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David Gergen is probably the only person to have served at high levels in both the Reagan and Clinton White Houses--not to mention his posts in the Nixon and Ford administrations. He's a consummate Washington insider, a man who appears regularly as a centrist political commentator on PBS'sNewsHour with Jim Lehrerand works as editor at large forU.S. News&World Report.Eyewitness to Power, his first book, draws upon this unique experience. It's part memoir, part political history, part portrait of White House culture, but it's mostly a meditation on what it takes to be a great political leader. Gergen focuses on the four presidents he has known best--Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Clinton--and offers pointed assessments of each. He calls Reagan "the best leader in the White House since Franklin Roosevelt," and says Clinton "is one of the smartest men ever elected president and has done some of the dumbest things." Gergen does not hesitate to offer harsh criticism: Nixon was hateful, Ford was overwhelmed by his predecessor's scandals, Reagan was often detached, and Clinton was not in control of his appetites. Yet there's a reflective admiration for each man.
What makes this volume rise above the mountain of books on leadership (usually written for executives) is its spot-on observations about the way Washington works, drawn from years of experience: "Republicans like hierarchy and order; they're not like Democrats, as I saw later on, who thrive on chaos and creativity"; the Nixon view of Watergate "was the same as the Victorians had of adultery: the sin was not in the doing of it but in getting caught"; "In most institutions, the power of a leader grows over time. A CEO, a university president, the head of a union, acquire stature through the quality of their long-term performance. The presidency is just the opposite: power tends to evaporate quickly."
Gergen concludes by describing the seven leadership qualities a great president must have: personal integrity, a sense of mission, the ability to persuade, the ability to work with other politicians, a strong start after inauguration, skilled advisers, and the ability to inspire. Those traits, of course, will serve people well from all walks of life--andEyewitness to Powerwill appeal not just to readers interested in the presidency but to anyone occupying a position of responsibility (or interested in getting there).--John J. Miller
Makes you wonder how great these men might have been Politics is such a contact sport, with the opposing party trying to bring down the President. A house divided cannot stand, yet here in America we no longer rally around the President after the election. The losing party tries to destroy him.
I have always like Gergen and I appreciate his wisdom in this book. Even the most liberal Democrat will find much to admire about Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan if he reads this book with an open mind. Likewise, the most conservative Republican will find many positive traits about Bill Clinton, faults and all.
These men were not perfect and they all had their weaknesses, which their enemies ultimately used against them. But these men all had what it takes to make great Presidents. Sadly, Nixon was forced to resign, Clinton was impeached, and Reagan survived the Iran/Contra scandal.
Today in 2006, we hear that if the Democrats gain control in Congress, they might try to impeach the current President for his failings. Will we ever learn? Can a President ever serve an 8 year term without the threat of impeachment by the other side?
All men have faults and we will never have a President that is perfect. In "Eyewitness to Power" we learn that anyone who becomes President must have leadership skills to be able to rise to this high office. Maybe future leaders can learn from the mistakes of past Presidents. They better because in today's political climate, the other side will be waiting for any misstep.
Excellent Perspectives! Gergen was advisor to four Presidents - Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Clinton. His book summarizes those experiences, and then concludes with leadership qualities a President must have.
Gergen started as a Nixon speechwriter. He observes that Nixon used his "out" years (between V.P. and President) for self-development - primarily studying history. Nixon valued a range of opinions, and included leading Democrat Daniel Moynihan as an advisor. Nixon was also generally regarded as having the best strategic view of foreign affairs, even after leaving office. While disliked by civil rights leaders, Nixon almost eliminated all-black schools in the South - dropped from 68% to 8%; also initiated the EPA and volunteer Army.
The bad side was that Nixon was paranoid; experiences with reporters, civil rights leaders, and university presidents scarred him, as well as prior campaign battles. Wiretaps led to dirty tricks, and then the "Plumbers" to investigate Daniel Ellsberg (Pentagon Papers), and finally his undoing - Watergate.
