The man who ran Washington : the life and times of James A. Baker III /
Material type: TextPublisher: New York : Doubleday, [2020]Edition: First editionDescription: 694 pagesContent type:- text
- unmediated
- volume
- 9780385540551
- 0385540558
- Baker, James Addison, 1930-
- Baker, James Addison, 1930-
- Since 1981
- Statesmen -- United States -- Biography
- Cabinet officers -- United States -- Biography
- Cabinet officers
- Politics and government
- Statesmen
- United States -- Politics and government -- 1981-1989
- United States -- Politics and government -- 1989-
- United States
- 973.92092 B 23
- E840.8.B315 B35 2020
Item type | Current library | Home library | Collection | Call number | Copy number | Status | Date due | Barcode | Item holds | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Standard Loan | Hayden Library Adult Biography | Hayden Library | Book | BAKER-BAKER (Browse shelf(Opens below)) | 1 | Available | 50610022502368 |
Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:
BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New York Times * The Washington Post * Fortune * Bloomberg
From two of America's most revered political journalists comes the definitive biography of legendary White House chief of staff and secretary of state James A. Baker III: the man who ran Washington when Washington ran the world.
For a quarter-century, from the end of Watergate to the aftermath of the Cold War, no Republican won the presidency without his help or ran the White House without his advice. James Addison Baker III was the indispensable man for four presidents because he understood better than anyone how to make Washington work at a time when America was shaping events around the world. The Man Who Ran Washington is a page-turning portrait of a power broker who influenced America's destiny for generations.
A scion of Texas aristocracy who became George H. W. Bush's best friend on the tennis courts of the Houston Country Club, Baker had never even worked in Washington until a devastating family tragedy struck when he was thirty-nine. Within a few years, he was leading Gerald Ford's campaign and would go on to manage a total of five presidential races and win a sixth for George W. Bush in a Florida recount. He ran Ronald Reagan's White House and became the most consequential secretary of state since Henry Kissinger. He negotiated with Democrats at home and Soviets abroad, rewrote the tax code, assembled the coalition that won the Gulf War, brokered the reunification of Germany and helped bring a decades-long nuclear superpower standoff to an end. Ruthlessly partisan during campaign season, Baker governed as the avatar of pragmatism over purity and deal-making over division, a lost art in today's fractured nation.
His story is a case study in the acquisition, exercise, and preservation of power in late twentieth-century America and the story of Washington and the world in the modern era--how it once worked and how it has transformed into an era of gridlock and polarization. This masterly biography by two brilliant observers of the American political scene is destined to become a classic.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Prologue: The Velvet Hammer -- In the Magnolia City -- The warden's son -- God came today -- A long dark night -- Miracle man -- Out of the backroom -- The asterisk club -- Troika -- Shit detector -- Big leagues -- To the last drop of blood -- The ratfuck -- The dark side -- Morning in America -- Fencing master -- Black Monday -- The handler -- Jigsaw puzzle -- Fly fishing with Shevy -- The curtain falls -- Winners and losers -- Desert diplomacy -- Eyes of a killer -- From the souk to Madrid -- A call to action -- The cruelest turn -- The virus -- Scorched earth -- Grave and deteriorating.
