TO THE READER
It is unusual for a book to open with a missive like this. But Downfall is not a usual book.
As its subtitle proclaims, it offers a prediction. Even more, it does so with full confidence about what will occur. In this case, how millions of Americans will cast their ballots on this coming November 3. That forecast will be based on new and often unexpected findings about this nation’s electorate.
But there’s one piece of information that was not known when this book went to press. Democrats had yet to settle on their candidate. By some lights, this might seem a vital variable.
This year, it won’t matter.
A central finding of Downfall is that whoever heads the Democratic ticket will crush Donald Trump. That entrant will win, simply by being an alternative to the current incumbent. Ensuing chapters will show the depth of public disgust, even in surprising parts of the country. Not to mention that Trump’s 2016 following, far from growing, has severely diminished. In short, the casino magnate’s trajectory is over. He can no longer lure enough Americans to swing the Electoral College, let alone a popular majority. As voters move down the ballot, they will unseat Republicans at every level. That party will pay the price of embracing him.