Zero Fail

The Rise and Fall of the Secret Service

De: Carol Leonnig

Narrado por: Maggi-Meg Reed, Carol Leonnig

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The first definitive account of the rise and fall of the Secret Service, from the Kennedy assassination to the alarming lapses of the Obama and Trump years—from Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Carol Leonnig
 
“This book is a wake-up call, and a valuable study of a critically important agency.”—The New York Times

A WASHINGTON POST BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
 
Carol Leonnig reported on the Secret Service for nearly a decade, bringing to light the secrets, scandals, and shortcomings that plague the agency today—from a toxic workplace culture to dangerously outdated equipment to the deep resentment within the ranks at key agency leaders, who put protecting the agency’s once-hallowed image before fixing its flaws.

The Secret Service was born in 1865, in the wake of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, but its story begins in earnest in 1963, with the death of John F. Kennedy. Shocked into reform by its failure to protect the president on that fateful day in Dallas, this once-sleepy agency was radically transformed into an elite, highly trained unit that would redeem itself several times, most famously in 1981 by thwarting an assassination attempt against Ronald Reagan. But by Barack Obama’s presidency, the once-proud Secret Service was running on fumes and beset by mismanagement and mistakes in judgement: break-ins at the White House, an armed gunman firing into the windows of the residence while confused agents stood by, and a massive prostitution scandal among agents in Cartagena, to name just a few. With Donald Trump’s arrival, a series of promised reforms were cast aside, as a president disdainful of public service instead abused the Secret Service to rack up political and personal gains.
 
To explore these problems in the ranks, Leonnig interviewed dozens of current and former agents, government officials, and whistleblowers who put their jobs on the line to speak out about a hobbled agency that is in desperate need of reform.

Reseñas de la Crítica

“This book is a wake-up call, and a valuable study of a critically important agency.”—The New York Times

“Zero Fail is an important book, one that will ruffle feathers in need of ruffling and that will be useful to legislators, policymakers and historians alike.”—The Washington Post

“Here is journalism as a true and honest public service. . . . [Zero Fail] is just terrific.”—The Wall Street Journal

“Terrifying . . . There is certainly heroism here, and there are certainly plots that were foiled, and there are certainly instances of an agency in the moment being well run and foiling an attack and chasing something down and being on top of stuff. But there is an astonishing litany of stuff they have done wrong and scrapes we have narrowly avoided in this country by the skin of our teeth and through sheer luck. . . . It just flips your stomach up and down. This is one of those books that will go down as the seminal work—the determinative work—in this field.”—Rachel Maddow

Who knew!

This is an absolute great read. Insight into a world we would never know about except fir this book. We assume we are the best provide the best. This book explains a lot. I hope a change is gonna come!

I had to get use to the readers. I understand why—but a little pep in the voice wouldn’t change the understanding. I realize Maggie island Carol had to sound alike but I wish otherwise.

Awakening

Highly recommended reading specially for taxpayers who work all year so that few can enjoy the earnings of others.
Excellent performance by Carol Leonning with her writing. Simple, clear, objective and above all very professional.

SHOCKING

This book has changed many of my preconceptions about the Kennedy assassination and my view of the Secret Service.

Authors performance

This is a tough one to write but the cadence and performance of the author reading the intro and the last section is a tough listen. I appreciate that the last section was an update including the Trump years but, my guess is that the original reader was probably still available.

Amazing

I believe Carol Leonnig did an outstanding job researching information for this book. I'm not sure why some of the reviews have been so negative about her portion of the narration. I was very impressed with the entire book, although it sickens me to hear of the waste and poor choices made by some of the Presidents. I hope that changes are made as a result of this book so that the Secret Service can be the best protection for our Presidents. I'm not sure that I believe it should be responsible for a lot of the protection they provide and I certainly don't believe any President should make money on the housing of the housing of those assigned to them nor should the taxpayers be expected to pay these costs!