Download or read book The Gatekeepers written by Chris Whipple and published by Crown Publishing Group (NY). This book was released on 2017 with total page 386 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The first in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at the White House Chiefs of Staff, whose actions--and inactions--have defined the course of our country. Since George Washington, presidents have depended on the advice of key confidants. But it wasn't until the twentieth century that the White House chief of staff became the second most powerful job in government. Unelected and unconfirmed, the chief serves at the whim of the president, hired and fired by him alone. He is the president's closest adviser and the person he depends on to execute his agenda. He decides who gets to see the president, negotiates with Congress, and--most crucially--enjoys unparalleled access to the leader of the free world. When the president makes a life-and-death decision, often the chief of staff is the only other person in the room. Each chief can make or break an administration, and each president reveals himself by the chief he picks. Through extensive, intimate interviews with all seventeen living chiefs and two former presidents, award-winning journalist and producer Chris Whipple pulls back the curtain on this unique fraternity, whose members have included Rahm Emanuel, Dick Cheney, Leon Panetta, and Donald Rumsfeld. In doing so, he revises our understanding of presidential history, showing us how James Baker and Panetta skillfully managed the presidencies of Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton, ensuring their reelections--and, conversely, how Jimmy Carter never understood the importance of a chief, crippling his ability to govern. From Watergate to Iran-Contra to the Monica Lewinsky scandal to the Iraq War, Whipple shows us how the chief of staff can make the difference between success and disaster. As an outsider president tries to govern after a bitterly divisive election, The Gatekeepers could not be more timely. Filled with shrewd analysis and never-before-reported details, it is a compelling history that changes our perspective on the presidency."--Jacket flap.

Download or read book Chief of Staff written by Samuel Kernell and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 2023-04-28 with total page 266 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1986.

Download or read book The White House Staff written by Bradley H. Patterson and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2004-05-13 with total page 505 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Shrouded in anonymity, protected by executive privilege, but with no legal or constitutional authority of their own, the 5,900 people in 125 offices collectively known as the "White House staff" assist the chief executive by shaping, focusing, and amplifying presidential policy. Why is the staff so large? How is it organized and what do those 125 offices actually do? In this sequel to his critically appraised 1988 book, Ring of Power, Bradley H. Patterson Jr.—a veteran of three presidential administrations—takes us inside the closely guarded turf of the White House. In a straightforward narrative free of partisan or personal agendas, Patterson provides an encyclopedic description of the contemporary White House staff and its operations. He illustrates the gradual shift in power from the cabinet departments to the staff and, for the first time in presidential literature, presents an accounting for the total budget of the modern White House. White House staff members control everything from the monumental to the mundane. They prepare the president for summit conferences, but also specify who sits on Air Force One. They craft the language for the president to use on public occasions—from a State of the Union Address to such "Rose Garden rubbish" as the pre-Thanksgiving pardon for the First Turkey. The author provides an entertaining yet in-depth overview of these responsibilities. Patterson also illuminates the astounding degree to which presidents personally conduct American diplomacy and personally supervise U.S. military actions. The text is punctuated with comments by senior White House aides and by old Washington hands whose careers go back more than half a century. The book provides not only a comprehensive key to the offices and activities that make the White House work, but also the feeling of belonging to that exclusive membership inside the West Wing.

Download or read book The Man I Knew written by Jean Becker and published by Twelve. This book was released on 2022-06-07 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A heartfelt portrait of President George H.W. Bush--and his post-presidential life--by a confidante who knew him well. As chief of staff, Jean Becker had a ringside seat to the never-boring story of George Herbert Walker Bush's life post-presidency. Full of heart and wisdom, THE MAN I KNEW is a vibrant behind-the-scenes look into the ups and downs of heading up the office of a former president by one of the people who knew him best

