What do you think?
Rate this book
The Forgotten: How the People of One Pennsylvania County Elected Donald Trump and Changed America
The people of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania voted Democratic for decades, until Donald Trump flipped it in 2016. What happened? Named one of the "juiciest political books to come in 2018" by Entertainment Weekly. In The Forgotten, Ben Bradlee Jr. reports on how voters in Luzerne County, a pivotal county in a crucial swing state, came to feel like strangers in their own land - marginalized by flat or falling wages, rapid demographic change, and a liberal culture that mocks their faith and patriotism. Fundamentally rural and struggling with changing demographics and limited opportunity, Luzerne County can be seen as a microcosm of the nation. In The Forgotten, Trump voters speak for themselves, explaining how they felt others were 'cutting in line' and that the federal government was taking too much money from the employed and giving it to the idle. The loss of breadwinner status, and more importantly, the loss of dignity, primed them for a candidate like Donald Trump. The political facts of a divided America are stark, but the stories of the men, women and families in The Forgotten offer a kaleidoscopic and fascinating portrait of the complex on-the-ground political reality of America today.
305 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 2, 2018
About the author
Ben Bradlee
11 books13 followersFather of Ben Bradlee Jr.
Benjamin Crowninshield "Ben" Bradlee is vice-president at large of the Washington Post. Born in Boston, Bradlee attended Harvard College. In 1942, he became a communications officer for the Office of Naval Intelligence and fought in thirteen battles during World War II. Bradlee became executive editor of the Washington Post in 1968, a position he held until 1991. During this time, Bradlee oversaw the Post’s award-winning coverage of the Watergate affair and the publication of the Pentagon Papers. In 2013, Bradlee was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Bradlee and his wife, journalist Sally Quinn, live in Washington, DC.
also publishes under the name Benjamin C. Bradlee
Benjamin Crowninshield "Ben" Bradlee is vice-president at large of the Washington Post. Born in Boston, Bradlee attended Harvard College. In 1942, he became a communications officer for the Office of Naval Intelligence and fought in thirteen battles during World War II. Bradlee became executive editor of the Washington Post in 1968, a position he held until 1991. During this time, Bradlee oversaw the Post’s award-winning coverage of the Watergate affair and the publication of the Pentagon Papers. In 2013, Bradlee was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Bradlee and his wife, journalist Sally Quinn, live in Washington, DC.
also publishes under the name Benjamin C. Bradlee
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 80 reviews
November 8, 2018
Jess was hardly alone in continuing to believe the canard that Obama was a Muslim.The 2016 presidential election was certainly a shock to our national social, political, racial, and religious systems. Ben Bradlee Jr. is probably best known to us as the Boston Globe editor heading an investigation into the local Catholic Church’s efforts to hide its decades-long history of child abuse, that effort having been made into the Oscar-winning film Spotlight. He was interested in trying to understand how this blue-to-red change was effected. He focused on places that had voted Democratic in the past, but which had gone for Trump this time. The location he settled on as epitomizing that reversal was Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, a place that has been considered for many years a bellwether for voting outcomes. As goes Luzerne, so goes Pennsylvania. As goes Pennsylvania, so goes the nation. Not that this is causative, certainly, but if one can examine what happened to turn people around in a place like Luzerne, you would expect that to apply to many more such places across the country.
Ben Bradlee Jr. - image from TheEditorial
Let’s say it up front. I have serious issues with this book. I have been a resident of Luzerne County, the city of Wilkes Barre specifically, the county seat, since June 2017. While this hardly makes me an expert on the area, I have had a lot more time here than Bradlee, who dropped in for week-long visits about five times over the course of his research. I have also had considerable contact with members, workers in, and officials of the local Democratic party here, getting to know many of the local players, not least because my wife and I have been working on the mid-term elections as volunteers with the party since June. So yes, I begin with a position of hostility to Trump and to those who endangered our nation by helping put him into the oval office. But it does not mean that my brain has stopped functioning, or that I have somehow lost the ability to look at a book and identify strengths and flaws. Just laying my cards on the table.
Bradlee opted, for his primary approach, on selecting Luzerne Trump voters and Republican public figures and seeing what makes them tick. There is one chapter (out of ten) in which he talks with Democrats. Frankly that was the most informative part of the book. He finishes up with one chapter of analysis.
The Forgotten is in large measure a book-length piece of stenography in which Bradlee repeats what his subjects say, while offering zero pushback to the many falsehoods they claim as truths, (I can imagine him telling his interviewees, “I’m here to listen, not criticize.”) and a minimal number (I counted three, although it is possible there were more) of aside-to-the-reader corrections of such misconceptions. If you’re gonna do it in some chapters why not in the others? I can watch Fox news, listen to Rush, or read Drudge or Breitbart to get this. Bradlee could have saved himself the time and energy.
Most of what these folks believe, that informs their political decisions, is false. They are largely dittohead receptors of propaganda, carefully prepared by the right-wing purveyors of such materials. Few of Bradlee’s Trump-supporter subjects indicated any intellectual curiosity, certainly not enough to do any digging of their own into policy matters. They are committed to their views, by and large, and are in no danger of being swayed by facts or alternative perspectives.
In his primary interviews several elements are mostly common. These constitute boilerplate for most in that camp. You probably already know these, but you might find one or two new items on the list. And It is certainly possible I omitted one or two:
-----No Collusion. The Mueller probe is a witchhunt.
-----Minorities are getting to live large on the dole (epitomized here by a thing called the “Access Card” which is used by public assistance recipients for purchases.) while regular folks see their taxes increased
-----Obama is a Muslim, who hates America
-----Obama Care represents government takeover of all medical care
-----Hatred of Hillary is visceral, with regular mention of Benghazi and the Clinton Foundation as items of scorn – they want a special counsel to investigate her
-----Homosexuality, same-sex marriage in particular, is considered an abomination. Extending marital rights to gays is seen as somehow diminishing them
-----Trump was selected for the presidency by God – was Obama also selected by God? I doubt it. I first ran into this in an on-the-street discussion (a polite term) with the pastor of a church near my home. He insisted that God had selected DJT as president. I suggested that Putin had a lot more to do with installing Trump into office than Jesus. This preacher, BTW, was offering his congregants tickets to a recent Trump rally at the local arena.
-----There should not be state-church separation
-----Blame the media for attacking Trump
-----Even his supporters are not thrilled about Trump’s incessant tweeting
Familiar, right? The Divine Right thing would have been news to me had I not had a personal encounter with a proponent. But this is mostly boilerplate Republican base world-view. Not the view of the people at the top, not the funders, the Kochs, Melon-Scaifes, the Devosses, and the other dark money billionaires who are the real powers in the GOP. They know better, but use their media outlets to misinform, enrage, and otherwise manipulate the base.
At its core, I found this to be a flawed approach. It would be like trying to understand the Civil War by talking almost exclusively to Confederates. (And speaking of which, in the city of Hazleton, which recently became a majority minority city, one local citizen has taken to driving through town in his black pickup. His truck has an American flag on one side, in the back, and a Confederate flag on the other side.). Merely repeating what his subjects had to say, in the absence of almost any sort of fact-checking, seems like lazy journalism to me. Even if Bradlee had decided to listen, record, and repeat, he could still have pointed out either at the end of each chapter or interspersed among the interviewee’s comments, where what they said was at variance with reality. That he mentioned only a few such corrections is inconsistent and very frustrating.
I have kept the quotes in this review to a minimum. I had begun reading the book in hardcover, but was asked to check out a relatively new GR feature, Kindle Notes and Highlights, so read most of it there. As part of that, I highlighted a lot of passages, adding my less than enthusiastic comments for each. For a fuller Monty of my reaction to the book, I strongly suggest you check out my KNH postings. But there was one quote that stood out. It is from forty year old Alia Habib, who grew up in Wilkes Barre, and found a whole new world when she went away to college.
Off at Barnard, Habib felt liberated. “I was surprised that people think I’m pretty! It was shocking to me. Or that people like that I’m smart. I never looked back.” She thinks many whites in Luzerne County view issues such as drugs, welfare, and crime through a racial prism. “There is this sense among a lot of people that blacks and Latinos are getting more benefits than they are—to the town and county’s detriment. This is a very widely held view. A sense that ‘they are taking from people like us’—taking jobs and safety in the community—and that’s consciously or unconsciously part of what Trump spoke to. And Wilkes-Barre has a crime problem that is understood in racial terms. Newcomers are seen as drug dealers or benefit scammers. I think this informed people’s vote, and there was no sense that the Democrats helped them—just people of color.I have posted in EXTRA STUFF a link to an article she wrote for Buzzfeed about her experience growing up in Wilkes Barre and how contemporary considerations of rust-belt places never look beyond its white residents to the impact of economic decline on its minorities as well.
Her take on the views of folks here is spot on, from what I have seen and heard. Crime is because of the drugs that are being brought into town by blacks and Hispanics in their view. Who is buying those drugs never makes it into the conversation. There is widespread belief that anyone with an Access card is undeserving and somehow living large. And reports abound of new arrivals having been directed by social service workers in other states to come to Pennsylvania for its supposedly more generous public assistance. I suspect this is an urban myth, but cannot prove a negative. It is the case that there is probably no glut of decently paying jobs in the area, but there are several universities in the area and a large number of hospitals and related services. There is certainly a large number of available positions in service jobs, like restaurants and retail stores. There has been an influx of large warehouse operations in the area, and they are always looking for help, judging by the number of help-wanted signs all around Wilkes Barre and nearby communities. One impediment for many local people is the feeling that taking a relatively poorly paying job is beneath them. They had worked at some point in their lives at good-paying middle-class jobs, and would rather not take something that represents a step down. FWIW, I hasten to note that my take on the employment situation is anecdotal, based on observation, not analysis and the last bit, in particular, is speculative. I do not have hard research to back this up.
Bradlee looks to tie things up in the Epilogue, finally offering some looks at the beliefs of his subjects. Even in doing this, his effort is weak-kneed and sometimes just sad. He actually writes,
Despite delivering for his supporters in the culture wars, Trump’s policies as president have not always been in his supporters’ economic interests.You’re kidding, right? Try not ever in his supporters’ economic interests. And then how about
Trump’s base continues to love him anyway, mostly because, on his Twitter feed and at his ongoing campaign rallies, he has fed them a steady diet of entertaining, rhetorical red meat. They love his feistiness, how he never apologizes, how he stands up for their values, and how he sticks it to his enemies every day.Really? Like the value of hard work? honesty? decency? His supporters may follow him mindlessly, but the book would be more honest if there were some indication that this is what they feel and that this feeling is not something with any basis in reality. The primary values he expressed for his followers were a hatred of the other and a feeling of victimization. In those cases, mission accomplished.
He also toes what seems a pretty common media line about what Democrats should do to get themselves back in power.
