The Gatekeepers
How the White House Chiefs of Staff Define Every Presidency
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4.1 • 8 Ratings
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- $16.99
Publisher Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • An in-depth, behind-the-scenes look at the White House Chiefs of Staff, whose choices have defined the course of our country—including a chapter on the chaos of the first Trump administration
“Entertaining and engaging.”—The Wall Street Journal
“Compelling and insightful.”—HuffPost
“Carefully researched and eminently readable.”—Newsday
Presidents have always depended on the advice of key confidants. But it wasn’t until the twentieth century that the White House chief of staff was codified and became the second most powerful job in government. Unelected and unconfirmed, the chief is the president’s closest adviser; when the president makes a life-and-death decision, often the chief of staff is the only other person in the room.
Through extensive, intimate interviews with eighteen chiefs (including Reince Priebus) and two former presidents, award-winning journalist Chris Whipple pulls back the curtain on this unique fraternity. In doing so, he revises our understanding of presidential history, showing us how one chief paved the way for the Reagan Revolution—and, conversely, how Watergate and the Iraq War might have been prevented by a more effective chief. Plus, in a chapter written exclusively for this edition, Whipple takes readers inside the Trump White House, revealing startling details of its dysfunction.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Pairing whip-smart analysis of presidential policy with revelatory details about daily life in the Oval Office, this in-depth examination into the role of White House Chief of Staff offers a new view of the executive branch. The Gatekeepers contains interviews with every living person to have held this high-stakes, high-stress job, including former vice president Dick Cheney (who served as CoS under Gerald Ford). Emmy-winning journalist Chris Whipple asserts that Chiefs of Staff “make or break the presidencies they serve.” His exhaustive reporting reveals the wheeling and dealing of the men who’ve helped America’s presidents lead the country through some of its most challenging times.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Whipple, a documentary filmmaker and first-time author, surveys recent U.S. presidential history by profiling chiefs of staff from Nixon to Obama. He doesn't quite justify his subtitle or even try particularly hard to prove its far-reaching claim, but he does recount a vibrant narrative of the real-world West Wing and give insight into the oft-mentioned but little-explained role of White House Chief of Staff. Repurposing original interviews conducted for a documentary film that Whipple cowrote, The President's Gatekeepers, the book is peppered with stories and insights from many of the chiefs of staff and other key players including presidents Carter and George H.W. Bush. Whipple also draws from other histories and political memoirs, giving the book an insiders' feel as it recounts historical episodes such as the Watergate break-in, the assassination attempt on Ronald Reagan, the 9/11 attacks, and the unsuccessful rollout of healthcare.gov. The confident and fast-paced narrative is enhanced by having actual historical players contribute well-rounded (and sometimes surprising) characterizations of presidents and other Washington luminaries. In this page-turner of a history, readers will discover new facets of historical events that they felt they already knew.
Customer Reviews
Informative read!
Great and informative read. Recommended for American politics buffs!