Michael Isikoff & David Corn, Russian Roulette

Bookshop Santa Cruz welcomes Michael Isikoff and David Corn—”Two of the best and most accomplished investigative reporters of their generation…[A] superpower reporting team” (Rachel Maddow)—for a discussion and signing of their #1 New York Timesbestseller Russian Roulette.

TWO OF AMERICA’S TOP REPORTERS AND THE EXPLOSIVE UNTOLD STORY OF THE TRUMP PRESIDENCY

The incredible, harrowing account of how American democracy was hacked by Moscow as part of a covert operation to influence the U.S. election and help Donald Trump gain the presidency.

RUSSIAN ROULETTE covers the bizarre events and relationships, explains the stakes, and reveals how a foreign government nefariously infiltrated the country’s political process and helped alter the future of America.

• What were Trump’s business deals in Russia—and how did they really come about?
• What was the huge business deal Trump signed with a Putin-connected oligarch and what happened to it?
• Who was the secret Russian government source who alerted U.S. officials that Putin planned to mount an extensive covert operation to undermine American democracy—and why didn’t the Obama administration act on this tip-off?
• Why did Vladimir Putin hold a grudge against Hillary Clinton— and how did that influence his decision to order a cyber-attack on the U.S. election?
• What role did Russian social media trolls play in the 2016 election—and how did they secretly influence the highest levels of the Trump campaign?
• How did Obama and his aides react to the intelligence showing Putin hacked the 2016 campaign? What did they fear the most? And why didn’t Obama respond more forcefully?
• What was the secret plan that White House officials prepared to strike back against Putin and why did a senior Obama aide order it shelved?
• Why were Hillary Clinton campaign officials so worried about the FBI that they wouldn’t meet with FBI agents to discuss Russian cyber-attacks against her campaign?
• Why did it take nine months for the Democratic National Committee to do something about Moscow’s penetration of its computer system?

RUSSIAN ROULETTE is a story of political skullduggery un­precedented in American history. It weaves together tales of international intrigue, cyber espionage, and superpower rivalry. After U.S.-Russia relations soured, as Vladimir Putin moved to reassert Russian strength on the global stage, Moscow trained its best hackers on U.S. political targets and exploited WikiLeaks to disseminate information that could affect the 2016 campaign. The Russians were wildly successful, and the great break-in of 2016 was no “third rate burglary.” It was far more sophisticated and sinister—a brazen act of political espionage designed to interfere with the election. At the end of the day, Trump, the candidate who pursued business deals with Russia, won. And millions of Americans were left wondering what the hell happened?

This gripping and behind-the-scenes story of high-tech spying and political crisis takes the reader inside the White House, the Kremlin, the U.S. intelligence community, the Trump and Clinton campaigns, and both political parties. It chronicles the strange relationship between Trump and Putin and the ties between Trump’s inner circle—including Paul Manafort, Donald Trump Jr., Michael Flynn, and Jared Kushner—and the Russians.

This free event will take place at Bookshop Santa Cruz with open seating. Chairs for open seating are usually set up an hour before the event begins.