To win back Trump voters in Luzerne County and many places like it around the country, Democrats will need to more clearly define what they are for, rather than who and what they are against: Trump the man and everything he stands for. And the party, whose base has shifted away from the working class to the middle, upper-middle, professional, and creative classes, will need to make more room for centrist voices if it wants to reach voters who now feel culturally alienated from its prevailing liberal orthodoxy. In addition, the Democratic Party, which has long prided itself on its tolerance, will have to curb the tendency of many of its leaders to use a broad brush to paint most Trump voters as bigots.The bubble speaks. Dems are doing a pretty good job of presenting what they stand for. It is the click-addicted media that insists on covering every Trump statement, about every trivial matter, while giving practically no coverage to the actual policy proposals and plans offered by Democratic candidates. In case you missed the headlines in your local paper and almost all electronic media, Dems are standing for protecting Obama Care, protecting the insurability of people (all of us really) with pre-existing conditions. Dems stand for fair tax policies, not rip-offs by the exceedingly wealthy. Dems stand for equal rights for all Americans, regardless of race, gender, religion and sexual identity. Dems stand for comprehensive immigration reform, not scapegoating foreigners to gain political points with the GOP base. Dems stand for protecting the environment, not selling off public treasures to private interests, not abandoning laws and rules that protect all Americans from pollution in our air, water, and soil. Doesn’t make for snappy bumper stickers. But it makes a lot more sense for bringing the nation together. Click-baiting is part of the problem that Trump exploits to divide us from each other. There are places, for sure, where Democrats of a more liberal stripe have no chance of being elected. An appropriate response is to run candidates who can still support most Democratic policy positions. Some is better than none, purism notwithstanding. But that does not mean that the Democratic party needs to continue the drift right that Mr Bradlee seems to favor. If anything, the party needs to continue supporting those crazy liberal programs that the vast majority of Americans have come to rely on and support overwhelmingly, programs that were opposed by Republicans and decried as being horrific examples of the evils of Socialism, Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. If this be leftism, make the most of it.
And as for most Trump voters being bigots, I would certainly be very interested in seeing actual, professional research into this. I expect that a significant portion of those who voted for Trump in 2016 really were just looking to shake things up, however misguided that approach may have turned out to be. But, frankly, it seems to me, until research demonstrates otherwise, that a pretty sizeable portion of Trump voters are indeed bigots of one stripe or another. We got to see them in full regalia in Charlottesville. One of the people interviewed for this book is a neo-Nazi who now holds a local public office. Several of the people Bradlee interviewed felt it necessary to insist at interview’s end that, despite the views they had espoused to him, they were not racists. Well, ok, if you say so.
There are a few interesting tidbits to be found in Bradlee’s interviews with Trumpkins. One even entailed a possible marital breakup, as one party was a full-on Trump believer, and the other considered Trump a fake Republican. One veteran was unhappy with Trump dismissing trans-gender military personnel. Only one of this red squad showed any hesitation about voting orange again in 2020.
If one is trying to look at why Trump won in 2016 in Luzerne County there are many factors to consider, factors that Bradlee has given no attention. It would be meaningful to look at voting metrics for the area in light of metrics across the nation, and in similar counties. Who voted? Who didn’t? And why? Was there any issue with voter suppression? What was the impact of the Bernie Sanders campaign on Hillary? Was third party voting higher this time than in the past? If one is looking at crime and the opiod crisis as problems, it makes sense to offer context. If certain crimes have become more frequent, does that reflect local changes or national trends? I don’t know the answer to that, but the book does not help. One factor that I have been learning about recently is that the local Democratic electoral ground game in 2016 was sorely lacking, a failure not only of the Clinton campaign, but of the county Democratic organization. Materials that are typically available during campaigns, lawn signs, bumper stickers, buttons, other campaign paraphernalia, were in short supply, and even when available, were sometimes left unused for inexplicable reasons. Hillary’s campaign did not even open up an office in Wilkes Barre until way late in the campaign. Clearly the quality of one’s opposing machine should figure in how a battle turned out.
And then there are simple factual errors that were surprising. Bradlee writes that both NYC and Philadelphia are about two hours away. Sorry, Charlie, Philly, maybe, but NYC, by which I mean Manhattan, is more like three and a half, presuming no rain, snow, sleet, construction, accidents, whiteouts from fog (yes, I have had the pleasure), or other impediments to movement. In referring to State Representative Eddie Day Pashinski (a great guy I am working to re-elect) Bradlee writes that Pashinski had been in office for 25 years. Nope. He was first elected in 2006. I would love to see Eddie serve 25 years, but that may take a while yet. Sometimes Bradlee omits relevant information. One of the people he talks with, although not one of his prime interviewees, is Sue Henry. He mentions her as a leading talk-show personality in the area, but neglects to note that she is a right-wing talk-show host, that her show was a lead-in to Rush Limbaugh’s and that she is currently running as the Republican candidate for the Pennsylvania State Assembly in the 121st district.
Though a mix of urban and rural, Luzerne is covered by parts of the Appalachian mountain range and is on the whole more rural in character. While there are pockets of well-heeled suburbia, Luzerne is less Northeast Corridor than Appalachia.Did Bradlee really spend weeks in Luzerne? Really? Geographically, there may be some merit to that characterization, but there is none at all in terms of the overall population, which is concentrated in small cities and suburbs. Many of the numerous cities, townships, and boroughs in Luzerne are separated more by street signage than geography, and would be considered neighborhoods in a larger entity, were it possible to join them together politically. According to Wikipedia, the Metropolitan Statistical Area that includes Scranton, Wilkes-Barre and Hazleton had a population of over 555,000 as of 2017. (Scranton being in Lackawanna County) These are rust-belt cities, however struggling, and quite far from the image of rural decline the author suggests. You could probably apply the same test to New York State, and arrive at a similar rustic conclusion.
I won’t say that The Forgotten is a waste of ink, paper, and time. For folks who are not much exposed to people who think like Trump supporters, it might offer a revelation as to just how impossible it might be to change their minds about anything. But really, you should know that already. Between the factual errors, odd omissions, fantasy-based beliefs that are left untouched, and general approach, The Forgotten does a poor job of casting light on what, in Luzerne County, led up to the switch from blue to red. It will certainly be interesting to see how the mid-terms turn out here. But, aside from the concise quote from Ms. Habib, there is not much in The Forgotten that is worth remembering.
Review posted – November 2, 2018
Publication date – October 2, 2018
EXTRA STUFF has been moved to the comment #1 due to space considerations
August 18, 2018
A Bland and Generic Postmortem, Laundered Through some Wilkes-Barre Shoutouts
I was born and raised and schooled and employed in Wilkes-Barre and I looked forward to this book and to reading about what the author might have found there that I could recognize and relate to. Well, Bradlee spent a week there on four different occasions, so you know this is really in-depth stuff. I mean even Jane Goodall spent more time with the gorillas. But Bradlee did do his homework, so he name drops the Knox Mine Disaster, and Tropical Storm Agnes, and even the day the Eberhard-Faber factory moved out. Beyond that, though, there is nothing here that's new or interesting or even particularly insightful.
What you have is a very generic summary of all of the forgotten man arguments that the pundits have been kicking around for the last two years. Bradlee just picks a dozen "typical" Luzerne County residents and then puts all of those arguments in their mouths. The anti-immigrant sentiments, the loss of good jobs, abandonment by the Democrats, the sense of being left behind, Clinton exhaustion. It's all there, it just comes through in remarkably coherent and literate and perfectly organized and phrased monologues from these "real" regular Joe's.
Interestingly, none of these people are ever challenged about whether their factual premises or their arguments are grounded in reality or make any sense. Wilkes-Barre is heavily dependent on Veteran's benefits, Social Security retirement and disability benefits, Medicaid, Medicare, HUD programs, Food Stamps, block grants, and pretty much every other major government program you could name. Not one person who complains about being left behind or gypped or forgotten is ever asked about this even though it is a fundamental element of Luzerne County's economy. Rather, everyone gets to chip in their own unchallenged bit of the Trump explanation story. This may help to explain how magical thinking helped Trump, but that alone doesn't make for an interesting or useful book.
And everybody gets kid glove treatment. Racist and nativist sentiment is admitted to be so pervasive and ingrained that it apparently doesn't even need to be mentioned again. Luzerne County's congressman is an unapologetic anti-Hispanic race baiter who rose to prominence as the mayor of Hazleton and who tried to enforce the most discriminatory set of anti-immigrant laws imaginable. You get only a mild sense of that here. In fact, the only character who feels real is a Syrian American girl who recounts the violent prejudice she encounters on an almost daily basis.
The bottom line is that this feels like the longest Newsmagazine people interest story ever, assuming the people aren't very real and they aren't very interesting. I really expected a lot more than a shallow puff piece, and maybe a little soul searching and at least some challenges to these Trump voters. But you won't get any of that here. And so at bottom this book ends up being what everyone could want. For Trump supporters it validates the arguments about how he reached out to the forgotten. For those who oppose Trump it offers an opportunity to revel in how disillusioned and conned Trump voters were. For those interested in what happened, it will offer nothing new or insightful. The book has been described in blurbs as a "reporting - listening" exercise. I can do that in any corner bar in Wilkes-Barre, (we have lots of them), and have a much more valuable, unfiltered, and colorful experience than I got by reading this book.
By the way, I don't know many people in Wilkes-Barre who consider themselves rural or Appalachian, and we don't make moonshine in old washing machines, (anymore), so the little whispers of coal-miner condescension that run through the book can be ignored.
(Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
I was born and raised and schooled and employed in Wilkes-Barre and I looked forward to this book and to reading about what the author might have found there that I could recognize and relate to. Well, Bradlee spent a week there on four different occasions, so you know this is really in-depth stuff. I mean even Jane Goodall spent more time with the gorillas. But Bradlee did do his homework, so he name drops the Knox Mine Disaster, and Tropical Storm Agnes, and even the day the Eberhard-Faber factory moved out. Beyond that, though, there is nothing here that's new or interesting or even particularly insightful.
What you have is a very generic summary of all of the forgotten man arguments that the pundits have been kicking around for the last two years. Bradlee just picks a dozen "typical" Luzerne County residents and then puts all of those arguments in their mouths. The anti-immigrant sentiments, the loss of good jobs, abandonment by the Democrats, the sense of being left behind, Clinton exhaustion. It's all there, it just comes through in remarkably coherent and literate and perfectly organized and phrased monologues from these "real" regular Joe's.
Interestingly, none of these people are ever challenged about whether their factual premises or their arguments are grounded in reality or make any sense. Wilkes-Barre is heavily dependent on Veteran's benefits, Social Security retirement and disability benefits, Medicaid, Medicare, HUD programs, Food Stamps, block grants, and pretty much every other major government program you could name. Not one person who complains about being left behind or gypped or forgotten is ever asked about this even though it is a fundamental element of Luzerne County's economy. Rather, everyone gets to chip in their own unchallenged bit of the Trump explanation story. This may help to explain how magical thinking helped Trump, but that alone doesn't make for an interesting or useful book.
And everybody gets kid glove treatment. Racist and nativist sentiment is admitted to be so pervasive and ingrained that it apparently doesn't even need to be mentioned again. Luzerne County's congressman is an unapologetic anti-Hispanic race baiter who rose to prominence as the mayor of Hazleton and who tried to enforce the most discriminatory set of anti-immigrant laws imaginable. You get only a mild sense of that here. In fact, the only character who feels real is a Syrian American girl who recounts the violent prejudice she encounters on an almost daily basis.
