'When the other side declares war on you, you still have to do the job': Clinton on being president and his new thriller
What happens when the president's husband is put on trial for murder? That's the conundrum at the heart of former US President Bill Clinton and thriller maestro James Patterson's latest collaboration, The First Gentleman. It's a novel that only those two could conjure up, after the huge success of their earlier books, 2018's The President Is Missing (three million copies sold) and The President's Daughter (2021). Patterson is as big as they come in the thriller world (with more than 230 million books sold worldwide) but as Clinton, a long-time fan of the genre, tells the BBC: "it was just an adventure in my old age" when they first collaborated. And it's clear while speaking to them in person just how much fun they're still having together.
Their gripping new novel centres on US President Madeline Wright and husband, Cole Wright, a former professional American football star. He still carries the scars of his career and is looking for a purpose in the White House, as he fights to clear his name in a trial for the murder of a cheerleader more than 20 years ago. It's a classic police procedural-meets-courtroom drama, as journalists, detectives and political operatives all work to uncover the truth behind who killed the cheerleader and to exonerate the First Gentleman – or to destroy him – and his wife's political agenda. And, of course, the role of First Gentleman is one that President Clinton might have found himself taking on in 2017 if his wife, Hillary Clinton, had won the 2016 election against US President Donald Trump.
It's clear that Bill Clinton's presidency is still with him as he writes. "There were times in the White House, and not just when the Republicans were trying to impeach me, but when we were going through really controversial hard things, where I had the feeling that I was – in the minds of those covering me – more a storyline than a story. We tried to get all that in there."
Rather than focussing the narrative on the First Couple, however, the book has a pair of journalists at its core. Independent investigative journalist and lawyer Brea Cooke and her partner, Garrett Wilson, are digging into the disappearance of Suzanne Bonanno, a cheerleader who the First Gentleman was seeing back when he was playing for the New England Patriots football team 17 years earlier. It looks like Wright might have killed her, as Cook and Wilson unravel what really happened and where her body might be. Inspired by an iconic pair like Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, Patterson sees it as natural that journalists would be at the novel's centre, "journalists, sometimes they deserve what they get, but most journalists want to go after the truth… That's what we want journalists to do."
Clinton, who had his own tussles with conspiracy-minded journalists through the years, agrees that even in an era of fevered partisanship honourable journalists will succeed: "I still think being able to stand up as a standout person who will tell the truth even when it means, 'I was wrong, but here's what I think the truth is.'" And when the story makes its Hollywood debut (it has been sold and is being written by Peaky Blinders' Steven Knight), it's likely that Brea Cooke will be the central character – the journalist digging for the truth.
But The First Gentleman is not just a courtroom drama. It's also likely the first thriller in history to have as a central part of the plot a grand bargain on the US debt and spending. Without spoiling the ending, let's just say President Wright lays out how to solve entitlement spending and balance the budget. This book is coming out at the same time as Donald Trump and the Republican Party are laying out their own plans. Could President Wright's proposal work? Patterson jokes: "We have a big, beautiful bill in our book."
Sneaking in some substantive information is all part of how they see their books connecting, says Clinton: "I think people don't mind learning something useful while being entertained by a hell of a good story." In their first book it was cybersecurity, now it's budget negotiations.
'In the beginning, it was a mess'
And on their third outing, what have the writing pair learned from each other? For Patterson, it's all about research and authenticity, and after finishing his recent memoir, he's more focused on "paying much more attention to the sentences… I think I'm better than I've ever been, between keeping it real and being really conscious of the sentences."
But even for this experienced pair, the first drafts of this book were tough. Patterson admitted that: "In the beginning, it was a mess, honestly, which we've never had before. We did not have the president, and they were not good characters. The journalists were not good characters. We kind of knew what the story was, but the characters were just all wrong." And then Clinton called him one night to say, "I have a real problem. I don't give a damn about any of these people." They added depth and scenes to draw the characters out.
