JONATHAN ALTER 'The Center Holds: Obama and His Enemies'

Hosted by Tina Bachemin

$12 advance tickets:: 800-838-3006 or Pegasus Books 3 locations), Marcus Books, Mrs. Dalloway's, Moe's, Walden Pond Bookstore, DIESEL a Bookstore. SF: Modern Times ($15 door) Info:http://www.kpfa.org/events KPFA benefit

The 2012 election will be remembered as a fiercely critical moment in history.
With huge victories in the 2010 midterm elections, the Republican Party had successfully blocked President Obama at every turn as they solidified plans to wrench the entire country sharply to the right. Facing free-spending billionaires, Fox News, a passionate Tea Party, and a ferocious effort in nineteen states to rig the election by suppressing Democratic votes, Obama repelled the assault and navigated the nation back to the center. Or did he?

Jonathan Alter uses his unmatched access and deep knowledge of politics to produce the first full account of America at a very dangerous crossroads. He pierces the bubble of the White House and of the presidential campaigns with exclusive reporting and rare historical insight. More than a campaign book, this is the epic story of an embattled president facing a historic moment many considered more profoundly pivotal than 2008.

Alter relates the untold story of Obama's decision to raid Osama bin Laden's compound, the debt ceiling fiasco, run-ins with black and Latino activists. He offers fresh details about the Koch brothers, Grover Norquist, and the online haters who suffer from "Obama Derangement Syndrome." He portrays the Obama analytics geeks working out of "The Cave" and the man who secretly videotaped Mitt Romney's infamous comments on the "47 percent."

Jonathan Alter is the author of two best-selling books: The Defining Moment: FDR's Hundred Days and The Triumph of Hope (2006) and The Promise: President Obama, Year One. Alter is a contributing correspondent to NBC News and is the lead correspondent on the website Bloomberg View.