The bottom line is that this feels like the longest Newsmagazine people interest story ever, assuming the people aren't very real and they aren't very interesting. I really expected a lot more than a shallow puff piece, and maybe a little soul searching and at least some challenges to these Trump voters. But you won't get any of that here. And so at bottom this book ends up being what everyone could want. For Trump supporters it validates the arguments about how he reached out to the forgotten. For those who oppose Trump it offers an opportunity to revel in how disillusioned and conned Trump voters were. For those interested in what happened, it will offer nothing new or insightful. The book has been described in blurbs as a "reporting - listening" exercise. I can do that in any corner bar in Wilkes-Barre, (we have lots of them), and have a much more valuable, unfiltered, and colorful experience than I got by reading this book.
By the way, I don't know many people in Wilkes-Barre who consider themselves rural or Appalachian, and we don't make moonshine in old washing machines, (anymore), so the little whispers of coal-miner condescension that run through the book can be ignored.
(Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
August 31, 2019
"The people who live in the vast middle of the United States have felt largely neglected. The election was less about the [large coastal] cities than it was about the individual counties across the nation . . . Many counties have urban centers, but most, like Luzerne, are rural in character, and some can serve as a microcosm of America." -- the author, on page 17, regarding 'the forgotten' citizens of the title
Ben Bradlee Jr.'s The Forgotten was fascinating and entertaining (as I reside only about a 90-minute drive south of the area, it was of particular interest to me for the locality; however, I otherwise have no really firm connection to that area) though I suspect it will be an acquired taste for some readers.
At the outset Bradlee notes how Pennsylvania - along with Michigan and Wisconsin - was one of the swing states for the 2016 presidential election. It is suggested that the Luzerne County area, usually a Democratic stronghold in the northeast section of the state, broke from longstanding tradition and voted for Trump en masse, which was a pivotal reason for him then winning PA. Bradlee interviewed several residents from the two small but troubled cities in the county, Wilkes-Barre and Hazleton, to gain a better understanding of how the "abrupt shift in political sentiment" caused the MAGA upset.
I really enjoyed the profiles - he features approximately twenty 'deplorables' (a city mayor-turned-congressman, military veterans, a former police officer, an attorney, retirees), and most of the them are very opinionated but equally well-spoken and informed when explaining their vote for Trump. In fairness, Bradlee also interviewed several Democrats from the area for their take on the election.
I though Bradlee did a good job of being unbiased while giving the folks an opportunity to be heard.
Ben Bradlee Jr.'s The Forgotten was fascinating and entertaining (as I reside only about a 90-minute drive south of the area, it was of particular interest to me for the locality; however, I otherwise have no really firm connection to that area) though I suspect it will be an acquired taste for some readers.
At the outset Bradlee notes how Pennsylvania - along with Michigan and Wisconsin - was one of the swing states for the 2016 presidential election. It is suggested that the Luzerne County area, usually a Democratic stronghold in the northeast section of the state, broke from longstanding tradition and voted for Trump en masse, which was a pivotal reason for him then winning PA. Bradlee interviewed several residents from the two small but troubled cities in the county, Wilkes-Barre and Hazleton, to gain a better understanding of how the "abrupt shift in political sentiment" caused the MAGA upset.
I really enjoyed the profiles - he features approximately twenty 'deplorables' (a city mayor-turned-congressman, military veterans, a former police officer, an attorney, retirees), and most of the them are very opinionated but equally well-spoken and informed when explaining their vote for Trump. In fairness, Bradlee also interviewed several Democrats from the area for their take on the election.
I though Bradlee did a good job of being unbiased while giving the folks an opportunity to be heard.
October 18, 2022
Very disappointing. The premise is promising: Look at a county which had consistently voted Democrat yet swung hard for Trump in 2016 and try to understand why. Yet it explains nothing. Unfortunately, Bradlee chose to interview Trump supporters from this county which seem to have been Republicans all along, rather than swing voters who switched affiliations. Furthermore, these interviews seem to merely echo sentiments from Republican media rather than actually examining changes and developments over time in the perspectives of their subjects. Thus, it fails utterly to offer new insight.
August 22, 2018
The “Forgotten” Whites of Luzerne, PA Speak Up
Luzerne County in northeast Pennsylvania flipped for Donald Trump in the 2016 election. Nearly 6000 Democrats changed their registration so they could vote for him in the primary. The overwhelmingly Democrat county then gave Trump his biggest win in the state. Ben Bradlee Jr. went almost immediately to investigate why. He came back with the answer that Hillary Clinton made whites feel ashamed, while Donald Trump made them feel good about themselves. Bradlee lets them speak their minds in The Forgotten, a quick and easy read that makes it understandable.
The county used to be an incubator for the middle class. Coal was the first great booster, and when that faded, manufacturing sprung up to keep it all going. Wilkes-Barre, its largest city, topped out at a population of 90,000. Luzerne is mostly Catholic, with a strong and growing evangelical component. They get their news from Fox, Breitbart and Infowars.
The decline accelerated with company relocations to Mexico and China in the late 90s. With no jobs, property values plunged, to where good housing can be had for five figures - but no one wants any. The death rate from opioids is four times New York City’s, with an average age of death of 38. The crime rate is 50% higher than the Pennsylvania average. Guns are a non-controversial part of appearance.
Luzerne has been humiliated by scandals like Kids for Cash, in which judges sent juveniles to for-profit prisons for kickbacks. The population has also changed dramatically: it is now 52% Hispanic, mostly Dominican, the same as for Reading and Allentown nearby. Finally, Pennsylvania ranks fifth in the nation for the number of hate groups operating there, including the Ku Klux Klan in Wilkes-Barre, the county seat. Its population is now 40,000.
Bradlee spent several weeks roaming Luzerne, finding out who was who, and interviewing a dozen diverse white Trump voters in great depth. The chapters profile them, with a photo, the story of their thoughts leading up to the 2016 election and how they came be Trump voters, their family and career history, and how they see Trump now.
The common thread in Luzerne voters’ complaints is a lack of simplicity. They enjoy the simple, tweetable solutions, leveraged so well by Donald Trump (though several wish he wouldn’t tweet so much). They have no time for implications or unintended consequences. For example, Kim Woodrosky , a high school graduate, made herself into a successful landlord, tooling around her properties in her signature bright yellow Corvette. She has 65 apartments providing her a $90,000 annual income. She leases to the lowest end, Section 8 renters, people on welfare. But she complains bitterly about people getting something for nothing. “How is that fair?” she rails repeatedly. She pays taxes, and the money goes to welfare, she claims. Yet if Trump halts welfare, all her tenants will default. She will have to evict them, fall behind on her mortgage payments, and with no real estate market, be unable to sell them off. She will lose her buildings to foreclosure and file for bankruptcy herself. More than her tenants, Woodrosky lives nicely on welfare.
There is also a strong thread of rationalizing Trump. No one actually ignores all his lies (6.5 per day), his infidelities or his crassness. Instead, they have become apologists: “What he really meant was…” or “We’re all sinners” or “Do you know anybody who doesn’t curse?”, or “It’s refreshing.” So no matter what he says or does, he’s the best for them. And they can’t believe the whole country isn’t behind him as he remakes it in his own fantasy.
They absolve Trump of blame for not replacing Obamacare as promised numerous times. Even though he claimed to have his own plan that was far less expensive and offered far more benefits (“Believe me”), the Luzernians blame the Republican Party instead. They say it had seven years to come up with a better plan but didn’t. Even though the party was always against any health plan at all.
They all have unkind words for Hillary Clinton. She was either an unwanted extension of the vile Obama, a criminal in her own right, or an insult to the intelligence of women, who don’t want to be considered single-issue voters (a female president). So even if they couldn’t rationalize Trump, they would not even consider Clinton.
The Obama years weighed extra heavily as Luzerne deteriorated over the past decade. They say it was Obama who was “a degradation to the office”, not Trump. “He almost gave the impression he did not like America, apologizing for our exceptionalism, and I never understood why,” says Erik Olson, a war veteran. He likes Trump because he is not a politician, something strongly echoed throughout The Forgotten. They applaud his unorthodox approach to everything. That’s what they voted for, and they got it.
There is one rising star in Luzerne. Lou Barletta, the mayor of Hazleton until he landed a seat in Congress (on his third try), is now running against Bob Casey for the Senate. A seat of the pants successful entrepreneur and nice guy, he achieved fame in 2006 by trying to expel illegal immigrants from Hazleton, a decade before Trump came along. Barletta was key to Trump’s success in Pennsylvania, and Trump is the one who insisted he run for the Senate seat. He had offered Barletta Secretary of Housing, but Barletta preferred Transport, and so got left out of the cabinet. (Mitch McConnell’s wife, Elaine Chao, had dibs on Transport.)
Life has not changed in Luzerne, except that many people don’t talk to each other any more because of the Trump/Never Trump rift. They unfriend each other on facebook. Some warehouse businesses are starting up, thanks to Wilkes-Barre’s location at the intersection of Interstates 81 and 84, but the outlook is still grim, with blatant, overt crime at the top of everyone’s list. Followed close by immigrants/race, and gun rights.
Possibly the most important profile in the book is of Alia Habib – who left. She is not “white” according to whites, and she is not a Republican or a Trump supporter. Anyone with education and/or talent leaves, but Alia has analyzed it better than everyone else. Everything in Luzerne is measured through a race lens, she says. Growing up, she was classified “sand nigger” or “camel jockey” because of her name. When she moved to New York City, she was shocked that people thought her intelligent and attractive. She is now a literary agent, and pessimistic for the future of Luzerne, where negativity and support for Trump rule. “I don’t see the next four years will see the residents of Luzerne County better off, but I do think it will be even harder to live there – economically, socially, emotionally – if you number among one of the groups Trump scapegoated.”
Meanwhile, another woman profiled is thrilled that she wakes up “every morning and say to myself Donald Trump is our president so my day doesn’t get any better.”
David Wineberg
Luzerne County in northeast Pennsylvania flipped for Donald Trump in the 2016 election. Nearly 6000 Democrats changed their registration so they could vote for him in the primary. The overwhelmingly Democrat county then gave Trump his biggest win in the state. Ben Bradlee Jr. went almost immediately to investigate why. He came back with the answer that Hillary Clinton made whites feel ashamed, while Donald Trump made them feel good about themselves. Bradlee lets them speak their minds in The Forgotten, a quick and easy read that makes it understandable.
The county used to be an incubator for the middle class. Coal was the first great booster, and when that faded, manufacturing sprung up to keep it all going. Wilkes-Barre, its largest city, topped out at a population of 90,000. Luzerne is mostly Catholic, with a strong and growing evangelical component. They get their news from Fox, Breitbart and Infowars.
The decline accelerated with company relocations to Mexico and China in the late 90s. With no jobs, property values plunged, to where good housing can be had for five figures - but no one wants any. The death rate from opioids is four times New York City’s, with an average age of death of 38. The crime rate is 50% higher than the Pennsylvania average. Guns are a non-controversial part of appearance.
Luzerne has been humiliated by scandals like Kids for Cash, in which judges sent juveniles to for-profit prisons for kickbacks. The population has also changed dramatically: it is now 52% Hispanic, mostly Dominican, the same as for Reading and Allentown nearby. Finally, Pennsylvania ranks fifth in the nation for the number of hate groups operating there, including the Ku Klux Klan in Wilkes-Barre, the county seat. Its population is now 40,000.
