trump's 2005 wedding reception to his third wife Melania Knauss.
There is plenty of insider speculation: from politicians who believe Bill Clinton asked Trump to run for office to insure Hillary would win. Many of Dowd's observations about the election are very snarky, funny, and not far from the truth. Hillary Clinton is a highly experienced brilliant politician: yet her insecurity, greed, need for secrecy and privacy are her downfall according to Dowd. The obvious egomania, narcissism of Trump, his largest supporters are "angry white men". Hillary's are "ardent black women". The glittering showmanship of the highest office in the land was historically highlighted in the 1960's by Kennedy's Camelot and the perfect American family; followed by Ronald Regan, a former Hollywood courageous war hero. Stay tuned... With thanks to the Seattle Public Library.

[James Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

The election is over. The winner has been announced. The loser has conceded. And I have just finished "The Year of Voting Dangerously," by New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd. I started the book on September 26, when Donald J. Trump and Hillary Rodham Clinton were criss-crossing the country pursuing votes. Now that the 2016 election is history, would reading Ms. Dowd's book still be worthwhile? I say yes, because Ms. Dowd not only writes about the 2016 contest, she looks at the recent presidencies that proceeded 2016. She looks at President Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, and George H. W. Bush as the groundwork that led to the recent election. As regards Trump and Clinton, Ms. Dowd takes no sides, looking at the candidates' faults and foibles. One item about Trump I found interesting: Ms. Dowd has a conversation with "Game of Thrones" co-showrunner D. B. Weiss and she asks him which series character Trump reminds him of. "Hodor," Weiss replies. If you feel up to re-visiting the election, I recommend this book.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of columns by Maureen Dowd which focus on current politics and offer insights on both Trump and Clinton. I would have liked a deeper view into both personalities.

[Chris McCoy · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had no idea that Maureen Dowd was such a conservative columnist when I started this book. She's possibly the most anti-feminist, Hillary hating, gossip columnist turned wannabe political reporter that I've ever read. In her view you'd think that Donald Trump never did anything wrong to women whereas Bill Clinton's dalliances ruined the country. Her editor must have been asleep at the wheel because she repeats the same stories over and over again or else her memory is fading as quickly as her outdated political viewpoint.

[Christopher Clark · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this book up, expecting a diatribe on how awful both these candidates were. What I got was a portrait of Trump which Dowd seems to paint in "Boys Will Be Boys" tones, and a sculpture of Hillary made of pure vitriol. If you're going to write a book like this, with a name like this, you should have been prepared to be equally hateful of both candidates, Maureen. Off-the-cuff and occasionally "shy when confronted with Trump for President signs" does not excuse his behavior any more than Comey and the FBIs decision not to prosecute Clinton excuses hers.

The one positive thing I will say about this book is that I enjoyed hearing about your Love/Hate relationship with Bush Sr. The goofball who hated being called goofy, and who knew much more about where this country was going than he let on. While I wish he'd spoken more to W., I can understand and respect why he didn't.

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

Repetitive, and with few new insights about Trump, Hillary, or President Obama, Dowd's collection of columns and attempts at satire rings flat and uninspired. Ultimately, it serves as an example that Dowd is best suited to be a columnist, not an author (or satirist). The only real highlight in this book is a genuine, respectful, and loving portrait of Dowd's ongoing personal relationship with George H W Bush. Liberal that I am, I always felt like the first Bush president got a raw deal, that he is basically a good person, and that he is worthy of respect and admiration. Dowd's comments about their friendship often read like a long obituary, but they clearly are her best writing in this book. They are my reason for giving it even two stars.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Right up to date but nothing new (and how could there be, given the blanket coverage) and filled with a quite a full measure of filler (such as a blow-by-blow account of the author's long flirtation with GHW Bush, and some 'guest pieces' including one by her sister for some reason). Of course we have all had far too much of this stuff by now. I'm pleased that this book has just about tipped me over the edge into Really Seriously Not Wanting to Hear Another Word About It and I've pruned my various feeds accordingly now (except I guess I'll watch the first debate tomorrow, from behind the sofa.)

[David Glickman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very interesting book about Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, people the author has written about for the past two decades. It is repetitive because it is comprised of several columns written over the years. It still is excellent and I recommended to political aficionados. I particularly enjoyed the authors discussion of her relationship with the Bush family, particularly GHW Bush.

