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The Fifth Risk
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What are the consequences if the people given control over our government have no idea how it works?
"The election happened," remembers Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall, then deputy secretary of the Department of Energy. "And then there was radio silence." Across all departments, similar stories were playing out: Trump appointees were few and far between; those that did show up w ...more
"The election happened," remembers Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall, then deputy secretary of the Department of Energy. "And then there was radio silence." Across all departments, similar stories were playing out: Trump appointees were few and far between; those that did show up w ...more
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Hardcover, 221 pages
Published
October 2nd 2018
by W. W. Norton Company
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"It's the places in our government where the cameras never roll that you have to worry about the most."
- Michael Lewis, The Fifth Risk

I've read several books about President Trump and his administration in the last couple years. They all depress me a bit. I feel like I'm reading some real-time version of Gibbons' 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'. But none of the other Trump books scared me like this one did. Lewis isn't interested in the Fox/MSNBC politics or the Twitter-level anxiety of ...more
- Michael Lewis, The Fifth Risk

I've read several books about President Trump and his administration in the last couple years. They all depress me a bit. I feel like I'm reading some real-time version of Gibbons' 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'. But none of the other Trump books scared me like this one did. Lewis isn't interested in the Fox/MSNBC politics or the Twitter-level anxiety of ...more

Didja know the US gov’mint is a complicated beast? Trump didn’t! And now we’s all gonna DIIIIEEEE!
But not really.
Michael Lewis’ The Fifth Risk is the latest in a long line of Trumperature hurriedly bundled together and booted out the door to cater to the surprisingly large audience who can’t read enough Trump-bashing. Except Lewis’ effort is a bit more nuanced in its critique of the Trump administration, focusing instead on what its lackadaisical attitude to the country’s major institutions co ...more
But not really.
Michael Lewis’ The Fifth Risk is the latest in a long line of Trumperature hurriedly bundled together and booted out the door to cater to the surprisingly large audience who can’t read enough Trump-bashing. Except Lewis’ effort is a bit more nuanced in its critique of the Trump administration, focusing instead on what its lackadaisical attitude to the country’s major institutions co ...more

"What are the consequences if the people given control over our government have no idea how it works?"
This is the opening sentence in the book summary and also the first sentence inside the book jacket. Lewis takes us inside a few Departments of our federal government, talking to those who work there in the past and present. Showing us what these Departments do what they are responsible for, programs and oversights. Have to admit I didn't know all the things they did, but then again I doubt many ...more
This is the opening sentence in the book summary and also the first sentence inside the book jacket. Lewis takes us inside a few Departments of our federal government, talking to those who work there in the past and present. Showing us what these Departments do what they are responsible for, programs and oversights. Have to admit I didn't know all the things they did, but then again I doubt many ...more

Once again Michael Lewis, author of Moneyball and The Big Short, chooses as his protagonists a few ingenious manipulators of data, but this time he does so with a difference: the self-effacing statistical warriors he singles out for praise are bureaucrats of the United States federal government, a class generally overlooked and often despised. These bureaucrats, however, are people not only familiar with the resources of their agencies but also committed to using them to make lives better for th ...more

We don't really celebrate the accomplishments of government employees. They exist in our society to take the blame.
Our recent government shutdown, the yugest, most tremendous, and longest shutdown in history, served, if nothing else, to demonstrate just how nice it is to have someone helping our aircraft land, and someone picking up the trash in our national parks. We need qualified people taking care of our nuclear waste, and protecting us against the next pandemic. As a famous Canadian singer ...more
Our recent government shutdown, the yugest, most tremendous, and longest shutdown in history, served, if nothing else, to demonstrate just how nice it is to have someone helping our aircraft land, and someone picking up the trash in our national parks. We need qualified people taking care of our nuclear waste, and protecting us against the next pandemic. As a famous Canadian singer ...more