Download or read book Chief of Staff written by W. Marvin Watson and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2014-03-11 with total page 484 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Chief of Staff to the President is perhaps the most important political appointment in our nation's government. Aside from handling the myriad of day to day details that keep the White House running, the Chief of Staff is often the President's closest confidante and gatekeeper--anyone who wants access to the Oval Office goes through the Chief of Staff. President Lyndon Johnson bestrode the American political scene as a colossus of energy, ambition, and purpose. He attempted to achieve no less then the total eradication of poverty and expended every last ounce of his political capitol with Congress to pass Civil Rights legislation. And, throughout, he was--as he knew better than anyone else--being destroyed by a war he inherited, detested, and could do nothing to stop. With W. Marvin Watson, his Chief of Staff and most intimate adviser, finally revealing what he knows about this extraordinary figure, readers are taken, firsthand, inside the presidential life and times of Lyndon Johnson.

Download or read book A Staff for the President written by Alfred D. Sander and published by Praeger. This book was released on 1989-01-18 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Sander chronicles changes in the Executive Office of the President (EOP) paralleling change and expansion in the federal government, the executive branch, and the office of the president, from its inception to the end of the Truman administration. . . . In his intriguing analysis of the historical dialectic surrounding theoretical questions about EOP Sander shines, showing the multi-colored underwear of a gray-flannel organization. The EOP becomes the playing field of a dynamic contest among differing constitutional and theoretical views. Sander has written a book about what could be a dull and lifeless topic, and made it enjoyable. Choice The creation of a staff to aid the chief executive in his immense management task was a crucial element in the development of the modern presidency. Focusing on the period that witnessed the most extensive changes in the executive branch, this book traces the evolution of the executive office of the President, and looks at the complex ways in which this organization has affected both the president's role and the operation of the federal government. Sander explores the political and administrative issues raised by the creation of a separate corps of careerists serving the president and independent of the departments and concludes with an assessment of various proposals aimed at reorganizing and controlling the appointment and functions of the presidential staff. Following a historical overview of major shifts in the presidential role, the author discusses the gradual increase in presidential staff and institutional support that occurred in the 1920s. Sander next examines the evolution of Roosevelt's executive office and the important precedents that were set during his administration. The primary focus of the book is on the major expansion of the presidential staff that occurred during Truman's tenure. When Truman left office, the basic staff services that enable the president to carry out his duties were in place. These were the Bureau of the Budget, the Council of Economic Advisors, the National Security Resources Board, and the National Security Council. Providing new insights on the forces and events that have shaped the institution of the presidency, this book will be of particular interest to those in the fields of political science, American political history, American public policy and public administration.

Download or read book On Behalf of the President written by Lauren A. Wright and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2016-04-18 with total page 202 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: White House expert Lauren A. Wright identifies, explains, and measures the impact of the expanding role of presidential spouses in the White House and presidential campaign communications strategy, with a focus on the Clinton, Bush, and Obama administrations. More than any other time in history, the First Lady now bears responsibilities tantamount to those of any high-ranking cabinet member. This fascinating book documents the growing presence of the president's wife in the communications strategies of the last three administrations, explaining why their involvement in a campaign has been critical to its survival. The book explores how the First Lady serves to persuade public opinion, make personal appeals to the public on behalf of the president, and promote initiatives that serve as uncontroversial frames for controversial policies. The author delves into political discussions about what makes presidents and presidential candidates likable, what draws public support to their agendas, and why spouses appear to be more effective in these arenas than other surrogates or even the presidents themselves. The content features dozens of interviews with former White House staff and communications strategists; in-depth analysis of almost 1,700 public speeches made by Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush, and Michelle Obama; and surveys testing the effect of public relations strategies involving spouses on political opinion.

Download or read book I was There written by William D. Leahy and published by New York, Whittlessey House. This book was released on 1950 with total page 572 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book How to Be President written by Stephen P. Williams and published by Chronicle Books. This book was released on 2004-03 with total page 138 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With sidebars on historical presidential gaffes, favorite vacation spots, andmore, this book teaches readers the nuts and bolts of what to do if they wakeup one day in the Oval Office.