[Merilee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love Maureen's columns but this book was too repetitive a compendium.

[Al · Rating 4 out of 5]

I hadn’t really read Maureen Dowd but couldn’t resist the cover of this book.

There’s a lot of opinions out there about Dowd. One common take is that she’s no Molly Ivins. I suppose since their styles are similar and the field is thin, it’s inevitable. Anyway, I tend to disagree with the haters. I think Ivins would be glad to see a tradition carried on.

If Dowd was a middle aged white man, she would probably be treated like Christopher Hitchens, a lovable irascible character.

Dowd gets a lot of hate as well since she is critical of Dems like Obama and the Clintons, maybe even more than she is the Bushes and Trump.

I don’t really have a problem with this. There is the idea to unite behind your own but at the end of the day, you should be able to criticize your own as well. Dowd accurately assesses Obama as someone who hates politics and where do you begin with the Clintons? The Left loves Obama but how does one lionize someone who’s attitude to universal healthcare was ‘we will be happy with what we get’.

The book loses points in that is essentially that it is a collection of articles. I would suppose that you could probably find all this content online fairly easily.

To top of that, it doesn’t seem to be categorized in any particular order- theme or age. It jumps randomly back and forth.

That aside, there is a lot to like. It may be a few years before anyone wants to think about such things, but this will be an important chronicle in how Trump bested “better” candidates like Marco Rubio and Jeb Bush.

Dowd throws in “guest” columns written by family members that probably weren’t necessary but shake things up.

The lengthy eulogy of George HW Bush really sold me on this book. It is essential reading on understanding President 41. For that matter, it tells you what you need to know about the relationship between 41 and 43, and why 43 might have governed like he did- a President who shunned his fathers’ advisors’ (and didn’t ask his father ‘s) advice. Instead, making bold moves encouraged by Cheney and Rumsfeld.

It is hard not to appreciate the elder Bush after reading the piece written by someone who had gotten close. At the end of the day, GHWB was interested in respecting the office most of all, and knew, government required real participation between both parties.

This book is a good read for political junkies and despite it being merely a collection of columns, the ‘caught in time’ aspect added to Dowd’s wit and insight sort of balances that out.

[Tim Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good but triggering. Also provided a lot more behind the scenes knowledge of important figures during the 2016 campaign.

[Sandi Hemming · Rating 3 out of 5]

More like reading a stack of old newspapers than reading a book. Good writer but old news.

[Michael Friedman · Rating 1 out of 5]

A Major Disappointment.
Ms. Dowd's book is a forum to display her utter contempt for Hillary Clinton based upon anything but policy, work ethic or competence. Instead she focuses on her insecurity that resulted in her e-mail debacle and the support of her husband during his adulterous trials with congress and a Special Prosecutor. Stating wrongfully that Secretary Clinton never apologized for her extra e-mail server, Ms. Dowd concentrates on her perceptions of Ms. Clinton's social failings and never really addresses her plans for America in contrast to "nice guy" Donald Trump. Ms. Dowd has no sympathy for a woman who was attacked for years by Capital Hill Republicans who ultimately (like the FBI with the private server) cleared her of any wrongdoing about the deaths in Bengazi. She writes virtually nothing about his clear lies about his own record, his demeaning attitude towards Ms. Clinton (lock Her Up) and other critics. Then she includes an "aside" from some unknown relative and spends much of the book revealing secrets about her and George H. W. Bush that have nothing to do with the theme and were probably conveyed to her in private. It is cringe worthy. It is no wonder that she has now called President Barack Obama "an Ivy League East Coast cerebral elitist who hung out with celebrities." Really? Ms. Dowd's view of politics is bizarre, filtered and wrong, some of which could be absolved by beautiful prose and wit. Both such gifts elude her.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 3.5

I expected Maureen Dowd's latest to be a collection of her columns on the current presidential election, given the cover, but it covers more territory than that. She goes all the way back to George H.W. Bush and moves forward from there, selecting columns and essays relted, sometimes barely, to the players in the current election. Dowd's particular strength is exploring candidates' personal and policy weaknesses - she seldom says anything complimentary - and the current political scene gives her ample material. She is dagger-sharp, with occasional humor of the ironic, not the funny, kind. Her own weakness is finding a good line and working it to death (E.g. Hillary Clinton, though a Methodist, is like an Episcopal bishop who feels the right to live at the level of his wealthy congregants -- the line appears 6 or 7 times in this collection.) One doesn't notice that so much reading a column a week, but put them all in one book and the repetition shows up quickly. Dowd's analysis, while perceptive, feels a little mean-spirited at times (acroos the board - she's an equal-opportunity diss-er), but does provide an interesting window into the presidential race and background on the political history that got us here.