More like this: • The world's most misunderstood novel • Author Ann Patchett on finding kindness in chaos • Forty of the most exciting books to read in 2025
But as much as they are warm collaborators, they're also united by a certain outlook on life. Patterson describes it: "One of the things we have in common, I think we look at the world as not black and white. It's always complicated. It's subtle. There's shades, and I think that's one of the reasons we can work together."
And in the end, what drives this novel to its twisting denouement is a sense of duty. Will the president do the right thing by her husband and by the country? The echoes are clear to Clinton: "One thing I know something about, when the other side declares war on you in the White House, you still have to show up and do the job."
In a tumultuous moment, this thriller from a former president might offer an essential piece of advice for world leaders.
Lucas Wittmann is the executive director of the Unterberg Center for Poetry and Literature at the 92nd Street Y in New York. He was previously an editor at Time and The Daily Beast.
The First Gentleman by Bill Clinton and James Patterson is published by Century and is out now.
--
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
a minute ago
- The Independent
Thousands gather to farewell NYPD officer killed in Midtown mass shooting
Thousands gathered to say farewell to the New York City Police Department officer who was killed in Monday's mass shooting in Midtown. The funeral for 36-year-old Didarul Islam took place at the Parkchester Jame Masjid, located on a residential street in the officer's neighborhood in the Bronx, three days after he was killed in the deadliest shooting in the city in a quarter-century, The New York Times noted. The gunman entered the office building at 345 Park Avenue with an assault style-rifle and started to discharge the weapon. He killed Islam and two others before heading to the 33rd floor, where he killed a fourth person, before he died by suicide. Police say the shooter, Shane Tamura, 27, had made his way to New York from his Nevada home, where he was set on targeting the headquarters of the National Football League. Hundreds of officers from as many as 54 of the 77 precincts in the city, as well as from states and counties in the surrounding area, attended the funeral. The streets around the mosque were empty of cars for the proceedings, with Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch saying that 'Didarul Islam came to this country as an immigrant with no guarantees, only the hope that hard work, that humility, and that purpose might lead him somewhere meaningful. And it did.' The rituals went on for close to four hours, with separate viewings for men and women. Floral wreaths covered the room, with the casket covered with the Police Department's standard in green, white, and blue. Mayor Eric Adams, himself a former NYPD officer, spoke at the funeral while the winner of the Democratic mayoral primary, Zohran Mamdani, sat with the family, The NYT noted. Islam came to New York City from Bangladesh when he was 20 years old, living in a small house along with his parents, his young sons, and his pregnant wife. In a eulogy read on his wife's behalf, she wrote that Islam had 'lived to help others' and that 'He gave his life protecting them. Though my heart is broken, I find comfort knowing that his sacrifice might have saved others.' Islam, who served in the department for three and a half years, joined the agency after spending two years as a safety agent in city schools. Even as an officer, he spent his time off as a security guard. Islam worked the Dominican Day Parade in the Bronx on Sunday before picking up an additional shift on Monday at 345 Park Avenue. 'He stepped into a new land and chose to become part of its promise, to believe in its dream. And he did believe in the American dream, not as something handed down but as something built with your own hands,' said Tisch. 'He may not be here to see that dream fulfilled, but his sons will surely grow up with its foundation beneath their feet.' Friends and colleagues said Islam was a devoted Muslim. Imam Dr. Zakir Ahmed of the Islamic Cultural Center of New York said during remarks that Islam, 'lived at a time when people like him are too often feared, vilified and made to feel like outsiders.' 'We cannot honor Officer Islam today while ignoring the daily pain endured by his community — being told to go back where you came from, being watched more closely, judged more harshly and loved less fully,' Imam Ahmed added, according to The NYT. 'To our city, our nation, you cannot ask us to serve and then silence us,' he said. 'You cannot take our sacrifice and ignore our suffering.'
