The Gist

Feet off the Couch, Please

Alyssa Mastromonaco, who served as deputy chief of staff in Obama’s White House, on why mess ups like the Kellyanne Conway couch photo actually matter.

Alyssa Mastromonaco with President Barack Obama.

Twelve Books

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Alyssa Mastromonaco served as White House deputy chief of staff under Barack Obama. Her job was expansive—covering everything from interviewing James Comey to making sure the driveway of the Executive Office Building was repaved. Now, she’s written a memoir, Who Thought This Was a Good Idea? And Other Questions You Should Have Answers to When You Work in the White House.

In the Spiel, Republicans weren’t able to come up with a better plan than “Obamacare bad.” Failure was inevitable.

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