[Mary Sisney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ms. Dowd's collection of New York Times columns is timely. She provides some interesting insights into Donald Trump, whom she's been interviewing since the nineties, and the Clintons. But she seems most interested in the man she alternately calls Poppy Bush and 41. They have what he calls a "love/hate" relationship and what I would call a mildly flirtatious one. While I found the book entertaining and informative, Ms. Dowd's nicknames for the politicians (she calls Obama "The One" and at one point "Obambi") reminds me that some news media folks can be as snarky and mean-spirited as Trump. There's also one odd editing mistake. One column is labeled November 8, 2016. I don't know if the original column was written on that date in 2015 or if Ms. Dowd just had that election date on her mind when she compiled these columns.

[Richard Scholtz · Rating 1 out of 5]

Supposedly the best of Dowd's coverage of the Donald and Hillary, but her lightweight treatment of her subjects is really indicative of the problems with mainstream media today. It's not the slightly left of center bias, but the rush for the snappy headline, the gotcha-game. That is not to say that Dowd's seething bias against any that don't play her game is absent. Had Dowd or her colleagues actually dug deeper than the surface, this election would have turned out significantly different. It partly reads as a just "make more money" compliation. While the articles are well written, there is no Bernstein or Woodward here.

[Todd Stockslager · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review title: From dangerous voting to dangerous reality

I've avoided the topic as long as I could in my reading but as the first-draft of journalism becomes history I have to face up to what the last eight years have been about in American politics. I'm starting with this collection of Maureen Dowd's columns about that first dangerous year of voting, 2016, to be followed by

Front Row at the Trump Show covering Trump's White House years.

They want to kill Americans documenting the January 6, 2021 attack on the U. S. Capitol after the second year of voting dangerously.

Arguing with Zombies: Economics, politics, and the fight for a better future, economist Paul Krugman's attempt to restore facts to the public discourse in the wake of Trump.

While her focus is on 2016, Dowd has been covering national politics and presidential campaigns--and interviewing businessman Donald Trump-for many years, so she bounces back and forth between years and candidates on both sides to provide needed context. Dowd, despite her "liberal" credentials as a New York Times reporter and columnist, is sharply critical of Hillary Clinton for her lackluster campaign in 2016, her abandonment of principles in setting up and then defending against all odds her rogue email server while President Obama's Secretary of State, and her abandonment of the feminist position in defending her husband against Monica Lewinsky and the many other "bimbo eruptions" throughout their paired careers in Arkansas and Washington. Relying on the endorsement of outgoing President Obama (over his own Vice-President Biden; one wonders how our history might have been different otherwise) and her sense of entitlement--that the American voters owed her this after putting up with Bill and serving in the Senate and State--Clinton ran a lackluster campaign. "Hillary can't generate excitement on her own so she is relying on fear of Trump to get her into the White House. And Trump is relying on fear of everything to get him into the White House." (p. 156)

And yes there's Trump. In an August 2015 column early in the race Dowd writes "It's deeply weird but the jeering billionaire reality star seems authentic to many Americans." (p. 17), a sentiment that captured my attitude then. I had been working in the UK on a long term project and blissfully disengaged from American politics about this time when my British coworker told me that Trump was running for President. My disbelieving response was "Don't even joke about that." He wasn't. Surely, I thought, no one would take seriously this failed businessman with a trail of bankruptcies and lawsuits in his career, who had never been in politics, whose personal life was a mess of affairs and divorces and misogyny and racism, whose only success was as a reality television star. As Dowd writes and we all learned, I was wrong. "For all the Republican establishment's self-righteous bleating, Trump is nothing more than an unvarnished, crude version," (p. 26) which the party has proven many times over in the years since; already in the first weeks of 2024, the Republican Party leadership has ousted the party chair and rejected a bipartisan border and foreign aid bill based on Trump's insistence despite his four ongoing criminal trials and lack of official role in either party or Congress. "He has a tenuous relationship with the truth and an inch-deep understanding of policy" (p. 27). Dowd saw it then, and her truth has been confirmed many times over since.

