In an emotional retrospective on a crucial evening in Danish politics, Foreign Minister and leader of the Moderates (Moderaterne), Lars Løkke Rasmussen, opens up about his personal experiences and feelings in his new audiobook ‘The Price of Liberation’. The book provides an insight into the dramatic hours of December 15, 2022, when a new government was formed, and Løkke himself was left at the Prime Minister’s residence at Marienborg. The former Prime Minister describes how he alone in the living room followed on his phone while Mette Frederiksen drove towards Amalienborg to announce the formation of the new government. It was an evening that stirred a storm of emotions in Løkke, which he describes as “very, very complex.” The emotions culminated in tears rolling down his cheeks. Løkke reflects on his political career, from his exit from the Venstre party, the founding of the Moderates, to his return to government power. He describes it as a “pathetic” evening where he felt both finished and irrelevant, but also as someone who had fought his way back to relevance and power.
The audiobook, narrated to journalist and author Kirsten Jacobsen, is released by Politikens Forlag as a ‘podbook’, a hybrid between a podcast and an audiobook. It lasts 181 minutes and is part of a series of releases from Løkke in collaboration with Jacobsen, including ‘The Moment of Liberation’ from 2019, where he surprisingly announced his desire for a government cooperation with the Social Democrats. Reviews of ‘The Price of Liberation’ have been lukewarm, but the book offers a unique insight into the personal and political upheavals that Løkke has experienced throughout his long career in Danish politics. The book also marks his 60th birthday, which was celebrated earlier this year.