Eyewitness to Power; The Essence of Leadership, Nixon to Clinton

New York: Simon & Schuster, 2000. First Printing [Stated]. Hardcover. Very good/Very good. 382, [2] pages. Notes. Index. Signed with sentiment by author on Title page. DJ has minor wear. David Richmond Gergen (born May 9, 1942) is an American political commentator and former presidential adviser who served during the administrations of Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton. He is currently a senior political analyst for CNN and a professor of public service and co-director of the Center for Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School. Gergen is also the former editor at large of U.S. News and World Report and a contributor to CNN and Parade Magazine. He has twice been a member of election coverage teams that won Peabody awards-in 1988 with MacNeil-Lehrer, and in 2008 with CNN. Gergen joined the Nixon White House in 1971, as a staff assistant on the speechwriting team, becoming director of speechwriting two years later. He served as director of communications for both Ford and Reagan, and as a senior adviser to Clinton and Secretary of State Warren Christopher. As a commentator his admirers consider him an objective political voice because he has served in both Republican and Democratic administrations. He has been awarded 25 honorary degrees. From a Kirkus review: Historic insider's insights into presidential qualities. Gergen directed communications for Nixon, Ford, and Reagan, counseled Clinton, edited U.S. News & World Report, and is a significant TV pundit who teaches government at Duke and Harvard. He discusses the last several presidents' strengths and weaknesses without partisanship, and, he has some anecdotes to share. He offers seven prerequisites for success in the White House. The first is possession of a character that inspires trust. Gergen admits that Nixon was paranoid whereas Reagan, the Great Communicator, oozed sincerity. Moral vision comes next, followed by canny political skills. Clinton is highly rated for the ability to mobilize followers, while Reagan's friends did not feel as well used. Nixon and Clinton had experience with crises, but Gergen praises Ford for weathering the post-Watergate storm, and Reagan for enduring an assassination attempt and the air-traffic controllers' strike. As far as working with staff, the Nixon-Kissinger team is lauded the most highly. The last criterion involves a legacy, and accomplishments like détente and an economic boom make us wonder what other candidates might achieve.