Bradlee spent several weeks roaming Luzerne, finding out who was who, and interviewing a dozen diverse white Trump voters in great depth. The chapters profile them, with a photo, the story of their thoughts leading up to the 2016 election and how they came be Trump voters, their family and career history, and how they see Trump now.
The common thread in Luzerne voters’ complaints is a lack of simplicity. They enjoy the simple, tweetable solutions, leveraged so well by Donald Trump (though several wish he wouldn’t tweet so much). They have no time for implications or unintended consequences. For example, Kim Woodrosky , a high school graduate, made herself into a successful landlord, tooling around her properties in her signature bright yellow Corvette. She has 65 apartments providing her a $90,000 annual income. She leases to the lowest end, Section 8 renters, people on welfare. But she complains bitterly about people getting something for nothing. “How is that fair?” she rails repeatedly. She pays taxes, and the money goes to welfare, she claims. Yet if Trump halts welfare, all her tenants will default. She will have to evict them, fall behind on her mortgage payments, and with no real estate market, be unable to sell them off. She will lose her buildings to foreclosure and file for bankruptcy herself. More than her tenants, Woodrosky lives nicely on welfare.
There is also a strong thread of rationalizing Trump. No one actually ignores all his lies (6.5 per day), his infidelities or his crassness. Instead, they have become apologists: “What he really meant was…” or “We’re all sinners” or “Do you know anybody who doesn’t curse?”, or “It’s refreshing.” So no matter what he says or does, he’s the best for them. And they can’t believe the whole country isn’t behind him as he remakes it in his own fantasy.
They absolve Trump of blame for not replacing Obamacare as promised numerous times. Even though he claimed to have his own plan that was far less expensive and offered far more benefits (“Believe me”), the Luzernians blame the Republican Party instead. They say it had seven years to come up with a better plan but didn’t. Even though the party was always against any health plan at all.
They all have unkind words for Hillary Clinton. She was either an unwanted extension of the vile Obama, a criminal in her own right, or an insult to the intelligence of women, who don’t want to be considered single-issue voters (a female president). So even if they couldn’t rationalize Trump, they would not even consider Clinton.
The Obama years weighed extra heavily as Luzerne deteriorated over the past decade. They say it was Obama who was “a degradation to the office”, not Trump. “He almost gave the impression he did not like America, apologizing for our exceptionalism, and I never understood why,” says Erik Olson, a war veteran. He likes Trump because he is not a politician, something strongly echoed throughout The Forgotten. They applaud his unorthodox approach to everything. That’s what they voted for, and they got it.
There is one rising star in Luzerne. Lou Barletta, the mayor of Hazleton until he landed a seat in Congress (on his third try), is now running against Bob Casey for the Senate. A seat of the pants successful entrepreneur and nice guy, he achieved fame in 2006 by trying to expel illegal immigrants from Hazleton, a decade before Trump came along. Barletta was key to Trump’s success in Pennsylvania, and Trump is the one who insisted he run for the Senate seat. He had offered Barletta Secretary of Housing, but Barletta preferred Transport, and so got left out of the cabinet. (Mitch McConnell’s wife, Elaine Chao, had dibs on Transport.)
Life has not changed in Luzerne, except that many people don’t talk to each other any more because of the Trump/Never Trump rift. They unfriend each other on facebook. Some warehouse businesses are starting up, thanks to Wilkes-Barre’s location at the intersection of Interstates 81 and 84, but the outlook is still grim, with blatant, overt crime at the top of everyone’s list. Followed close by immigrants/race, and gun rights.
Possibly the most important profile in the book is of Alia Habib – who left. She is not “white” according to whites, and she is not a Republican or a Trump supporter. Anyone with education and/or talent leaves, but Alia has analyzed it better than everyone else. Everything in Luzerne is measured through a race lens, she says. Growing up, she was classified “sand nigger” or “camel jockey” because of her name. When she moved to New York City, she was shocked that people thought her intelligent and attractive. She is now a literary agent, and pessimistic for the future of Luzerne, where negativity and support for Trump rule. “I don’t see the next four years will see the residents of Luzerne County better off, but I do think it will be even harder to live there – economically, socially, emotionally – if you number among one of the groups Trump scapegoated.”
Meanwhile, another woman profiled is thrilled that she wakes up “every morning and say to myself Donald Trump is our president so my day doesn’t get any better.”
David Wineberg
October 17, 2018
Very specific upon this Northeastern Pennsylvania County. This is why.
The person to person category interviews were the best parts. People who consider all those who voted for Donald Trump as "deplorable" should read these individual decision stories.
The person to person category interviews were the best parts. People who consider all those who voted for Donald Trump as "deplorable" should read these individual decision stories.
October 26, 2018
Tl;dr: The Forgotten isn't an easy read but it sheds valuable insight on how and why Donald Trump was elected president of the United States.
Look, I know that there's been no shortage of books about Trump, his presidency, and how he won the election. But by focusing on one area, Luzerne County in Pennsylvania, a state Hillary Clinton was sure to win until she didn't, Ben Bradlee provides an interesting (and quite honestly, depressing) look at how and why Trump won the state, and, in turn, the presidency.
What Bradlee does in The Forgotten is provide in-depth interviews--I only read the ones that voted for Trump, and confess I had to skip the white nationalist one altogether as I couldn't stomach it.
However, from the profiles that are pro-Trump, not only do all praise him as president approximately one year into office, the following themes emerge (I am leaving out the racial biases, the lack of understanding of poverty, and the horrifyingly noninclusive views held by many that were interviewed):
-- The election was Hillary's to lose and she did it by having a campaign that was never truly focused enough to resonate with voters (this is more fully explored in the outstanding Chasing Hillary)
-- Many white female voters rejected voting for Hillary Clinton because, interestingly, they felt that she believed she was due their vote because she was a woman-- and they didn't agree.
In between the outrage over supposed crimes some feel she committed emerges what I feel was a real contribution to why Trump won, which is:
--Classism/Elitism. This is, imo, an issue that a lot of people don't want to talk about, but was a real issue in the campaign. Trump, for all of his (supposed) wealth, had the ability to not just reach, but convince whitexvoters who are in the ever shrinking middle class not just that he understood them, but that he would help them. He promised jobs, he promised lower taxes, and he promised to eliminate a healthcare systen that, although it's helped many, including me, frustrated a lot of Americans who believed that "Obamacare" left them footing the bill for other people's healthcare as they had to pay for not opting to have health insurance, ran a business that became obligated to offer it, etc. It also didn't help that Hillary Clinton frequently spoke about helping, but offered no real plan. Trump didn't have one either, but he seized on phrases voters wanted to hear--make America great again, for example. As loaded as it is now, it's a memorable message. It was one voters felt they could support because it implied hope that was open to (sadly) many interpretations.
--Trump went to campaign in areas like the Luzerne county area and Hillary Clinton didn't. One of the more depressing footnotes about her campaign was part of one of those tiny profile pieces New York Magazine runs where they interview someone about what they are wearing, etc. I remember they interviewed a young man visiting the city on his way to Europe and he'd worked for Hilary Clinton's campaign in Wyoming. It wasn't a state she expected to win, so there wasn't much support and the young man noted, glumly, that not only were there no resources, but that no one in the office ever had spoken to Hillary.* By ignoring, by chance or by thinking that locking in the Northeast and California and Florida meant she'd win the election, Hillary Clinton ignored the majority of the country--and the voters noticed. By assuming no one would really take Trump seriously, everyone in the Clinton campaign lost sight of something very important: By skipping campaigning in a substantial way in *all* of America, many voters decided that voting for Trump meant that it was more about voting for someone who represented, to them, what they felt like-- as if no one cared, as if they didn't matter. It was this lack of interest that made voters believe that even if Trump was was problematic, he at least was thinking about them.
-- Other takeaways: The distrust of the media. It's frightening but it's real, as many Americans, including most of those profiled in The Forgotten, truly believe that anything other than Fox News, is biased not just against Trump, but against them. This isn't true but it didn't help that, again, most major news outlets didn't take Trump, and his voters felt, by extension, them, seriously. I can't be the only person who saw the New York Times confidently running day after day of polling often showing that Hillary Clinton had over 80 and sometimes 90 percent of the popular vote leading up to the election and wondered how they arrived at that figure as it was obvious that Trump, as problematic as he was (and is) was clearly doing much better than that in areas that weren't and aren't normally reported on by the Times.
-- Conservatism. There is a large group of Americans, usually holding views I don't agree with, who want things to be an idealized portrait of America in the 1950s-- a world where you know everyone on your block, where everyone feels "safe," where children play happily in the street and everyone has a job that provides not just the basics but enough to live happily and with a secure retirement. Yes, this isn't possible anymore because it's not the 1950s ( and that era certainly had enormous problems) -- but it's a dream of what never was, a dream of prosperity that puts everyone in a group of same with no place for others-- and that dream is tremendously appealing to a lot of people. Is it frightening? Absolutely. But what's more frightening is how big the gulf has become between those who want a past that never was is versus those who want a future that's still being defined.
There are no easy answers here. Is The Forgotten hard to read? Yes. It's sad and disturbing. But. But! I think it's a great way for those who want to understand the mindset of (a small area-specific selection, it must be noted) those who voted for and support Donald Trump.
Recommended for those interested in the current American political climate, and for those interested in understanding how Donald Trump went from being a presidential candidate covered by entertainment reporters to serious candidate to being president. 3.5 stars, rounded up.
*The New York Magazine piece I refenced is here: https://www.thecut.com/2017/01/the-fo...
Many thanks to Little, Brown and Netgalley for an arc of this disturbing but enlightening read.
Look, I know that there's been no shortage of books about Trump, his presidency, and how he won the election. But by focusing on one area, Luzerne County in Pennsylvania, a state Hillary Clinton was sure to win until she didn't, Ben Bradlee provides an interesting (and quite honestly, depressing) look at how and why Trump won the state, and, in turn, the presidency.
What Bradlee does in The Forgotten is provide in-depth interviews--I only read the ones that voted for Trump, and confess I had to skip the white nationalist one altogether as I couldn't stomach it.
However, from the profiles that are pro-Trump, not only do all praise him as president approximately one year into office, the following themes emerge (I am leaving out the racial biases, the lack of understanding of poverty, and the horrifyingly noninclusive views held by many that were interviewed):
-- The election was Hillary's to lose and she did it by having a campaign that was never truly focused enough to resonate with voters (this is more fully explored in the outstanding Chasing Hillary)
-- Many white female voters rejected voting for Hillary Clinton because, interestingly, they felt that she believed she was due their vote because she was a woman-- and they didn't agree.
In between the outrage over supposed crimes some feel she committed emerges what I feel was a real contribution to why Trump won, which is:
--Classism/Elitism. This is, imo, an issue that a lot of people don't want to talk about, but was a real issue in the campaign. Trump, for all of his (supposed) wealth, had the ability to not just reach, but convince whitexvoters who are in the ever shrinking middle class not just that he understood them, but that he would help them. He promised jobs, he promised lower taxes, and he promised to eliminate a healthcare systen that, although it's helped many, including me, frustrated a lot of Americans who believed that "Obamacare" left them footing the bill for other people's healthcare as they had to pay for not opting to have health insurance, ran a business that became obligated to offer it, etc. It also didn't help that Hillary Clinton frequently spoke about helping, but offered no real plan. Trump didn't have one either, but he seized on phrases voters wanted to hear--make America great again, for example. As loaded as it is now, it's a memorable message. It was one voters felt they could support because it implied hope that was open to (sadly) many interpretations.
