A hard-hitting analysis." —Kirkus Reviews Benjamin J. Stein reveals how Michael Milken sold $200 billion of junk bonds, turned corporate America upside down, killed dozens of S&Ls, , cost the taxpayers billions, and gave America a push towards the longest recession in history.This sobering, and at times terrifying, tale reveals how Michael Milken, called upon questionable financial backers and enrolled the influence of powerful figures in journalism, academia, and politics, to convince an eager—and greedy—nation that junk bonds were the key to untold wealth. Now Stein details how Milken became so powerful, who helped him, and how his junk-bond operation really worked.