The Fifth Risk

I learned a ton reading this book, and not just about Donald Trump's transition. It's not a book totally about Trump and his early presidency, but more like what's going on in government agencies before and during transition periods when a new administration is coming in... or should, rather.

There's a bunch of info I'd never really heard about before. I'd love for this to be read in government classes (it's not that long) just to give folks an idea about departments like Energy, Commerce, etc. And also about the importance of communication between incoming and outgoing personnel. Managing things as they come along, and not looking just to take care of the short-term effects, no matter how tempting they may be.

I was trying not to bang my head against the wall on several points that came up when someone from Trump's "transition team" finally showed up to get briefed (there was less than a handful of appointees picked and ready to go by inauguration day, after all).

Much to learn in this book. Never read a book by Mr. Lewis before, but I definitely like the presentation. It made government easier for me to picture, and taught me quite a bit.

Of the 5 biggest risks facing a new administration, one of them--the one this book addresses--is the risk that the government starts to be mainly run by people focused on their own enrichment instead of people working for the mission of bettering the country. Most people have a very narrow understanding of all the things government does to keep them alive and safe. This is partially because it often doesn't explain itself well. (It is poorly marketed.) But it's also because there are people who make a profit off of this information NOT being known. We've had kleptocracies before but this is the first administration that is trying to run the country the way organized crime runs a business it has taken over--maximizing the short term gains while it is run into the ground. I wonder how many of the people who need to know what this book has to say will actually get to read it?

The Fifth Risk sheds light on Trump’s chaotic transition and the mismanagement of several core federal agencies. It reveals what is happening when agencies and branches of government are under attack by their own government. What happens when the leader of a country believes that something it’s only good if it’s good for him and his family. 

Michael Lewis paints a dire picture of the disinterest, mismanagement and chaos in three government departments during the troubled transition period from Barack Obama to the Trump White House and his government’s wilful ignorance of the federal bureaucracy. The book has three main chapters that examine the Departments of Energy, Agriculture, and Commerce respectively.

These three departments are dealing with some of the most powerful risks facing humanity. Thus, one would say, a new government would want to pay special attention to them. During the transition period the people who run these three crucial departments were prepared and waited to welcome the incoming administration’s transition teams. But nothing happened. When finally, after months in some cases, someone appeared, he (it was usually a he) was totally inappropriate for the job, and he was more interesting in removing climate change data from the agencies’ websites, than filling jobs or learning about the department. This shouldn’t be unexpected, Trump was backed by fossil fuel people, he is hostile to the idea of climate change.