--Trump went to campaign in areas like the Luzerne county area and Hillary Clinton didn't. One of the more depressing footnotes about her campaign was part of one of those tiny profile pieces New York Magazine runs where they interview someone about what they are wearing, etc. I remember they interviewed a young man visiting the city on his way to Europe and he'd worked for Hilary Clinton's campaign in Wyoming. It wasn't a state she expected to win, so there wasn't much support and the young man noted, glumly, that not only were there no resources, but that no one in the office ever had spoken to Hillary.* By ignoring, by chance or by thinking that locking in the Northeast and California and Florida meant she'd win the election, Hillary Clinton ignored the majority of the country--and the voters noticed. By assuming no one would really take Trump seriously, everyone in the Clinton campaign lost sight of something very important: By skipping campaigning in a substantial way in *all* of America, many voters decided that voting for Trump meant that it was more about voting for someone who represented, to them, what they felt like-- as if no one cared, as if they didn't matter. It was this lack of interest that made voters believe that even if Trump was was problematic, he at least was thinking about them.
-- Other takeaways: The distrust of the media. It's frightening but it's real, as many Americans, including most of those profiled in The Forgotten, truly believe that anything other than Fox News, is biased not just against Trump, but against them. This isn't true but it didn't help that, again, most major news outlets didn't take Trump, and his voters felt, by extension, them, seriously. I can't be the only person who saw the New York Times confidently running day after day of polling often showing that Hillary Clinton had over 80 and sometimes 90 percent of the popular vote leading up to the election and wondered how they arrived at that figure as it was obvious that Trump, as problematic as he was (and is) was clearly doing much better than that in areas that weren't and aren't normally reported on by the Times.
-- Conservatism. There is a large group of Americans, usually holding views I don't agree with, who want things to be an idealized portrait of America in the 1950s-- a world where you know everyone on your block, where everyone feels "safe," where children play happily in the street and everyone has a job that provides not just the basics but enough to live happily and with a secure retirement. Yes, this isn't possible anymore because it's not the 1950s ( and that era certainly had enormous problems) -- but it's a dream of what never was, a dream of prosperity that puts everyone in a group of same with no place for others-- and that dream is tremendously appealing to a lot of people. Is it frightening? Absolutely. But what's more frightening is how big the gulf has become between those who want a past that never was is versus those who want a future that's still being defined.
There are no easy answers here. Is The Forgotten hard to read? Yes. It's sad and disturbing. But. But! I think it's a great way for those who want to understand the mindset of (a small area-specific selection, it must be noted) those who voted for and support Donald Trump.
Recommended for those interested in the current American political climate, and for those interested in understanding how Donald Trump went from being a presidential candidate covered by entertainment reporters to serious candidate to being president. 3.5 stars, rounded up.
*The New York Magazine piece I refenced is here: https://www.thecut.com/2017/01/the-fo...
Many thanks to Little, Brown and Netgalley for an arc of this disturbing but enlightening read.
October 6, 2018
Subtitled "How the People of One Pennsylvania County Elected Donald Trump and Changed America," this book offers a look through the eyes of several residents of Luzerne County - many of whom voted for, and still support, #45. Why that matters is that of Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, the latter had the most electoral votes; Trump won largely because of his showing here - by a margin of nearly 20 points.
I had two reasons for wanting to read the book, the first of which is that it's really hard for me to comprehend why - other than to make sure Hillary Clinton wouldn't win, which I understand - anyone would want someone like The Donald in our country's highest office (which of course reveals my personal view on the subject). The second reason is that the Luzerne County is somewhat familiar; I've visited several times - a few to conduct employee development seminars at the community college in the county seat of Wilkes-Barre. The people I met were friendly and warm, and the surrounding scenery is, as I repeatedly told my seminar participants, close to breathtaking. Besides that, the county seems to somewhat mirror that of Ohio's Mahoning Valley - where I live - at least in terms of how the local economy has fared since the demise of heavy industry.
The author visited the county four or five times, I believe, questioning numerous residents as to why they voted the way they did and then compiling the responses of about a dozen to form this book. In between are demographic facts about the county and its residents, such as an overall lack of college-educated residents and substantial increases in minorities moving in over the last several years. Also worthy of note to me, at least, is that Pennsylvania as a whole is home to more hate groups than any other U.S. state.
Honestly, I really didn't run into any "Aha" moments here; most of the reasons given for dissatisfaction I've heard many times before. Hillary seemed to "look down" on people like them; government-programs like NAFTA and support of a global economy have cost them jobs; and social programs make it too easy for people to stay on what appears to be an ever-expanding dole and, more to the point, live as well or better than many of those who struggle to make a living the old-fashioned way. So to a large extent, the support of Trump there simply reflects a desire to get away from the same old, same old. As one man noted, "Washington is broke, and I need someone to go down there with a sledgehammer."
Still, seeing their in-depth feelings in their own words is a bit eye-opening - especially on issues like immigration, which they claim not to oppose; after all, most of them come from immigrant parents or grandparents. At issue is legality; immigrants are welcome, but only if they follow the prescribed rules and are willing to "assimilate" into this country (meaning, for the most part, be willing to work hard and learn English) just like the residents' ancestors did. No, a wall isn't necessary, but some kind of effective border security certainly is - so Trump's get-tough stand on that issue came through loud and clear.
With few available jobs and little hope that things will get better any time soon, it's easy to see why the people here think they've been "forgotten," ignored and not good enough to count. On purpose, I did not use the word "disenfranchised" - a term more associated with political correctness. And if there is a recurring theme in this book, it is total disdain for having to tiptoe around others, particularly those who don't share their work ethic and family values. Cut to the bottom line, then, Trump was saying what they were feeling - even though many agreed that his actions, comments and tweets were (and still are) "over the top." And despite the fact that their support of Trump has destroyed friendships - and in some instances, entire families - those who voted for him aren't backing down. Almost to a person, they give him high marks after 18 months in office and insist they'll vote for him next time around.
As a self-described moderate-to-flaming liberal, I admit that most of the views expressed here are way outside my political wheelhouse (although I do share their concerns on some issues, like the need for immigration reform and maintaining Second Amendment rights - just not with quite the same restrictions in mind). Put another way, some parts of the book gave me hope while others scared the bejeesus out of me.
For anyone interested in expanding their horizons - or looking for confirmation and support of their own views - this is a well-written, important book that reflects the times that are a'changin'. Many thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for providing me with a copy for review.
I had two reasons for wanting to read the book, the first of which is that it's really hard for me to comprehend why - other than to make sure Hillary Clinton wouldn't win, which I understand - anyone would want someone like The Donald in our country's highest office (which of course reveals my personal view on the subject). The second reason is that the Luzerne County is somewhat familiar; I've visited several times - a few to conduct employee development seminars at the community college in the county seat of Wilkes-Barre. The people I met were friendly and warm, and the surrounding scenery is, as I repeatedly told my seminar participants, close to breathtaking. Besides that, the county seems to somewhat mirror that of Ohio's Mahoning Valley - where I live - at least in terms of how the local economy has fared since the demise of heavy industry.
The author visited the county four or five times, I believe, questioning numerous residents as to why they voted the way they did and then compiling the responses of about a dozen to form this book. In between are demographic facts about the county and its residents, such as an overall lack of college-educated residents and substantial increases in minorities moving in over the last several years. Also worthy of note to me, at least, is that Pennsylvania as a whole is home to more hate groups than any other U.S. state.
Honestly, I really didn't run into any "Aha" moments here; most of the reasons given for dissatisfaction I've heard many times before. Hillary seemed to "look down" on people like them; government-programs like NAFTA and support of a global economy have cost them jobs; and social programs make it too easy for people to stay on what appears to be an ever-expanding dole and, more to the point, live as well or better than many of those who struggle to make a living the old-fashioned way. So to a large extent, the support of Trump there simply reflects a desire to get away from the same old, same old. As one man noted, "Washington is broke, and I need someone to go down there with a sledgehammer."
Still, seeing their in-depth feelings in their own words is a bit eye-opening - especially on issues like immigration, which they claim not to oppose; after all, most of them come from immigrant parents or grandparents. At issue is legality; immigrants are welcome, but only if they follow the prescribed rules and are willing to "assimilate" into this country (meaning, for the most part, be willing to work hard and learn English) just like the residents' ancestors did. No, a wall isn't necessary, but some kind of effective border security certainly is - so Trump's get-tough stand on that issue came through loud and clear.
With few available jobs and little hope that things will get better any time soon, it's easy to see why the people here think they've been "forgotten," ignored and not good enough to count. On purpose, I did not use the word "disenfranchised" - a term more associated with political correctness. And if there is a recurring theme in this book, it is total disdain for having to tiptoe around others, particularly those who don't share their work ethic and family values. Cut to the bottom line, then, Trump was saying what they were feeling - even though many agreed that his actions, comments and tweets were (and still are) "over the top." And despite the fact that their support of Trump has destroyed friendships - and in some instances, entire families - those who voted for him aren't backing down. Almost to a person, they give him high marks after 18 months in office and insist they'll vote for him next time around.
As a self-described moderate-to-flaming liberal, I admit that most of the views expressed here are way outside my political wheelhouse (although I do share their concerns on some issues, like the need for immigration reform and maintaining Second Amendment rights - just not with quite the same restrictions in mind). Put another way, some parts of the book gave me hope while others scared the bejeesus out of me.
For anyone interested in expanding their horizons - or looking for confirmation and support of their own views - this is a well-written, important book that reflects the times that are a'changin'. Many thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for providing me with a copy for review.
September 23, 2018
Ben Bradlee Jr. travels to a part of the country that I know well, or thought I did, that played an important role in the 2016 election and gives us a look at what might have led people to change decades of voting habits. Bradlee doesn't wallow in who is right and who is wrong. Rather, he listens to the very people who used their vote to be heard. If you want to understand what started in 2016 and look to what could happen in 2018, 2020 and beyond, you'd be wise to read this book.
November 8, 2018
Oh, boy. I read The Forgotten mostly because I'm fascinated by Trump supporters--what is going on in the heads of these people that they looked at this guy who I thought was clearly a cruel, narcissistic huckster with no self-control and said, "Yeah, that's my guy!"? And yes, in theory I want to feel more empathy towards people whose views are different than mine, because the division within this country is growing further each day.
This was frustrating to read. It's a look at Trump voters in Luzerne County, PA, which was is made up of many people who were historically Democrats, but ended up being pivotal in Trump's electoral college win. It's divided up between different interview subjects--some ordinary "Trump Men" and "Trump Women" as well as people like "The Congressman", "The Christian", "The Veteran", and even (sigh) "The White Nationalist."