Download or read book Managing the President s Program written by Andrew Rudalevige and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2002-07-21 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Managing the President's Program: Necessary and Contingent Truths -- Bargaining, Transaction Costs, and Contingent Centralization -- The President's Program: History and Conventional Wisdom -- The President's Program: An Empirical Overview -- Putting Centralization to the Test -- Congress Is a Whiskey Drinker: Centralization and Legislative Success -- The Odds Are with the House: The Limits of Centralization -- Hard Choices.

Download or read book Staff Report of the President s Panel on Federal Compensation written by United States. President's Panel on Federal Compensation and published by . This book was released on 1976 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Staff Papers and Other Materials Reviewed by the President s Commission written by and published by . This book was released on 1967 with total page 526 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book To Serve the President written by Bradley H. Patterson and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2009-12-23 with total page 464 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Nobody knows more about the duties, the difficulties, and the strategies of staffing and working in the White House than Brad Patterson. In To Serve the President, Patterson combines insider access, decades of Washington experience, and an inimitable style to open a window onto closely guarded Oval Office turf. The fascinating and entertaining result is the most complete look ever at the White House and the people that make it work. Patterson describes what he considers to be the whole White House staff, a larger and more inclusive picture than the one painted by most analysts. In addition to nearly one hundred policy offices, he draws the curtain back from less visible components such as the Executive Residence staff, Air Force One and Marine One, the First Lady's staff, Camp David, and many others—135 separate offices in all, pulling together under often stressful and intense conditions. This authoritative and readable account lays out the organizational structure of the full White House and fills it out the outline with details both large and small. Who are these people? What exactly do they do? And what role do they play in running the nation? Another exciting feature of To Serve the President is Patterson's revelation of the total size and total cost of the contemporary White House—information that simply is not available anywhere else. This is not a kiss-and-tell tale or an incendiary exposé. Brad Patterson is an accomplished public administrator with an intimate knowledge of how the White House really works, and he brings to this book a refreshingly positive view of government and public service not currently in vogue. The U.S. government is not a monolith, or a machine, or a shadowy cabal; above all, it is people, human beings doing the best they can, under challenging conditions, to produce a better life for their fellow citizens. While there are bad apples in every bunch, the vast majority

Download or read book The Professor and the President written by Stephen Hess and published by Brookings Institution Press. This book was released on 2014-12-08 with total page 194 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What happens when a conservative president makes a liberal professor from the Ivy League his top urban affairs adviser? The president is Richard Nixon, the professor is Harvard's Daniel Patrick Moynihan. Of all the odd couples in American public life, they are probably the oddest. Add another Ivy League professor to the White House staff when Nixon appoints Columbia's Arthur Burns, a conservative economist, as domestic policy adviser. The year is 1969, and what follows behind closed doors is a passionate debate of conflicting ideologies and personalities. Who won? How? Why? Now nearly a half-century later, Stephen Hess, who was Nixon's biographer and Moynihan's deputy, recounts this fascinating story as if from his office in the West Wing. Daniel Patrick Moynihan (1927–2003) described in the Almanac of American Politics as "the nation's best thinker among politicians since Lincoln and its best politician among thinkers since Jefferson", served in the administrations of four presidents, was ambassador to India, and U.S. representative to the United Nations, and was four times elected to the U.S. Senate from New York. Praise for the works of Stephen Hess Organzing the Presidency Any president would benefit from reading Mr. Hess's analysis and any reader will enjoy the elegance with which it is written and the author's wide knowledge and good sense. -The Economist The Presidential Campaign Hess brings not only first-rate credentials, but a cool, dispassionate perspective, an incisive analytical approach, and a willingness to stick his neck out in making judgments. -American Political Science Review From the Newswork Series It is not much in vogue to speak of things like the public trust, but thankfully Stephen Hess is old fashioned. He reminds us in this valuable and provocative book that journalism is a public trust, providing the basic information on which citizens in a democracy vote, or tune out. — Ken A

