Satirist O'Rourke returns to Club to explain election March 16

The 2016 presidential election found P.J. O’Rourke, a libertarian satirist who almost always votes for the Republican nominee, endorsing and voting for Hillary Clinton, he told Jeff Glor on the Charlie Rose Show March 1.

O'Rourke plans to explain his transformation to a National Press Club Book Rap audience when he returns to the Club Thursday, March 16, at 6:30 p.m. to discuss his latest book, "How The Hell Did This Happen?"

The Book Rap will take place in the Club's Conference Rooms. Tickets are $5 for National Press Club members and $10 for the public. Tickets can be purchased online here.

Books can be purchased online at the same time as tickets, or at the event. No outside books or memorabilia are permitted.

O'Rourke has appeared at many Book Raps over the last 15 years as the author of 16 books on subjects as diverse as politics and cars, and etiquette and economics.

In "How the Hell Did This Happen?," O'Rourke offers a brief history of how the process for picking who will run for president evolved, from the very first nominating convention through the reforms of the Progressive Era to the present. He takes us through the debates and key primaries, and analyzes everything from the campaign platforms to presidential style.

O'Rourke was born and raised in Toledo, Ohio, and attended Miami University and Johns Hopkins. He began writing funny things in 1960s “underground” newspapers, became editor-in-chief of National Lampoon, then spent 20 years reporting for Rolling Stone and The Atlantic Monthly as the world’s only trouble-spot humorist, going to wars, riots, rebellions, and other “Holidays in Hell” in more than 40 countries.

His book about Washington, "Parliament of Whores," and his book about international conflict and crisis, "Give War a Chance," both reached number one on the New York Times best-seller list. He is a contributing editor at The Weekly Standard, H. L. Mencken fellow at the Cato Institute, a member of the editorial board of World Affairs and a regular panelist on NPR's "Wait… Wait… Don’t Tell Me."

He lives with his family in rural New England -- as far away from the things he writes about as he can get. He voted for Hillary Clinton for president.

This event will feature an author discussion, audience question-and-answer session, and book signing.