Many of these would start out sort of reasonable with concerns about the economy and job losses and some traditional values stuff and then--BAM--they would say something like "well, I can't believe the mainstream media anymore, so I have to go to Brietbart and Alex Jones for my news." How can you reason with a person that thinks Alex Jones is a legitimate news source? You can't! Anyway, a lot of them repeated demonstrable falsehoods or supported Trump because of issues that he is not doing anything to actually help them--or in especially the case of "The Christian" and "The White Nationalist" said things that I found repugnant on a really deep level.
Here are some choice quotes:
Lol, okay Kim.
Um, okay.
Since the theory seems to be that he will run the country like a business, this is NOT a comforting sentiment.
Stuff like this only serves to reinforce the idea that these are not reasonable people.
There was a LOT of stuff like this and it made me want to bang my head against a wall because Trump is probably the least religious person ever. Hillary Clinton is a pretty serious Methodist! I assume this is code for "says he's against abortion and won't force us to bake cakes for gays." But even if it isn't, the idea that Trump would be the guy to bring God back is bonkers.
That would be "The White Nationalist"...
This would be Jess, "The Christian", whose section of the book probably made me want to bang my head against a wall more than any other. There was a lot of this from her--if Trump did something, well "meh, we're all sinners", but Democrats are pure evil.
Also Jess. Jess thinks Trump was chosen by God to be president.
This was "The Congressman" in a speech introducing Trump at a rally. I think I yelled out loud at the book at this point. Has anyone EVER told any of these people they are not *allowed* to say Merry Christmas? I doubt it. It's just that they get offended when other people say Happy Holidays or when cups are red or whatever.
I read this on Kindle and found myself constantly highlighting and then writing a rebuttal in the Notes section. Sometimes, when reading a particularly mind-boggling quote, my note was just "lolololololol." Not very empathetic, huh? I did not come away from this book feeling more empathy for Trump supporters, though I did feel some for Ray, husband of "The Christian", Jess. Ray is an ultra-conservative who has extremely different values than I do, but he sure hates Trump and thinks it's a travesty that so many evangelical leaders support him. He has apparently done the unthinkable and turned to Rachel Maddow during this awful time, and Jess is horrified. Anyway, what I concluded was that if I am going to feel empathy for Trump supporters it is NOT going to come from reading hundreds of pages of them spouting their political views, along with things like "Obama's a Muslim" and "we need to bring God back into government."
I did appreciate very much that Bradlee also talked to local Democrats and people of color about how they felt, surrounded by people who have become emboldened by this president. I think that perspective was well-needed after everything I had just slogged through. He also points out in the epilogue that Trump lies all the time and that he's been able to convince his base that anything bad they hear about his is "fake news", though he doesn't really seem to have gotten into this with many of his interview subjects. He also highlights how non-white people in the Rust Belt who also experienced economic anxiety were totally left out of the narratives that only focused on the white working class.
Is The Forgotten worth reading? Maybe, because it's good to understand what's out there, and if you like reading about politics as much as I do, and it does help explain the place people were in that made them susceptible to Trump. But it's not always pleasant, and I do not think it's the kind of thing that's actually going to foster empathy and compassion in either direction--though I wish conservatives were reading as many deep dives into the minds of people who feel scared of and offended by Trump as liberals are of Trump supporters.
This was frustrating to read. It's a look at Trump voters in Luzerne County, PA, which was is made up of many people who were historically Democrats, but ended up being pivotal in Trump's electoral college win. It's divided up between different interview subjects--some ordinary "Trump Men" and "Trump Women" as well as people like "The Congressman", "The Christian", "The Veteran", and even (sigh) "The White Nationalist."
Many of these would start out sort of reasonable with concerns about the economy and job losses and some traditional values stuff and then--BAM--they would say something like "well, I can't believe the mainstream media anymore, so I have to go to Brietbart and Alex Jones for my news." How can you reason with a person that thinks Alex Jones is a legitimate news source? You can't! Anyway, a lot of them repeated demonstrable falsehoods or supported Trump because of issues that he is not doing anything to actually help them--or in especially the case of "The Christian" and "The White Nationalist" said things that I found repugnant on a really deep level.
Here are some choice quotes:
“Wait. Before you think I’m racist,” Kim adds, “my brother is married to a multiracial girl. So I’m not a racist.”
Lol, okay Kim.
Then Brian added an interesting twist: that journalists, in their zeal to sink Trump’s candidacy, reported on what he said too literally rather than trying to glean, as Brian says he and other supporters did, what Trump actually meant to say. So, while his rhetoric may have sounded incendiary or racist to some people, it really was not, if you knew how to decode it.
Um, okay.
“We need a guy who’s gonna cut through the shit, who’s a businessman. So he went bankrupt a few times. That’s what businesses do.”
Since the theory seems to be that he will run the country like a business, this is NOT a comforting sentiment.
“Yes, there is a lot of voter fraud. I heard Obama say, ‘All you immigrants come in and vote.’ Governor Terry McAuliffe in Virginia let the prisoners vote. So yes, I believe Trump when he says there were 3.5 million illegal votes. I think that’s somewhat conservative, actually.
Ed also questions the official versions of the Oklahoma City bombing and the Boston Marathon bombings, and embraces the unfounded theory that liberal billionaire George Soros paid Black Lives Matter $30 million to protest in Ferguson, Missouri, and Baltimore.
Stuff like this only serves to reinforce the idea that these are not reasonable people.
She felt that Trump would strengthen the military, which had been downsized too much, and that he would slow the secularization of the nation and allow God back into the culture. “Removing God creates a vacuum filled by evil,” she says.
There was a LOT of stuff like this and it made me want to bang my head against a wall because Trump is probably the least religious person ever. Hillary Clinton is a pretty serious Methodist! I assume this is code for "says he's against abortion and won't force us to bake cakes for gays." But even if it isn't, the idea that Trump would be the guy to bring God back is bonkers.
But it seems the Constitution no longer applies to racially aware whites.
That would be "The White Nationalist"...
During the campaign, she dismissed Trump’s history as a womanizer and his crudeness, saying, “We’re all sinners.”
God may not be a Republican but he darn sure isn’t a Democrat! He couldn’t be a Democrat because they stand for gay marriage, entitlements, Disability City, abortion, the feminist movement, unions, high taxes, and they’re against capitalism.”
This would be Jess, "The Christian", whose section of the book probably made me want to bang my head against a wall more than any other. There was a lot of this from her--if Trump did something, well "meh, we're all sinners", but Democrats are pure evil.
I think you guys, the media, don’t realize how apple pie America really is. The liberal Left has an agenda to marginalize the Christian history of this nation. Gay marriage equates to a rapid decline of moral values and encourages the downward spiral of a nation.
Also Jess. Jess thinks Trump was chosen by God to be president.
And Jess wrongly believed that Obama had shunned the annual National Prayer Breakfast, a Christian mainstay, when actually he attended every year he was in office.
And this is the last chance that we’ll have to say ‘Merry Christmas’ if we want to say ‘Merry Christmas,’ and we don’t have to apologize to anybody!
This was "The Congressman" in a speech introducing Trump at a rally. I think I yelled out loud at the book at this point. Has anyone EVER told any of these people they are not *allowed* to say Merry Christmas? I doubt it. It's just that they get offended when other people say Happy Holidays or when cups are red or whatever.
Ron Felton, a former NAACP leader in Wilkes-Barre, says, “It feels different here under Trump now. You get the sense there’s been an emboldenment among whites, not just in Luzerne but throughout Pennsylvania—a spiking of the football, a sense of, ‘We’re going to put you back in your place.’”
Johanna’s daughter, Alia Habib, has left Wilkes-Barre for New York and is glad she did. But she remains a keen observer of her hometown and is critical of what she thought was overly gauzy campaign press coverage that portrayed white working-class Trump voters in Luzerne County as the only ones who have endured hardships in the postindustrial Rust Belt. In this narrative, she says, Arab Americans like her and other minorities are cut out of the story entirely.
I read this on Kindle and found myself constantly highlighting and then writing a rebuttal in the Notes section. Sometimes, when reading a particularly mind-boggling quote, my note was just "lolololololol." Not very empathetic, huh? I did not come away from this book feeling more empathy for Trump supporters, though I did feel some for Ray, husband of "The Christian", Jess. Ray is an ultra-conservative who has extremely different values than I do, but he sure hates Trump and thinks it's a travesty that so many evangelical leaders support him. He has apparently done the unthinkable and turned to Rachel Maddow during this awful time, and Jess is horrified. Anyway, what I concluded was that if I am going to feel empathy for Trump supporters it is NOT going to come from reading hundreds of pages of them spouting their political views, along with things like "Obama's a Muslim" and "we need to bring God back into government."
I did appreciate very much that Bradlee also talked to local Democrats and people of color about how they felt, surrounded by people who have become emboldened by this president. I think that perspective was well-needed after everything I had just slogged through. He also points out in the epilogue that Trump lies all the time and that he's been able to convince his base that anything bad they hear about his is "fake news", though he doesn't really seem to have gotten into this with many of his interview subjects. He also highlights how non-white people in the Rust Belt who also experienced economic anxiety were totally left out of the narratives that only focused on the white working class.
Is The Forgotten worth reading? Maybe, because it's good to understand what's out there, and if you like reading about politics as much as I do, and it does help explain the place people were in that made them susceptible to Trump. But it's not always pleasant, and I do not think it's the kind of thing that's actually going to foster empathy and compassion in either direction--though I wish conservatives were reading as many deep dives into the minds of people who feel scared of and offended by Trump as liberals are of Trump supporters.
October 3, 2018
I am very interested in politics and the psychology of partisanship. I find it interesting and read a lot of nonfiction books that cover these subjects.
I was really looking forward to reading The Forgotten: How the People of One Pennsylvania County Elected Donald Trump and Changed America.
I'm interested in the how and why.
And while this book had potential, I have to rate it a one star for the sheer lack of fact-checking done by the author. It seems like this should be a given, particularly in this climate of fake news and fake narratives and his experience in journalism, but when chapters discuss people other than the subject of the chapter and those individuals are not contacted to fact-check, it simply does not pass the smell test for me.
Disappointing. I expected much more.
I was really looking forward to reading The Forgotten: How the People of One Pennsylvania County Elected Donald Trump and Changed America.
I'm interested in the how and why.
And while this book had potential, I have to rate it a one star for the sheer lack of fact-checking done by the author. It seems like this should be a given, particularly in this climate of fake news and fake narratives and his experience in journalism, but when chapters discuss people other than the subject of the chapter and those individuals are not contacted to fact-check, it simply does not pass the smell test for me.
Disappointing. I expected much more.
July 28, 2023
A must read.
October 20, 2018
I am loving this book - the voices of those in Luzerne County, Pa. who provided Donald Trump's winning margin to win the Pennsylvania in the 2016 presidential election. It's then voices of dozens of people with Democratic roots who decided that Trump would bring the fundamental change in American government that they had long hoped for. These are the voices that somehow the NYTimes, Washington Post and all major networks didn't hear during the campaign and the years prior to it. Bradlee in numerous visits to the county got the people to trust him with their frustrations and he tells their stories with a newsman's empathy and interest. If you know someone who hopes to be a political reporter have them read this book. If you know someone who may vote for the first time in coming years, have them read this book. It's that good.
