About Rendezvous with Destiny: Ronald Reagan and the Campaign That Changed America
Acclaimed author, Craig Shirley shares that in 1976, political experts were reading the Republican Party its last rites. Just four years later, Republican Ronald Reagan swept to a historic victory in an election that dramatically altered the course of the GOP, the conservative movement, America’s and even world history.
In Rendezvous with Destiny: Ronald Reagan and the Campaign That Changed America, Craig Shirley tells the incredible behind-the-scenes story of how this improbable comeback occurred, and how Reagan ended liberalism’s half-century reign of dominance. Based on interviews with more than 150 insiders, Rendezvous with Destiny has been hailed as a gripping account of a race that was judged “too close to call” even as late as Election Day.
Exposure of Many Untold Stories:
- How Al Gore rented motel rooms to watch pornography, according to a Democratic political operative
- How Reagan rescued the GOP by making it a truly conservative party—a lesson for Republicans today
- The solution to one of the most enduring mysteries in politics: who stole Carter’s debate briefing books?
- How close Reagan’s campaign came to collapsing—many times
- Surprising admissions from an interview with Jimmy Carter
- The first behind-the-scenes account of the historic Republican debate that saved Reagan’s campaign
- How Reagan defined his conservatism—a crucial issue when politicians now claim the Reagan mantle
- How Reagan battled his own campaign and the GOP establishment almost as much as the Democrats
- The untold story of Reagan’s “wilderness years” and how they shaped the future president
- How Carter, who now calls Obama’s critics racist, unfairly attacked Reagan as a racist throughout 1980
About Craig Shirley
Craig Shirley is the author of four bestsellers on former U.S. president Ronald Reagan –Rendezvous with Destiny: Ronald Reagan and the Campaign that Changed America (2014), Reagan’s Revolution: The Untold Story of the Campaign That Started It All (2005), Last Act: The Final Years and emerging Legacy of Ronald Reagan (2015), and Reagan Rising: The Decisive Years, 1976-1980 (2017).
He is also the author of the authorized biography of the revolutionary life and times of Newt Gingrich, Citizen Newt (2017). His book December 1941: 31 Days that Changed America and Saved the World (2011) appeared multiple times on the New York Times bestselling list in December 2011 and January 2012. Another title, Last Act was named best narrative in the non-fiction category by USA Book News for 2015.
Craig is also the founder of Shirley & Banister Public Affairs, an influential government relations and marketing firm. He was chosen in 2005 by Springfield College as their Outstanding Alumnus, and has been named the First Reagan Scholar at Eureka College, Ronald Reagan’s alma mater, where he taught a course titled “Reagan 101.”
