Join us for an evening with Washington Post investigative reporter and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Carol Leonnig, speaking on her fascinating new release Zero Fail: The Rise and Fall of the Secret Service. Evan Smith, CEO and co-founder of The Texas Tribune, moderates the discussion. About the Book: Zero Fail is the first definitive account of the rise and fall of the Secret Service, including extensive new reporting, from the Kennedy assassination to the alarming scandals, secrets, and mismanagement during the Obama and Trump years. The Secret Service was born in 1865, in the wake of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, but its story begins in earnest in 1963, with the death of John F. Kennedy. Shocked into reform by their failure to protect the president on that fateful day, this once-sleepy agency was rapidly transformed into a proud, elite unit that would redeem themselves in 1981 by valiantly thwarting an assassination attempt against Ronald Reagan. But this reputation for courage and efficiency would not last forever. By Barack Obama's presidency, the Secret Service was becoming notorious for not averting break-ins at the White House, an armed gunman firing at the building while agents stood by, a massive prostitution scandal in Cartagena, and many other dangerous lapses. To expose these shortcomings, Leonnig interviewed countless current and former agents and whistleblowers who risked their careers to speak to her about an agency that's broken and in desperate need of a reform. Signed, bookplated copies of Zero Fail: The Rise and Fall of the Secret Service are available for pre-order from The Store at LBJ. The book will be released on May 18, 2021. By purchasing your book through The Store at LBJ, you support a local cultural institution. All proceeds from sales support our programming, exhibits, and educational initiatives at the LBJ Presidential Library.

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