March 1, 2019
If you don't want to read the full review, here's the quick summary:
I was disappointed and depressed by what I learned from reading this book.
However, it has nothing to do with the writing of Ben Bradlee Jr. He doesn't appear to be pushing any agenda -- just sharing what he learned from speaking at length to a cross-section of Trump voters in a northeastern Pennsylvania county. I thought the writing was as objective as good journalism should be, including some analysis in the conclusion but minimal injection of the writer's opinion throughout. He seems to let people speak and doesn't challenge them much on their statements, even when they are inaccurate or outrageous.
I picked up this book in an effort to get some answers to a question that has baffled me since the 2016 election --- how could so many good people help elect a bad President?
I'm not talking about the block of voters that you just knew would vote for him (white supremacists, racists, anti-immigration and anti-abortion advocates). I mean the other people -- the ones with good hearts who somehow overlooked his racism, his misogyny, his narcissism, his prejudice against Hispanics, the disrespect for government institutions, and the lies, lies, lies - - and decided to give him "a pass" and vote for him anyway.
I did not see, hear, or read about a single thing during the Presidential campaign to make me think that Trump was a capable candidate. Prior to the election, I found him to be a self-serving boor (The Apprentice, ugh - - poorly scripted reality television to push his brand and name). During the election I developed a more specific dislike for his character and manner. Every day brought evidence of more reasons to vote against him - - and it was well-documented, not manufactured as he wanted everyone to believe. Since then, his actions and statements have done nothing to change my mind - - they only reinforce the fact that he's the worst President in my lifetime.
Bradlee focused on interviewing Trump voters in Luzerne County, an area that has seen better times. Once a hub for the thriving coal mining industry, it later lost crucial manufacturing jobs, experienced a higher unemployment rate in comparison to the rest of the state and country, and saw a once predominant white community turn into a minority majority. It's a fairly balanced cross-section of participants in terms of sex, occupation and education - - but did not include any minorities or younger participants. Maybe Bradlee couldn't find any who voted for Trump? He does provide some interview responses from Democratic voters near the end of the book, and this cross-section is much more diverse.
The majority of the Trump supporters that Bradlee interviewed feel that Trump spoke to them and stoods up for their values. They loved his antagonisic, simple approach. By and large they felt neglected by government, less important and often mocked. They wanted respect and Trump seemed to be giving it to them.
There's a telling quote from one of the participants that Bradlee uses to close out his epilogue: "People fall in love with their therapist because they want to be heard, and they want to be heard without judgment, says Tiffany Cloud. "I think people felt Donald Trump heard them without judgment."
I seriously doubt that Trump will be providing any answers or solutions for Luzerne County. Except for the voters who feel that the problems are caused by immigration and minorities, he hasn't initiated or addressed their issues. Sadly, too many of the responses that Bradlee documents here point to those two issues as the reason those voters supported Trump: immigration and minorities.
Another problem, I believe, is the way that voters receive and process information these days. Not enough people reads the news anymore, just the headlines. Not enough check the facts. Not enough do research on an issue. That makes it easier for campaigners to push slogans, catchphrases and incite crowds with fear and hate mongering.
The other issue as I see it is the age of avoidance that we seem to live in. Nobody wants to have a discussion when they disagree, or even attempt to explain their point of view to the other person. They'd rather walk away. Couples don't work out marital issues, they just run away from each other.
When it comes to politics, everybody wants to surround themselves with like-minded individuals and screen their incoming news for only the bits that support their point of view. Discourse is a lost art. That also makes it easier for the liars to keep doing what they do best: lie without consequences.
The saddest part of The Forgotten are the interviews Bradlee did with the participants after eighteen months of the Trump presidency. With only a few exceptions, Trump still receives high approval. All but one of the participants said they would vote for Trump again in 2020. So, if he continues to portray himself as the victim of a biased press and the Democratic party, and combines that with the same lies, he might win again.
That's a horrible thought. I think the next book I need to read is some escapist fare, perhaps a good heroic fantasy.
I was disappointed and depressed by what I learned from reading this book.
However, it has nothing to do with the writing of Ben Bradlee Jr. He doesn't appear to be pushing any agenda -- just sharing what he learned from speaking at length to a cross-section of Trump voters in a northeastern Pennsylvania county. I thought the writing was as objective as good journalism should be, including some analysis in the conclusion but minimal injection of the writer's opinion throughout. He seems to let people speak and doesn't challenge them much on their statements, even when they are inaccurate or outrageous.
I picked up this book in an effort to get some answers to a question that has baffled me since the 2016 election --- how could so many good people help elect a bad President?
I'm not talking about the block of voters that you just knew would vote for him (white supremacists, racists, anti-immigration and anti-abortion advocates). I mean the other people -- the ones with good hearts who somehow overlooked his racism, his misogyny, his narcissism, his prejudice against Hispanics, the disrespect for government institutions, and the lies, lies, lies - - and decided to give him "a pass" and vote for him anyway.
I did not see, hear, or read about a single thing during the Presidential campaign to make me think that Trump was a capable candidate. Prior to the election, I found him to be a self-serving boor (The Apprentice, ugh - - poorly scripted reality television to push his brand and name). During the election I developed a more specific dislike for his character and manner. Every day brought evidence of more reasons to vote against him - - and it was well-documented, not manufactured as he wanted everyone to believe. Since then, his actions and statements have done nothing to change my mind - - they only reinforce the fact that he's the worst President in my lifetime.
Bradlee focused on interviewing Trump voters in Luzerne County, an area that has seen better times. Once a hub for the thriving coal mining industry, it later lost crucial manufacturing jobs, experienced a higher unemployment rate in comparison to the rest of the state and country, and saw a once predominant white community turn into a minority majority. It's a fairly balanced cross-section of participants in terms of sex, occupation and education - - but did not include any minorities or younger participants. Maybe Bradlee couldn't find any who voted for Trump? He does provide some interview responses from Democratic voters near the end of the book, and this cross-section is much more diverse.
The majority of the Trump supporters that Bradlee interviewed feel that Trump spoke to them and stoods up for their values. They loved his antagonisic, simple approach. By and large they felt neglected by government, less important and often mocked. They wanted respect and Trump seemed to be giving it to them.
There's a telling quote from one of the participants that Bradlee uses to close out his epilogue: "People fall in love with their therapist because they want to be heard, and they want to be heard without judgment, says Tiffany Cloud. "I think people felt Donald Trump heard them without judgment."
I seriously doubt that Trump will be providing any answers or solutions for Luzerne County. Except for the voters who feel that the problems are caused by immigration and minorities, he hasn't initiated or addressed their issues. Sadly, too many of the responses that Bradlee documents here point to those two issues as the reason those voters supported Trump: immigration and minorities.
Another problem, I believe, is the way that voters receive and process information these days. Not enough people reads the news anymore, just the headlines. Not enough check the facts. Not enough do research on an issue. That makes it easier for campaigners to push slogans, catchphrases and incite crowds with fear and hate mongering.
The other issue as I see it is the age of avoidance that we seem to live in. Nobody wants to have a discussion when they disagree, or even attempt to explain their point of view to the other person. They'd rather walk away. Couples don't work out marital issues, they just run away from each other.
When it comes to politics, everybody wants to surround themselves with like-minded individuals and screen their incoming news for only the bits that support their point of view. Discourse is a lost art. That also makes it easier for the liars to keep doing what they do best: lie without consequences.
The saddest part of The Forgotten are the interviews Bradlee did with the participants after eighteen months of the Trump presidency. With only a few exceptions, Trump still receives high approval. All but one of the participants said they would vote for Trump again in 2020. So, if he continues to portray himself as the victim of a biased press and the Democratic party, and combines that with the same lies, he might win again.
That's a horrible thought. I think the next book I need to read is some escapist fare, perhaps a good heroic fantasy.
October 19, 2018
Ben Bradlee, Jr. encapsulated the 2016 election by zeroing in on the people Luzerne County, Pennsylvania and he nailed it! As someone who was born, raised and still living in the county, I can honestly say the author's unbiased writing gives the reader a true picture of our Valley, its tough spirit, local pride, and unparalleled essence, warts and all!
October 21, 2018
Ben Bradlee Jr.’s “The Forgotten” should be required reading for any Democrat still seeking to understand how the party lost the last presidential election and what it needs to do to win the next time around. But this is neither abstract political analysis nor another exercise in op-ed hand-wringing. Instead, it’s a thoroughly reported, up-close-and-personal look at the people who voted for Donald Trump – many of them dyed in the wool Democrats – and the reasons for their individual decisions.
To glean this knowledge, Bradlee, a former reporter and editor for The Boston Globe (and for a time, my editor), did what too many journalists failed to do during the presidential campaign – hoist a notebook, leave the office, and strive to get to know people outside the east and west coast metropolitan areas where most major media reporters work and live.
He landed in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, a bell weather county in a bell weather state that even Trump thought he would lose. And he found a story about hard-pressed Americans left behind by globalization and the new, technology-driven economy, and unsettled by rapid demographic change. In the end, Bradlee provides something all-too-rare in today’s pugnacious political discourse – an empathic look at both sides of an increasingly divided America.
– Mike Rezendes
To glean this knowledge, Bradlee, a former reporter and editor for The Boston Globe (and for a time, my editor), did what too many journalists failed to do during the presidential campaign – hoist a notebook, leave the office, and strive to get to know people outside the east and west coast metropolitan areas where most major media reporters work and live.
He landed in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, a bell weather county in a bell weather state that even Trump thought he would lose. And he found a story about hard-pressed Americans left behind by globalization and the new, technology-driven economy, and unsettled by rapid demographic change. In the end, Bradlee provides something all-too-rare in today’s pugnacious political discourse – an empathic look at both sides of an increasingly divided America.
– Mike Rezendes
October 27, 2018
If you are confused about how American politics has arrived at this conflicted, troubling place I cannot recommend Ben Bradlee's new book, The Forgotten, highly enough. Meticulously researched it is the story of how Luzerne County, Pennsylvania -near where my family's roots reside - came to become a focal point of Trump support. It's filled with history and provides important perspective. Read it while you wait for the midterm results. We're all in this together. We need to understand each other.
October 14, 2018
Finally a honest and unbiased look at the real reason Donald Trump is in the White House. The raw and real feelings of the "characters" in the book are a realistic look at middle America and the struggles and experiences they face every day. They came together from all walks of life and shared a common bond. This had nothing to do with party affiliation. Donald Trump was a different kind of candidate and that was what attracted people to watching and listening. Finally, someone who wanted to put America's needs first.
Their love and pride of their country was the driving force behind this movement. Donald Trump listened! Great job by Ben Bradlee Jr. in capturing the real story in this historic election.
Their love and pride of their country was the driving force behind this movement. Donald Trump listened! Great job by Ben Bradlee Jr. in capturing the real story in this historic election.
July 16, 2018
I received this book as an advanced reader's copy and our readers nor myself did not find this book to be neither informative nor insightful by any sense of the imagination. We felt like this book was solely bias written in one person's point of view and provided no form of reference nor counterpoint to the theme of the story. We usually don't rate these types of books so low but in this case, we have to give it 1 star!