Gergen views Ford as the most decent of today's Presidents, and totally honest. Unfortunately, not being elected, he lacked a mandate. Ford's Nixon pardon hurt his ratings - would have been better if he had prepared people in advance instead of surprising them. His organizational style was a problem at first, with many people reporting directly to him - the result was to take up too much of his time, and several flip-flops as another side came to bear later. Dick Cheney eventually became Chief of Staff. Ford had to work through an inflation problem (dropped from 11 to 5.8% during his years).
Reagan was a "natural," according to Gergen. He pledged a 30% cut in tax rates, less social spending, more defense spending, less government regulations, and a balanced budget. Prior to Inaugeration, his staff studied the first 100 days of prior "freshly elected" Presidents to see what worked best. Fired air traffic controllers when they went on strike; being seen as a "strong President" was the major reason why voters chose him in the following election. Strong points included meeting with people (press, Congress), openness - after Iran-Contra opened document files rather than try cover-up. His "Star Wars" initiative is seen as showing Russia that it could no longer keep up with the U.S. on defense spending, and apparently led to its breakup.
The current President Bush has taken much from Reagan, including his "hero in the balcony" during State of the Union speeches, focusing on tax cuts, reducing social spending, and increasing defense spending, saluting military men, walking (marching) stiffly, calling the Soviets the "Evil Empire" (Bush changed this to "Axis of Evil), and always being dressed up while working.
Bush I wasted his popularity from Gulf War I, according to Gergen. He asked for nothing from Congress (and got it).
"Clinton was one of the smartest Presidents, and did some of the dumbest things" according to Gergen. He had the best knowledge of economic matters, and focused on bringing the deficit down and bringing NAFTA in. Unfortunately, he came into office without a mandate (Arkansas was the only State where he got more than 50% of the vote), and ran behind all but five House members. Much of his vote was simply "anti-Bush." Clinton wasted much transition time dallying in personnel selections (over-focused on diversity), and keeping Carter people out.
Hillary's refusal to turn over Whitewater documents to the press led to Ken Starr as Independent Counsel. Further, Bill vs. Hillary confused staff on other issues. Healthcare reform died because she did not work both liberals and conservatives, refused to compromise, tried to by-pass committees (sandwiched into Budget Bill), and went around the Secretary of Health.
Lessons for Presidents include have 1)a central, compelling purpose, 2)a capacity to persuade, 3)an ability to work within the system, 4)a quick start, and 5)strong, prudent advisors. A View of Executive Leadership from the Catbird Seat What I like most about Gergen's book, is not just that he worked with four different Presidents but that he has an objective view of each. Each had their strengths and certainly weaknesses but he is fair and objective regarding all four that he served. For example, Gergen has serious admiration for Nixon's strength in foreign policy, his work ethic and organization skills and drive but sadly, Gergen also recognizes that Nixon's personal traits and paranoia led to his self destruction. Ford he recognizes as a good man who tries to break away from the Nixon Chef of Staff model and be the center of the hub only to find himself overwhelmed and disorganized until he succeeds with a competent Chief who greatly assists Ford organizationally. Gergen notes that Ford's failings politically were his pardoning of Nixon too soon and in the wrong manner as well as his slow reaction to his famous Poland gaffe during the Carter debate. Gergen gives great marks for President Reagan due to his strong emotional intelligence and connection with regular folk. Probably due to his own field of communications, Gergen admires Reagan's strength of character beyond any of the other three presidents. In Clinton, Gergen saw an intelligent man who won the Presidency one term too soon. As Gergen sees it, Clinton is a highly intelligent man who really was unprepared to win on the first try, another four years of maturity was in order. Gergen recognizes Clinton's strong ability to communicate and act as a conservative but notes that Clinton's personal responsibility issues damaged his presidency. Gergen had a great perspective of men in power and at the end of the book, he summarizes what he sees as the necessary traits that a good leader must have. Now only if Gergen could go back in the White House one more time...
