The Tribe Inside Story of Irish Power and Influence in US Politics

From JFK to Trump, Irish American voters have played a pivotal role in US politics, but is their influence on the wane? The Tribe provides a definitive, clear-eyed look at Irish American voters. In The Tribe, Caitríona Perry is on familiar ground, returning to Washington and the green strongholds of the United States. Irish Americans were once considered kingmakers in local and national elections, but generations of assimilation and rising numbers of newer immigrants have diluted that power. Many even argue that the concept of an Irish vote is dead. But through exclusive interviews with powerful Irish American insiders, including President Bill Clinton, President Donald Trump’s former Press Secretary Sean Spicer, Trump’s Chief of Staff Mick Mulvaney, Congressman Joe Kennedy III, legendary Boston mayor Ray Flynn and many more, a clear sense that the Irish are still wielding valuable soft power at the highest levels of US politics emerges. Here, Caitríona Perry gets to the heart of the source and effectiveness of Irish power and influence in America and how it could, or should, evolve.