The Greatest Comeback, Patrick J. Buchanan
The Greatest Comeback, Patrick J. Buchanan
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The Greatest Comeback
How Richard Nixon Rose from Defeat to Create the New Majority

Author: Patrick J. Buchanan

Narrator: Arthur Morey

Unabridged: 12 hr 52 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 07/08/2014


Synopsis

Patrick J. Buchanan, bestselling author and senior advisor to Richard Nixon, tells the definitive story of Nixon's resurrection from the political graveyard and his rise to the presidency.

After suffering stinging defeats in the 1960 presidential election against John F. Kennedy, and in the 1962 California gubernatorial election, Nixon's career was declared dead by Washington press and politicians alike. Yet on January 20, 1969, just six years after he had said his political life was over, Nixon would stand taking the oath of office as 37th President of the United States. How did Richard Nixon resurrect a ruined career and reunite a shattered and fractured Republican Party to capture the White House?

In The Greatest Comeback, Patrick J. Buchanan--who, beginning in January 1966, served as one of two staff members to Nixon, and would become a senior advisor in the White House after 1968--gives a firsthand account of those crucial years in which Nixon reversed his political fortunes during a decade marked by civil rights protests, social revolution, The Vietnam War, the assassinations of JFK, RFK, and Martin Luther King, urban riots, campus anarchy, and the rise of the New Left. Using over 1,000 of his own personal memos to Nixon, with Nixon’s scribbled replies back, Buchanan gives readers an insider’s view as Nixon gathers the warring factions of the Republican party--from the conservative base of Barry Goldwater to the liberal wing of Nelson Rockefeller and George Romney, to the New Right legions of an ascendant Ronald Reagan--into the victorious coalition that won him the White House. How Richard Nixon united the party behind him may offer insights into how the Republican Party today can bring together its warring factions.

The Greatest Comeback is an intimate portrayal of the 37th President and a fascinating fly on-the-wall account of one of the most remarkable American political stories of the 20th century.

About The Author

PATRICK J. BUCHANAN, America's leading populist conservative, was a senior adviser to three U.S. presidents, ran for the Republican nomination in 1992 and 1996, and was the Reform Party's presidential candidate in 2000. The author of eleven other books, Buchanan is a syndicated columnist and founding member of three of America's foremost public affairs shows, NBC's The McLaughlin Group and CNN's Crossfire and Capitol Gang. He lives in McLean, Virginia.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Donna on September 24, 2019

I rarely read presidential biographies. The two exceptions to this tendency are Abraham Lincoln for his historic role in ending slavery, and Richard Nixon for the dark humor that underlies any such discussion. I confess that when my finger tapped the button requesting Net Galley send me a copy, I ha......more

Goodreads review by Bill on August 01, 2014

Outstanding and extremely well written review of the Nixon comeback years, from being exiled into the wilderness after his 1962 California governor's loss to his amazing comeback to take the presidency in a USA that was at the brink of collapse in 1968. Patrick J. Buchanan has outdone himself in thi......more

Goodreads review by patrick on January 29, 2015

This is a fabulous book about not only the rise of Nixon from the political death to being elected to the Presidency, but also a look at the sixties and the goings on during those years. Still there are names that are in the news today, Romney, not Milt, but his father, Rockefeller, who might have g......more

Goodreads review by Erwin on March 05, 2015

Excellent. Strongly recommended to anyone who wants to know how US politics actually works in the making the sausage sense. If you're offended by books like The Prince then stay away from this one... This is a book about politics and political strategy. Anyone with an interest in politics and history......more

Goodreads review by Pieter on July 11, 2019

One of the reasons why TV series like House of Cards are so popular, I guess, is because it allows the viewer to be a fly on the wall. One can see the plots being forged and the reasons why decisions are made or not. Who else that Pat Buchanan as former adviser to three US presidents, to lead us thr......more


Quotes

“An evenhanded insider take on Nixon's storied political rebirth…Buchanan deals the story with a great deal of humility…Much more a balanced history than a me-me-me memoir.” –Chicago Tribune

"Should be required reading for RNC staff and everyone across the country trying to help the GOP win the Senate… A fun read not only for the opportunity to see Nixon in such a personal, behind-the-scenes way, but also for the lessons it offers us today.” -Newsmax

“A fast-moving account of those comeback years, written in strong, clear prose…An upbeat portrait of Nixon as a surprisingly compassionate man, but a tough politician, energetic and well-informed, with a deep knowledge of world affairs and ideas about how to reset the balance of power and restore America’s international standing.” –Washington Times

“Buchanan’s book performs the useful service of describing a populist triumph from the inside.” –The Economist 

“A conveniently incisive study guide to the 1968 presidential election… In his own unsparing way, Buchanan sums up the political tumult of the era—tumult signaling that the long reign of the New Deal, the Fair Deal, the New Frontier, and the Great Society were coming to an end.” -Breitbart

“Offers memories and insights on the meetings, memos, stump speeches, and conversations Nixon waded through to get to the White House. Details and factoids abound for politics junkies…Buchanan is a capable writer and skilled at providing succinct summary of the complex politics of the era.” –Publishers Weekly