Yet Dowd also put her finger on the reason for Trump's victory when she wrote in 1999 that "The rakish plutocrat thinks he could do better with the working class and minorities than 'my own people.' He says: 'Rich people who know me love me. Rich people who don't know me hate me. The working man loves me.' " (p. 70). As the 2016 campaign reached its stunning conclusion, Dowd quotes another reporter:" The press takes him literally, but not seriously; his supporters take him seriously, but not literally." (p. 436). Dowd also cited" dynasty fatigue" amongst voters who had had enough of passing the presidency between Bush father and son (second son Jeb is roundly mocked here for his short 2016 candidacy) and feared passing it from Bill to Hillary. When Hillary concluded her campaign with the claim to be the last thing standing between Trump and the abyss, Dowd writes that "to my conservative family Hillary was the abyss while Donald was the baseball bat to smash Washington." (p. 437).

Enough families concurred to give Trump four years after "this bizarre, ugly, and dispiriting campaign" (p. 430). After her assembly of writing that explains how we could arrive at this point based on a decades long mix of personalities, politics, policies, mistakes, and decisions, Dowd concludes with words to both calm and warn of what may lay ahead. Most presciently: "The new president doesn't care about weakening democracy if his delicate ego needs to assert the easily disproved: that he would have won the popular vote if there weren't massive voter fraud." (p. 470). In 2020 he did assert massive voter fraud after losing the election, it was easily disapproved in every court in which it was asserted, his ego demanded insurrection on January 6, 2021 to attempt to subvert the sacred American political principle of peaceful transfer of power, and his continued fight in court today threatens to weaken democracy in the 2024 election.

Voting dangerously in 2016 was a dangerous reality in 2020. Will 2024 be another year of voting dangerously?

[Doug · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is not a "book" but mostly her columns and not all about the 2016 election. She has her brother and sister write some of the interludes, very lame. Don't get me wrong her columns are very interesting, but this is miss titled and looks like an effort to make a quick buck. Not sure if she admires anybody in public life. Talks nice about GHW before slicing him from stem to stern. Reading between the lines she may like Trump more than anyone, at least her sister does. The title will make this book outdated after Election Day.

[Mandy Porter · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was hard for me to read. I got excited when I saw it in the book store and did what I usually don't do, but it full price.

Admittedly I was at first intrigued by the authors voice narrorating the political world, but then I realized I paid full price for a subscription to her blog which I probably could have gotten for free online. I skimmed the last part of the book just to be finished. if only I could do that with this upcoming presidential term.

[Alison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy Dowd's writing, her investigative prowess, her sense of humor and the fact that she does not talk down to her audience. She described a quagmire from which we are having to extricate a choice of president.

Who knew that a mere 10 weeks after the end of the of the writing of the book, the content would be positively tame in comparison to the reality {{sigh}}

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of newspaper editorials by the always-entertaining NYT columnist Maureen Dowd profiles the 2016 presidential race + bonus material about GHW Bush and Pres. Obama (Meanwhile, on Planet Vulcan...). "It turns out, who we choose is not really about our souls. It's politics, man." [p. 432]

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

To be honest I have to say that I viewed this book with quite a bit of skepticism when I first saw it sitting on the local library shelf. I was surprised to find that the author, New York Times Columnist Maureen Dowd was pretty much spot on with Trump, Clinton and President Obama.

[Fritzov · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not much new if you follow the Election on a daily basis like i do and its pretty boring writing with a lot of repetitions.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's not that what she was saying was wrong it's just that she didn't present it in a way that made me care.

[Coleen Dailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book very much. it is a collection of articles written over a number of years about the Bushes, Clintons, Obamas and the current race. I enjoyed her insight and commentary.

[Fran Melone · Rating 1 out of 5]

The worst

I can't believe I wasted money on this. She took all the scraps of paper on her desk, including duplicates of many, shuffled them into a pile, and called it a book.

[Genine Franklin-Clark · Rating 2 out of 5]

Less interesting than I'd hoped.