An insightful investigation of what good government can do, if handled properly. And how the Trump administration does not care for this in the slightest.
To which Trump replied, Fuck the law. I don’t give a fuck about the law. I want my fucking money.
General
We are meant to serve our elected masters, however odious they might be.
Despite The Fifth Risk: Undoing Democracy being a relatively short book, it tackles a lot of concerns one can have about administration and how this is mishandled by the ...more
To which Trump replied, Fuck the law. I don’t give a fuck about the law. I want my fucking money.
General
We are meant to serve our elected masters, however odious they might be.
Despite The Fifth Risk: Undoing Democracy being a relatively short book, it tackles a lot of concerns one can have about administration and how this is mishandled by the ...more

Was reading The Fifth Risk in the tube. A well-dressed man got in, noticed the American flag Jenga on the cover and immediately exclaimed “The Fifth Risk, what do you think?” Before I had a chance to respond, he added in a polite American accent “I love the guy, I devour his books,” perhaps to allow me to temper my answer.
I’m a Michael Lewis fan. I’ve read enough of him to think I know him. So I wasn’t shy about my assessment.
“Tell you what,” I answered. “You know how half his books are about so ...more
I’m a Michael Lewis fan. I’ve read enough of him to think I know him. So I wasn’t shy about my assessment.
“Tell you what,” I answered. “You know how half his books are about so ...more

Lewis is not a fan of the Trump Administration. If it is politics that initially shaped that determination (and I am not sure it was), it is facts about our government and how it has evolved to provide us with safety, security and information that are the genesis of this book. I found this one of the scariest books I have read about the immediate future in the USA. It haunts my dreams. It makes every day a little bit more difficult to get through. Why? Because Lewis is a master at articulating t
...more

(view spoiler)
This book explains why there is no hope for reconciliation between decent human beings and Trumpanzees. ...more
This book explains why there is no hope for reconciliation between decent human beings and Trumpanzees. ...more

This book is about three important but little-understood government agencies. And, the book is about the willful ignorance of the Trump administration, and its attempts to dismantle the agencies before even having the slightest idea, what these agencies do.
After the two major political parties nominate a presidential candidate, the candidates form transition teams. These teams are required by law to formulate transitions into government that will be as smooth as possible. The transition teams ar ...more
After the two major political parties nominate a presidential candidate, the candidates form transition teams. These teams are required by law to formulate transitions into government that will be as smooth as possible. The transition teams ar ...more

Lewis is such a remarkable writer that I sometimes find myself envious of his ability to forge a compelling story where there doesn't seem to be anything. It's useful to contrast The Fifth Risk with Bob Woodward's Fear, which I inhaled last month. Woodward's book ferrets out things that happened — crescendos of malevolence and arias of incompetence — unbelievable though they sometimes seem.
In contrast, Lewis' amazing little book — it arrived Tuesday night and I finished it early Thursday morning ...more
In contrast, Lewis' amazing little book — it arrived Tuesday night and I finished it early Thursday morning ...more

One of the most dangerous things said by a politician in recent memory was Reagan’s quip that went something like this: the most scary sentence is “I’m from the government and I’m here to help.” What Lewis has gone here is snow exactly how the government helps us even when we are ignorant of its doings. The story that will forever stay with me from this book is the rural town celebrating a local farmer who just got a big loan that he thinks he earned and that was underwritten by the bank and say ...more

Do you think you know what the US Department of Agriculture does? Or the Department of Energy? How about the EPA?
Michael Lewis spends a big part of his book, The Fifth Risk, enlightening the reader about what these and other US government agencies actually do.
He also provides a fascinating behind-the-scenes peek into the Trump's administration transition process and its first months in office.
Reading what went on during that period was scary, even terrifying at times. This is not only because it ...more

For readers who are cynical about the operations of the U.S. government generally, and even more cynical about the (mis)operations of the current administration specifically, there's a lot in these pages to make even your worst fears about public sector project mismanagement seem tame in comparison to reality. Lewis outlines, in his typically snappy/funny/ironic/incisive style, just how devastating the consequences of government inattention and ineptitude can be. But Lewis's greater achievement
...more