The Guardian
2 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Trump to build ‘beautiful' $200m ballroom at White House
The White House will soon begin construction of a new $200m ballroom to be ready before Donald Trump's term ends in early 2029. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the building will be 90,000 sq ft and will hold up to 650 seats. It will be the latest change introduced to what's known as 'the People's House' since the Republican president returned to office in January. It also will be the first structural change to the executive mansion itself since the addition of the Truman Balcony in 1948. The White House is currently unable to hold large-scale events, given the 200-person capacity in the White House's East Room. In a phone interview with NBC News, Trump pointed to the White House's set-up for large-scale events, which necessitates ferrying guests to tents set up on the South Lawn. 'When it rains or snows, it's a disaster,' Trump said, noting that tents are currently set up 'a football field away from the White House'. From Trump's view, a new ballroom has long been in demand. 'I'm doing a lot of improvements,' Trump said to NBC. 'I'll be building a beautiful ballroom. They wanted it for many, many years.' Levitt said funding for the addition will come from Trump, as well as other 'patriot donors', according to the White House website, leading Trump to label the project as 'his gift to the country'. McCrery Architects has been chosen to complete the design, with Clark Construction as the construction lead, and AECOM handling engineering. The ballroom will be separate from the White House's main building, and will take the place of the current East Wing. The project fits nicely in the wheelhouse of America's real-estate magnate president, who has taken the presidential tradition of redecoration a step further. While Trump's past changes, such as paving portions of the Rose Garden and layering gold filigree throughout the White House, are easily reversible, a new ballroom building would last long after Trump leaves office.
Reuters
2 minutes ago
- Reuters
CEO Tim Cook says Apple ready to open its wallet to catch up in AI
SAN FRANCISCO, July 31 (Reuters) - Apple (AAPL.O), opens new tab CEO Tim Cook signaled on Thursday the iPhone maker was ready to spend more to catch up to rivals in artificial intelligence by building more data centers or buying a larger player in the segment, a departure from a long practice of fiscal frugality. Apple has struggled to keep pace with rivals such as Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab and Alphabet's Google (GOOGL.O), opens new tab, both of which have attracted hundreds of millions of users to their AI-powered chatbots and assistants. That growth has come at a steep cost, however, with Google planning to spend $85 billion over the next year and Microsoft on track to spend more than $100 billion, mostly on data centers. Apple, in contrast, has leaned on outside data center providers to handle some of its cloud computing work, and despite a high-profile partnership with ChatGPT creator OpenAI for certain iPhone features, has tried to grow much of its AI technology in-house, including improvements to its Siri virtual assistant. The results have been rocky, with the company delaying its Siri improvements until next year. During a conference call after Apple's fiscal third-quarter results, analysts noted that Apple has historically not done large deals and asked whether it might take a different approach to pursue its AI ambitions. CEO Cook responded that the company had already acquired seven smaller companies this year and is open to buying larger ones. "We're very open to M&A that accelerates our roadmap. We are not stuck on a certain size company, although the ones that we have acquired thus far this year are small in nature," Cook said. "We basically ask ourselves whether a company can help us accelerate a roadmap, and if they do, then we're interested." Apple has tended to buy smaller firms with highly specialized technical teams to build out specific products. Its largest deal ever was its purchase of Beats Electronics for $3 billion in 2014, followed by a $1 billion deal to buy a modem chip business from Intel. But now Apple is at a unique crossroads for its business. The tens of billions of dollars per year it receives from Google as payment to be the default search engine on iPhones could be undone by U.S. courts in Google's antitrust trial, while startups like Perplexity are in discussions to try to dislodge Google with an AI-powered browser that would handle many search functions. Apple executives have said in court they are considering reshaping the firm's Safari browser with AI-powered search functions, and Bloomberg News has reported that Apple executives have discussed buying Perplexity, which Reuters has not independently confirmed. Apple also said on Thursday it plans to spend more on data centers, an area where it typically spends only a few billion dollars per year. Apple is currently using its own chip designs to handle AI requests with privacy controls that are compatible with the privacy features on its devices. Kevan Parekh, Apple's chief financial officer, did not give specific spending targets but said outlays would rise. "It's not going to be exponential growth, but it is going to grow substantially," Parekh said during the conference call. "A lot of that's a function of the investments we're making in AI."