October 24, 2018
For Democrats, this book will likely evoke confusion and fury; for Trump voters, glee and a sense of conviction. Whatever your political leaning, though, this book is required reading for those seeking to understand the Trump phenomenon of 2016.
Ben Bradlee Jr. painstakingly paints a picture of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, a largely rural enclave in northeastern Pennsylvania that has seen jobs wither away, drugs enter the streets, and hope & optimism replaced by frustrations & fear. Within that landscape, Bradlee tracks the lives and votes of a cast of characters who voted for Trump - men; women; Christians; union members; white nationalists; and veterans.
What screams off the page through so many of Bradlee's interviews is the angst felt by these Trump voters, down to their very bones. They are convinced that Democrats and Republicans alike had tossed them aside, shipped their jobs overseas, made them feel neglected while minorities hogged more and more attention and government benefits. Trump spoke to these people directly, succinctly, and on their level - tapping into their anger in a way the staid personalities of Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton never could.
These voters insist they are not racist, nor fascists nor Neo-Nazis. They saw their community fall apart before their eyes, heard the siren call of a bygone, idealized era of the past, and voted for a wild gamble rather than more of the same medicine.
Most surprising of all in these pages are the references made to union-member families and lineages filled with card-carrying Democrats. While voters of the '50s and '60s may have thought of the political paradigm in terms of the Democrats standing up for the working class and Republicans standing up for the rich, that has long since dissipated. These voters now see Democrats as elitist, out-of-touch, and consumed by causes other than their own.
Readers would do well to pause after reading these interviews and reflect on their own gnarled post-2016 friendships, frayed in the aftermath of Trump-related arguments. Heartbreaking is the word that comes to mind when reading about families and friends torn asunder by political disagreements, a reflection that mirrors the years leading to the Civil War more than the calm picture of American exceptionalism in vogue in brighter times.
Bradlee extends a colorful, compact hand out to voters of all kinds with this book. Reconciliation begins with understanding: if you want to understand Trump and his voters, learn about their grievances, and develop a way to talk with them rather than at them, this is where to start.
Ben Bradlee Jr. painstakingly paints a picture of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, a largely rural enclave in northeastern Pennsylvania that has seen jobs wither away, drugs enter the streets, and hope & optimism replaced by frustrations & fear. Within that landscape, Bradlee tracks the lives and votes of a cast of characters who voted for Trump - men; women; Christians; union members; white nationalists; and veterans.
What screams off the page through so many of Bradlee's interviews is the angst felt by these Trump voters, down to their very bones. They are convinced that Democrats and Republicans alike had tossed them aside, shipped their jobs overseas, made them feel neglected while minorities hogged more and more attention and government benefits. Trump spoke to these people directly, succinctly, and on their level - tapping into their anger in a way the staid personalities of Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton never could.
These voters insist they are not racist, nor fascists nor Neo-Nazis. They saw their community fall apart before their eyes, heard the siren call of a bygone, idealized era of the past, and voted for a wild gamble rather than more of the same medicine.
Most surprising of all in these pages are the references made to union-member families and lineages filled with card-carrying Democrats. While voters of the '50s and '60s may have thought of the political paradigm in terms of the Democrats standing up for the working class and Republicans standing up for the rich, that has long since dissipated. These voters now see Democrats as elitist, out-of-touch, and consumed by causes other than their own.
Readers would do well to pause after reading these interviews and reflect on their own gnarled post-2016 friendships, frayed in the aftermath of Trump-related arguments. Heartbreaking is the word that comes to mind when reading about families and friends torn asunder by political disagreements, a reflection that mirrors the years leading to the Civil War more than the calm picture of American exceptionalism in vogue in brighter times.
Bradlee extends a colorful, compact hand out to voters of all kinds with this book. Reconciliation begins with understanding: if you want to understand Trump and his voters, learn about their grievances, and develop a way to talk with them rather than at them, this is where to start.
October 14, 2018
There wasn't "anything new" in here per-se for me. I had listened before and even in 2016 I was not surprised that Trump got it. There were enough warnings in the run-up that were ignored.
Will this book make a change? Maybe, maybe not. The author at the end gives the same advice that others have given to the democrats: Stand for things, not against them, listen to the people you seem to despise etc. I am not sure this book will have a bigger impact than the others that were written before, but time will tell.
An additional note: A reviewer gave a one star review citing that the author wasn't "honest" in their reporting, on a follow up it turns out that one of the people being interviewed seems to have had a strained relationship with the family before Trump. The reason for the low review was apparently that the author was notified about this but didn't reflect it in the book.
This is an interesting question for me, should this affect the value of the book? I don't think so. Ultimately he transcribed that woman's words and presented them to the reader. It is quite possible that the way she sees the relationship is indeed coloured around Trump and how the rest of the family responds to him, or not. For the purpose of this book their interpersonal relationship does not matter. People who support Trump and read how apparently she is good and her grand son is the "typical Hillary supporter" it won't make a difference. They "already know".
For people who are Hillary (or not-Trump) supporters who read it won't suddenly become Trump supports just because of this. Stories like this have been out ever since he got nominated, so the impact of this will be pretty nil.
It probably would have been good form for the author to acknowledge the difference in view points, even if it would have just been a one liner along: "The family disagrees with the way X describes their relationship." But in my estimation it does not affect the message and insight of the book overall.
Will this book make a change? Maybe, maybe not. The author at the end gives the same advice that others have given to the democrats: Stand for things, not against them, listen to the people you seem to despise etc. I am not sure this book will have a bigger impact than the others that were written before, but time will tell.
An additional note: A reviewer gave a one star review citing that the author wasn't "honest" in their reporting, on a follow up it turns out that one of the people being interviewed seems to have had a strained relationship with the family before Trump. The reason for the low review was apparently that the author was notified about this but didn't reflect it in the book.
This is an interesting question for me, should this affect the value of the book? I don't think so. Ultimately he transcribed that woman's words and presented them to the reader. It is quite possible that the way she sees the relationship is indeed coloured around Trump and how the rest of the family responds to him, or not. For the purpose of this book their interpersonal relationship does not matter. People who support Trump and read how apparently she is good and her grand son is the "typical Hillary supporter" it won't make a difference. They "already know".
For people who are Hillary (or not-Trump) supporters who read it won't suddenly become Trump supports just because of this. Stories like this have been out ever since he got nominated, so the impact of this will be pretty nil.
It probably would have been good form for the author to acknowledge the difference in view points, even if it would have just been a one liner along: "The family disagrees with the way X describes their relationship." But in my estimation it does not affect the message and insight of the book overall.
December 6, 2018
Bradlee's interviewees could more fittingly be referred to as forgettables rather than the forgotten. They're by and large a group of uneducated, racist, morons with baffling senses of entitlement. We get a steady dose of tropes about American superiority, how Democrats have become communists, how non-whites are all takers, blah blah blah. Unfortunately our system affords these losers enough political clout to elect bum representatives.
Bradlee offers nothing new or dynamic. This is little more than a collection of interview transcripts. There are no analyses, little in the way of conclusions, and most frustratingly, Bradlee seems to make no effort to challenge any of his subjects' asinine assertions.
Not recommended.
Bradlee offers nothing new or dynamic. This is little more than a collection of interview transcripts. There are no analyses, little in the way of conclusions, and most frustratingly, Bradlee seems to make no effort to challenge any of his subjects' asinine assertions.
Not recommended.
January 9, 2021
If you want to get inside the heads of Trump voters, this is the book to read. The author explores Luzerne County, PA, including cities like Wilke-Barre, in a rust belt area with Spanish-speaking immigrants, and lets everyone speak for themselves. He interjects an editorial voice only slightly, to point out falsehoods among various claims. Progressives won't like what you hear, but in my experience living in the DASEIN of Western PA, he captures the 'lifeworld,' the 'in-der-welt-zein' of what we are up against, rather authentically. The Trump bloc is not monolithic, and we can see fault lines to divide it, and perhaps even win a slim minority of them back to the progressive side.
July 19, 2019
I was a newspaperman in this county from 1980-94 so I eagerly devoured this insightful explanation of how blue collar voters so eagerly embraced Donald Trump in 2016. Bradlee captures the sentiments of The Forgotten who I remember. His book makes clear the disgust that working people have with our national politics. His subjects are not wild-eyed radicals but real people who have been left behind and repeatedly lied too. And if you read it today, nearly three years later, it’s clear today’s Democrats have no answers that will assuage these voters.
October 22, 2018
A good, well-researched, and occasionally poignant look at Trump’s appeal on a Pennsylvania county, which is a case study for his election victory writ large. Bradlee does a great job making these people appear human, reasonable, thoughtful, and occasionally justified in their positions. Those interviewed are not (with two notable exceptions) “deplorables” but rather normal people who voted in accordance with their self-interest. The book helps tremendously in my understanding of what happened in 2016. It helps the author keeps his thoughts on Don to himself.
November 1, 2018
I was disappointed in this book. It is essentially a series of interviews the author did with about a dozen folks who live around Wilkes-Barre, PA about why they voted for Trump. I thought the interviews, and the reasoning behind them were not only repetitive, but that they offered little new insight.
There was also little to no editorial comment or interpretation on the part of the author. At no point did draw conclusions or prescribe a fix.
The one thing that stuck out for me, in a sad, rueful way is how many of these Trump voters said, referring to his outrageous opinions and outright falsehoods, that one needed to figure out what he *really* meant. i.e., He didn’t really mean that Mexicans were criminals and rapists.
There was also little to no editorial comment or interpretation on the part of the author. At no point did draw conclusions or prescribe a fix.
The one thing that stuck out for me, in a sad, rueful way is how many of these Trump voters said, referring to his outrageous opinions and outright falsehoods, that one needed to figure out what he *really* meant. i.e., He didn’t really mean that Mexicans were criminals and rapists.
September 24, 2019
I think every Democrat should read this book. I was so heartbroken after Trump won the election. This book helps explain why it happened, and will likely happen again in 2020, to the detriment of all of us.
Read
January 27, 2021I would have forgotten a lot of these losers, too. Joe’s going to have his work cut out for him to bring these folks into the 21st century.
December 30, 2018
Immensely readable examination of representative members of various constituencies
Of Donald Trump in the 2016 election, in the area around Wilkes Barre, Pa.
These people are well-spoken and articulate. With one exception, they are not racists or white supremacists. They are not “deplorable.” Democratic strategists should read their accounts so as to
run an effective campaign in 2020. And anyone asking what is/was the appeal of Trump to millions of voters will find some answers here.
Of Donald Trump in the 2016 election, in the area around Wilkes Barre, Pa.
These people are well-spoken and articulate. With one exception, they are not racists or white supremacists. They are not “deplorable.” Democratic strategists should read their accounts so as to
run an effective campaign in 2020. And anyone asking what is/was the appeal of Trump to millions of voters will find some answers here.
June 2, 2019
What a great insight into members of a community who made the choice to vote in the 2016 for Donald Trump when in the past, Luzerne County voters cast their ballots for a Democrat. Ben Bradlee Jr. gave readers a lot to digest in this book. Kudos to the interviewees for giving their time to Mr. Bradlee to what motivated them to vote for Mr. Trump in the 2016 Presidential election and to Mr. Bradlee for conducting some great and thoughtful interviews. Definitely a must read!!!!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 80 reviews