To Rescue the Republic - by Bret Baier & Catherine Whitney

Book Synopsis

The #1 bestselling author and Fox News Channel's Chief Political Anchor illuminates the heroic life of Ulysses S. Grant

An epic history spanning the battlegrounds of the Civil War and the violent turmoil of Reconstruction to the forgotten electoral crisis that nearly fractured a reunited nation, Bret Baier's To Rescue the Republic dramatically reveals Ulysses S. Grant's essential yet underappreciated role in preserving the United States during an unprecedented period of division.

Born a tanner's son in rugged Ohio in 1822 and battle-tested by the Mexican American War, Grant met his destiny on the bloody fields of the Civil War. His daring and resolve as a general gained the attention of President Lincoln, then desperate for bold leadership. Lincoln appointed Grant as Lieutenant General of the Union Army in March 1864. Within a year, Grant's forces had seized Richmond and forced Robert E. Lee to surrender.

Four years later, the reunified nation faced another leadership void after Lincoln's assassination and an unworthy successor completed his term. Again, Grant answered the call. At stake once more was the future of the Union, for though the Southern states had been defeated, it remained to be seen if the former Confederacy could be reintegrated into the country--and if the Union could ensure the rights and welfare of African Americans in the South. Grant met the challenge by boldly advancing an agenda of Reconstruction and aggressively countering the Ku Klux Klan.

In his final weeks in the White House, however, Grant faced a crisis that threatened to undo his life's work. The contested presidential election of 1876 produced no clear victory for either Republican Rutherford B. Hayes or Democrat Samuel Tilden, who carried most of the former Confederacy. Soon Southern states vowed to revolt if Tilden was not declared the victor. Grant was determined to use his influence to preserve the Union, establishing an electoral commission to peaceably settle the issue. Grant brokered a grand bargain: the installation of Republican Hayes to the presidency, with concessions to the Democrats that effectively ended Reconstruction. This painful compromise saved the nation, but tragically condemned the South to another century of civil-rights oppression.

Deep with contemporary resonance and brimming with fresh detail that takes readers from the battlefields of the Civil War to the corridors of power where men decided the fate of the nation in back rooms, To Rescue the Republic reveals Grant, for all his complexity, to be among the first rank of American heroes.

Review Quotes

"Yes, history can help light the way. Bret Baier's absorbing book shows us why Ulysses Grant was a far more important President than later generations gave him credit for, and how the crises of civil war, Reconstruction and the deadlock of 1876 resembled the turbulent period we are living through."--Michael Beschloss, author of Presidents of War

In To Rescue the Republic, Bret Baier combines the journalist's instinct for timeliness and a great story with the historian's ability to document and chronicle in ways that stand the test of time. To Rescue the Republic doubles as a political and military portrait of U.S. Grant and as a definitive account of Grant's ability to broker a settlement of the contentious election of 1876. This success marked the culmination of Grant's efforts as general and president to win and end the American civil war. A key message of this book-- in this time of discord and racial conflict-- is that the American republic is a land of opportunity. Talent rises to the top. And because of this, no problem confronting Americans is ultimately is beyond resolution. This book is as inspiring as it is readable, and it is easily my favorite book of 2021.--David Eisenhower, Director, Institute of Public Service, Annenberg School, University of Pennsylvania, and author of Eisenhower: At War

"A brilliant character study of a great American. In To Rescue the Republic, Bret Baier brings Ulysses S. Grant--war hero, president, and author--to life in a vivid, gripping style that speaks to the issues of our time.--James L. Swanson, New York Times bestselling author of Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer

"Bret Baier has provided a valuable public service by showing why Ulysses S. Grant deserves much more public acclaim for his presidential years than Grant has traditionally been given. If you enjoy reading about American history, you will love Bret Baier's fresh look at the man most responsible for the outcome of the Civil War and the peaceful resolution of the contested presidential election of 1876. I highly recommend this book on one of America's most important leaders."--David Rubenstein, The David Rubenstein Show

"Throughout history, great men have stepped forward at just the right moment to save America at its most critical times. In To Rescue the Republic, Bret Baier brilliantly chronicles how Ulysses S. Grant was that great man multiple times. Perhaps you think you know the story, but Bret brings you back to the 1870s in a way I didn't think possible. A must read!" --Brian Kilmeade, #1 New York Times bestselling author

As the United States suffers through turbulent times, news anchor Bret Baier reaches back to earlier years of heroism when the nation, then and now, experienced an earlier examples of woe. This is a book which, when carefully read, provides insight into a difficult era.--John F. Marzalek, Executive Director, Ulysses S. Grant Presidential Library

Bret Baier's To Rescue the Republic is narrative history at its absolute finest. With great verve and a fair-and-balanced ethic, Baier brilliantly recounts the heroic life of Ulysses S. Grant - as Civil War general, U.S. President, Reconstruction Era leader and beloved national icon. His dramatic retelling of the election of 1876 which pitted Samuel J. Tilden against Rutherford B. Hayes is stupendous. A fast-paced, thrilling and enormously important book. Highly recommended!
--Douglas Brinkley, Katherine Tsanoff Brown Chair in Humanities and Professor of History at Rice University and author of American Moonshot

"Bret Baier once again brings his wonderful journalistic storytelling skills to the task of examining a significant moment in American history. To Rescue the Republic is the richly detailed and often suspenseful story of Ulysses S. Grant, our 18^th president. In particular Bret focuses on those dramatic moments when Grant rescues the Republic--first during the Civil War, then making the peace after the war, and finally in the bitterly contested election of 1876, when he devised a grand bargain to save the presidency and the nation. The parallels with modern times are striking, and the lessons Bret raises are worth serious attention: the future of the Republic isn't a given. We must fight for it in every era."--Mark Levin, #1 New York Times bestselling author

"With To Rescue The Republic, Bret Baier, the nation's leading reporter of history, has written a veritable tour de force. This remarkable book is history as it should be: magnificently composed, meticulously researched, and brimming with lessons for today's divided political arena. Baier has brought to life the riveting but too often forgotten story of how US Grant preserved the Republic at one of its moments of greatest peril. This is not just a tale for our age, but an absorbing tale for the ages. It belongs on the bookshelf of every lover of history."--Jay Winik, New York Times best-selling author of April 1865 and 1944