Win Bigly, by Scott Adams

In the months leading up to the 2016 presidential election, cartoonist Scott Adams experienced a sort of transformation.  With decades of cartoon brilliance, best-selling business books, an active speaking schedule, and other successful business ventures, Adams built a loyal blog following.  When he started making predictions in his blog that Donald Trump was going to win the presidency, his notoriety--and blog traffic--blew up.  When it turned out he was right, his new-found role as political guru was solidified.

In Win Bigly: Persuasion in a World Where Facts Don't Matter, Adams recounts this transformation and the blow-by-blow account of his blog posts and observations.  Adams has suffered professionally as a result of being labeled as a Trump apologist, but his task throughout the campaign and in this book is to observe and explain, not defend and prop up.  On point after point, Adams explains why Trump was successful, why Hilary's campaign floundered, and how Trump overcame the setbacks that should have busted his electability.

As hinted in the subtitle, Trump ultimately is a better persuader.  Viewing the election through the Persuasion Filter--examining his words, actions, and strategies as the use of persuasion--it becomes clear, in retrospect, that Hilary never had a chance.  Adams makes it clear that he's not a partisan, and that he, in fact, holds many views in opposition to Trump's.  So the criticism of Adams as a Trump cultist is completely inaccurate.  But in terms of accuracy, few have nailed Trump's campaign and governance the way Adams has.