America: please read this book.
In a nutshell, the book asks the question: "What are the consequences if the people given control over our government have no idea how it works?" Not surprisingly, the consequences are, potentially, disastrous.
But the whole point is that too many Americans don't know or appreciate this, and their ignorance (I'm distinguishing actual ignorance from stupidity - I'm giving the benefit of the doubt here - that folks have NO IDEA how important many routine government f ...more
In a nutshell, the book asks the question: "What are the consequences if the people given control over our government have no idea how it works?" Not surprisingly, the consequences are, potentially, disastrous.
But the whole point is that too many Americans don't know or appreciate this, and their ignorance (I'm distinguishing actual ignorance from stupidity - I'm giving the benefit of the doubt here - that folks have NO IDEA how important many routine government f ...more

Sep 27, 2018
⚣Michaelle⚣
marked it as to-read
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
wish-list-audio,
non-romance
Holy shit. I read the excerpt at The Guardian and everything that's gone wrong up 'til now (starting just before the election) makes total sense.
Also, if that small bit is any indication, the writing is really engaging. I mean, how in the hell did Michael Lewis manage to make me feel even the slightest bit sorry for what Chris Christie endured trying to head up the transition team? Sure, it was a bit self-serving (the next-best thing to being President), but still...he worked hard to work within ...more
Also, if that small bit is any indication, the writing is really engaging. I mean, how in the hell did Michael Lewis manage to make me feel even the slightest bit sorry for what Chris Christie endured trying to head up the transition team? Sure, it was a bit self-serving (the next-best thing to being President), but still...he worked hard to work within ...more

Jan 14, 2020
Geevee
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
american-history,
politics
The Fifth Risk is very enjoyable and readable, but it was also, for me, a bit mixed in format and lacked sources, references or an index.
What I mean by this, is that reading from the other side of the Atlantic this book, to paraphrase football (soccer) commentators, was a game of two halves.
There was the central message of the Trump administration's preparedness for transition from the outgoing Obama management teams to the new Republican crew. The other half was the work that Federal Government ...more
What I mean by this, is that reading from the other side of the Atlantic this book, to paraphrase football (soccer) commentators, was a game of two halves.
There was the central message of the Trump administration's preparedness for transition from the outgoing Obama management teams to the new Republican crew. The other half was the work that Federal Government ...more

Dec 29, 2020
Julie Ehlers
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
nonfiction,
politics
The Fifth Risk was a really informative look at what U.S. government agencies do and how important it is for transitions from one administration to another to go smoothly, with lots of cooperation and avid involvement from all parties, and as few politically motivated appointments from the private sector as possible. I recommend this to all Americans, because this is information all of us should have.

I'll do a longer review of this at some point. For now, Lewis makes it abundantly clear that the Government roles that Trump has shown zero interest in filling (forgetting all his friends, family and numerous goonish hangers-on who have been given roles they've no intention of even vaguely assuming) are all incredibly important - there are no positions that the likes of Chris Grayling or Dominic Raab could ever fill without being rumbled in days; that the effect of their being lapsed, ignored or
...more

Mar 21, 2022
Cherisa B
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
non-fiction,
2022
A fascinating read about science, data collection, what our government does for us with it, and how we as citizens know next to nothing about the federal bureaucracy that manages multiple aspects of our security. They also do the R&D and massive underpinnings that for decades have fueled and continue to fuel tech advances. Lewis uses a phrase about people and scientists who work in the cogs of different departments (Energy, Ag, Commerce) being there “for the mission, not the money,” and we shoul
...more

I'm enough of a Michael Lewis fan to have ordered The Fifth Risk months ago without knowing what it's about. At that time, I assumed the title was Lewis's typical, enigmatic key to the book's meaning (think Lewis titles like Moneyball, The Blind Side, and Flash Boys). Having now read the book, the title does deliver on its promise of encapsulating the book's intention.
But that's about all The Fifth Risk delivers for me. Though it opens with a dramatic insight into the story to come (think the b ...more
But that's about all The Fifth Risk delivers for me. Though it opens with a dramatic insight into the story to come (think the b ...more