Download or read book The Secret Interference by the Vice President s Staff with HUD s Guidelines for Access by Handicapped Persons to Multifamily Dwellings written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Government Operations. Legislation and National Security Subcommittee and published by . This book was released on 1993 with total page 136 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The President s Book of Secrets written by David Priess and published by PublicAffairs. This book was released on 2016-03-01 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Every president has had a unique and complicated relationship with the intelligence community. While some have been coolly distant, even adversarial, others have found their intelligence agencies to be among the most valuable instruments of policy and power. Since John F. Kennedy's presidency, this relationship has been distilled into a personalized daily report: a short summary of what the intelligence apparatus considers the most crucial information for the president to know that day about global threats and opportunities. This top–secret document is known as the President's Daily Brief, or, within national security circles, simply “the Book.” Presidents have spent anywhere from a few moments (Richard Nixon) to a healthy part of their day (George W. Bush) consumed by its contents; some (Bill Clinton and George H. W. Bush) consider it far and away the most important document they saw on a regular basis while commander in chief. The details of most PDBs are highly classified, and will remain so for many years. But the process by which the intelligence community develops and presents the Book is a fascinating look into the operation of power at the highest levels. David Priess, a former intelligence officer and daily briefer, has interviewed every living president and vice president as well as more than one hundred others intimately involved with the production and delivery of the president's book of secrets. He offers an unprecedented window into the decision making of every president from Kennedy to Obama, with many character–rich stories revealed here for the first time.

Download or read book The Hardest Job in the World written by John Dickerson and published by Random House. This book was released on 2020-06-16 with total page 672 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the veteran political journalist and 60 Minutes correspondent, a deep dive into the history, evolution, and current state of the American presidency, and how we can make the job less impossible and more productive—featuring a new post-2020–election epilogue “This is a great gift to our sense of the actual presidency, a primer on leadership.”—Ken Burns Imagine you have just been elected president. You are now commander-in-chief, chief executive, chief diplomat, chief legislator, chief of party, chief voice of the people, first responder, chief priest, and world leader. You’re expected to fulfill your campaign promises, but you’re also expected to solve the urgent crises of the day. What’s on your to-do list? Where would you even start? What shocks aren’t you thinking about? The American presidency is in trouble. It has become overburdened, misunderstood, almost impossible to do. “The problems in the job unfolded before Donald Trump was elected, and the challenges of governing today will confront his successors,” writes John Dickerson. After all, the founders never intended for our system of checks and balances to have one superior Chief Magistrate, with Congress demoted to “the little brother who can’t keep up.” In this eye-opening book, John Dickerson writes about presidents in history such a Washington, Lincoln, FDR, and Eisenhower, and and in contemporary times, from LBJ and Reagan and Bush, Obama, and Trump, to show how a complex job has been done, and why we need to reevaluate how we view the presidency, how we choose our presidents, and what we expect from them once they are in office. Think of the presidential campaign as a job interview. Are we asking the right questions? Are we looking for good campaigners, or good presidents? Once a candidate gets the job, what can they do to thrive? Drawing on research and interviews with current and former White House staffers, Dickerson defines what the job of president actually entails, identifies the things that only the president can do, and analyzes how presidents in history have managed the burden. What qualities make for a good president? Who did it well? Why did Bill Clinton call the White House “the crown jewel in the American penal system”? The presidency is a job of surprises with high stakes, requiring vision, management skill, and an even temperament. Ultimately, in order to evaluate candidates properly for the job, we need to adjust our expectations, and be more realistic about the goals, the requirements, and the limitations of the office. As Dickerson writes, “Americans need their president to succeed, but the presidency is set up for failure. It doesn’t have to be.”