The knockdown, drag-out, untold story of the other scandal that rocked Nixon's White House, and reset the rules for crooked presidents to come-with new reporting that expands on Rachel Maddow's Peabody Award-nominated podcast
Rachel Maddowis host of the Emmy Award-winningRachel Maddow Showon
MSNBC, as well as the#1New York Timesbestsellingauthor ofDrift- The
Unmooring of American Military Power;Blowout-Corrupted Democracy,
Rogue State Russia, and the Richest, Most Destructive Industry on
Earth;andBag Man-The Wild Crimes, Audacious Cover-Up, and
Spectacular Downfall of a Brazen Crook in the White House. Maddow
received a bachelor's degree in public policy from Stanford
University and earned her doctorate in political science at Oxford
University. She lives in New York City and Massachusetts with her
partner, artist Susan Mikula.
Michael Yarvitzis an Emmy and Peabody award-winning television
producer and journalist. He was the executive producer and
co-writer of the podcast series Bag Man.
“The full sordid story of Spiro Agnew . . . [Maddow and Yarvitz]
don’t hold back.” —The New York Times
“A case study in how the democratic ideal of equal justice
under the law collides with the squalid realities of America’s
political system . . . a brisk and engaging account
[that] sheds light on the challenges—legal, moral,
political—of treating presidents and vice presidents like every
other citizen.”—The Washington Post
“Bag Man delivers a powerful and timeless lesson about America’s
enduring principles while demonstrating that the final verdict of
history may differ from self-interested contemporary accounts and
highlighting how much the rule of law depends upon the character of
the people who enforce it.”—Rod J. Rosenstein, former U.S. Deputy
Attorney General
“Bag Man is a super-entertaining page-turner about a mostly
forgotten—yet hugely important—chapter of American history that
played out right in the shadow of Watergate. It’s a deeply wild
tale of greed, criminality, and corruption infecting the highest
levels of our government. But at its heart, it’s a human story, a
reminder that people make up our institutions, and ultimately they
have the ability to protect—and to save—our democracy when it
really needs their help.”—Ben Stiller
“Long before Donald Trump disrupted the rules of politics, Spiro
Agnew cheerfully derided liberals, the establishment, ivory tower
professors, and the press. In Bag Man, Maddow and Yarvitz
provide rich new details about the shameless corruption and
astonishing fall of Richard Nixon’s vice president. Meticulous
reporting and vivid storytelling bring to life the lessons from the
investigation and prosecution of a leader at the top of American
government, providing useful guidance today as we navigate rhyming
themes. As the authors write, ‘History is here to help.’”—Barbara
McQuade, former U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of
Michigan
“Rachel Maddow and Michael Yarvitz expand on their riveting podcast
to create a work both scholarly and disturbing. Their fast-paced
unfurling of Vice President Agnew’s almost forgotten crimes—which
feel all too familiar to anyone paying attention to politics
lately—offers a critical case study in the patterns of corruption
that continue to plague our democracy, documenting how politicians
abuse their office and how the good guys can bring them to justice.
Both a thriller and a history book, Bag Man is a triumph of
storytelling.”—Preet Bharara, New York Times bestselling author of
Doing Justice and host of the podcast Stay Tuned with Preet
“A welcome reminder that, unlike today, in the case of Agnew,
political crimes were actually punished (and in a nonpartisan
fashion).”—Kirkus Reviews
“Colorful . . . Maddow’s fans will enjoy this entertaining and
well-researched recap of Agnew’s comeuppance.”—Publishers Weekly
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