Jan 08, 2019
Lorna
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
non-fiction,
political-history
The Fifth Risk is the latest book by Michael Lewis, basically exploring the events that transpired after the 2016 election and outlines how the Obama administration prepared to ease the transition of leadership as the Trump administration came into power. It outlines the resistance that was met, and the total lack of even a fundamental knowledge as to how the government runs. I have read a lot of these books recently and, I must say, this book frightened me in ways that no other has yet done. Le
...more

This looks very interesting based on this excerpt from The Guardian.
The review from The New York Times suggests that this will be very interesting as well. ...more
The review from The New York Times suggests that this will be very interesting as well. ...more

UPDATE UPDATE, Nov 22, 2020: Every time I see Trump's so-called "press secretary" claim that he "was never given an orderly transition," it makes me want to scream. Even though this national nightmare is finally ending, THIS BOOK IS STILL ESSENTIAL READING to ensure that nothing like this ever happens again...
UPDATE, March 20, 2020: Just saw Michael Lewis interviewed on TV, discussing his book in relation to the current COVID-19 crisis. He explained that the first four risks identified (and then ...more
UPDATE, March 20, 2020: Just saw Michael Lewis interviewed on TV, discussing his book in relation to the current COVID-19 crisis. He explained that the first four risks identified (and then ...more

Journalist Michael Lewis published The Fifth Risk: Undoing Democracy, detailing the Trump administration’s dismantling of federal agencies. Lewis didn’t write of the gutting of the Obama-era multi-agency pandemic response team in The Fifth Risk, but the administration’s response to the pandemic is exactly what he foresaw when he described the Trump transition team’s venal obliviousness to the responsibilities of governing: “A bad transition took this entire portfolio of catastrophic risks—the bi
...more

* 4.5 *
It is oft mentioned that Michael Lewis could turn his hand to any topic and make it interesting and I believe that to be true. He has a talent for seeking out the unsung heroes any any situation and in so doing navigating his readers around often complex topics - high frequency trading, baseball statistics, macroeconomics and now the workings of the US federal government.
The Fifth Risk is both terrifying and fascinating and as a non-US reader I found it explained a lot about the current ...more
It is oft mentioned that Michael Lewis could turn his hand to any topic and make it interesting and I believe that to be true. He has a talent for seeking out the unsung heroes any any situation and in so doing navigating his readers around often complex topics - high frequency trading, baseball statistics, macroeconomics and now the workings of the US federal government.
The Fifth Risk is both terrifying and fascinating and as a non-US reader I found it explained a lot about the current ...more

What does government do for us? Do we really need it? What happens if government ceases to do those things? These are the questions Michael Lewis comes to grip with in his powerful little book, The Fifth Risk. By drilling down into the day-to-day realities in a handful of little-recognized federal agencies, Lewis convincingly demonstrates how government protects us from some of "the most alarming risks facing humanity." By extension, he relates the dangers we (and the world as a whole) now face
...more

This book is kind of maddening. I'm giving it 3 stars. One could make a case for 2, 4, or (if I had a different worldview) 5 stars. In my view, parts of this book seem right on and really important. Other parts belie the author's bias, therefore, makes me question how much of this book can be trusted. The book isn't traditionally sourced. It is unclear how he knows what was spoken where he wasn't present. For example, he says Chris Christie said this, thought that, or did the other, but he doesn
...more

I have no idea what to say. Every page I was thinking "please say bazinga, this cannot be true even in trump government" and there was no bazinga. I love the way USA works, with total capitalism, money-democracy, and lobbyism. But this book damn.
...more
...more

This is the most disturbing account of the Trump presidency I have read. Lewis simply writes about how the current administration has dealt with vital parts of our government which we all benefit from each day. I've watched it happen in my legal practice with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and Lewis details the horror in the Department of Agriculture, the DOE, and data science. It is simply awful.
...more
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“There was a rift in American life that was now coursing through American government. It wasn’t between Democrats and Republicans. It was between the people who were in it for the mission, and the people who were in it for the money.”
—
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“fifth risk: the risk a society runs when it falls into the habit of responding to long-term risks with short-term solutions.”
—
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