"Co-authored by the Chief White House correspondent at The New York Times and the Washington columnist at the The New Yorker, this is a biography any would-be power broker must own: the story of legendary White House chief of staff and secretary of state James A. Baker III, the man who ran Washington when Washington ran the world. In the latter half of the twentieth century, no Republican won the presidency without his help, and the men he counseled in the Oval Office--Gerald R. Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush--defined more than one generation of American life. Campaign manager, chief of staff, treasury secretary, and ultimately secretary of state, James A. Baker III understood better than anyone how to make Washington work and how to pull the levers of power at home and abroad. A suave and profane Texas Democrat, Baker worked as a wealthy Houston lawyer until his best friend, George H. W. Bush, drew him into Republican politics. His first dramatic win was in 1976 as the delegate hunter who secured the Republican nomination for Ford against a challenge from Ronald Reagan. His next job, as Bush's campaign manager four years later, maneuvered Bush onto the ticket with Reagan and Baker into the most powerful office in Washington other than the Oval Office: White House chief of staff. In his years in the White House and in the cabinet, Baker was the avatar of a style of politics and governance that valued pragmatism and deal making over purity. He went from win to win--reforming the tax code, negotiating the first Middle East peace talks, managing the dissolution of the Soviet Union--until his capstone victory, as field marshal for the younger Bush's Florida recount battle, helped divide the country forever. In today's era of gridlock, The Man Who Ran Washington is an electrifying escape"--
Table of contents provided by Syndetics
- Prologue: The Velvet Hammer (p. xiii)
- Part 1
- 1 In the Magnolia City (p. 3)
- 2 The Warden's Son (p. 22)
- 3 God Came Today (p. 37)
- 4 A Long Dark Night (p. 53)
- Part 2
- 5 Miracle Man (p. 69)
- 6 Out of the Back Room (p. 91)
- 7 The Asterisk Club (p. 104)
- 8 Troika (p. 129)
- 9 Shit Detector (p. 141)
- 10 Big Leagues (p. 151)
- Part 3
- 11 The Witches' Brew (p. 173)
- 12 The Ratfuck (p. 190)
- 13 The Dark Side (p. 207)
- 14 Morning in America (p. 222)
- 15 Fencing Master (p. 246)
- 16 Black Monday (p. 269)
- 17 The Handler (p. 294)
- Part 4
- 18 Jigsaw Puzzle (p. 321)
- 19 Fly-Fishing with Shevy (p. 337)
- 20 The Curtain Falls (p. 357)
- 21 Winners and Losers (p. 378)
- 22 Desert Diplomacy (p. 393)
- 23 Eyes of a Killer (p. 417)
- 24 In the Souk (p. 430)
- 25 A Call to Action (p. 455)
- 26 The Crudest Turn (p. 479)
- Part 5
- 27 The Virus (p. 511)
- 28 Scorched Earth (p. 529)
- 29 Grave and Deteriorating (p. 551)
- Epilogue: Three Funerals and an Election (p. 575)
- Acknowledgments (p. 586)
- Notes (p. 590)
- Bibliography (p. 657)
- Index (p. 665)
Excerpt provided by Syndetics
Reviews provided by Syndetics
Library Journal Review
Journalists Baker (New York Times chief White House correspondent) and Glasser (staff writer, The New Yorker) spent seven years researching and writing this sweeping biography of a figure they refer to as the ultimate "deal-maker" in modern American politics. James Baker (b. 1930), no relation to the author, has an impressive political résumé, starting with his stint as undersecretary of commerce in the Ford administration, and, later, running Ford's 1976 presidential campaign. Baker subsequently served as chief of staff and secretary of the treasury during the Reagan administration, then as secretary of state and chief of staff for close friend George H.W. Bush. Beginning with Baker's early life as the scion of well-connected Houston lawyers, the book proceeds to cover his law career and gradual entry into politics, along with his ability to wield power. The authors interviewed Baker, and talked with numerous friends and associates to present a well-documented, engaging read. The private life of Baker also emerges here: his domineering father, the early death of his first wife, his relationship with his four sons, and, especially, his close bond with Bush. VERDICT Indispensable reading for anyone interested in late 20th-century U.S. politics.--Thomas Karel, Franklin & Marshall Coll. Lib., Lancaster, PAPublishers Weekly Review
A bygone era of bipartisan pragmatism and statesmanship is elegized in this sprawling biography of the leading advisor to Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. Husband and wife journalists Baker (no relation) and Glasser (coauthors, Kremlin Rising) style James Baker as possibly "the ultimate Washington player," noting that he shepherded landmark tax cuts through Democratic congresses as Reagan's chief of staff and treasury secretary; negotiated the dismantling of the Soviet empire and German reunification as Bush's secretary of state; and organized bruising political warfare while managing presidential campaigns and masterminding George W. Bush's strategy in the 2000 election dispute. There's plenty of West Wing backstabbing, situational ethics, and profane tirades in the authors' vibrant narrative as Baker (aka the "Velvet Hammer") outmaneuvers rival White House power brokers and authorizes attack ads against Michael Dukakis in the 1988 election. But in their telling, Baker also champions a relatively enlightened establishment politics, sidelining right-wing Republican zealots, forging relationships with liberal congressmen and communist reformers, and crafting workable domestic and international initiatives. The contrast with the current White House is pointed, resulting in an engrossing study of a kind of government leadership that readers may conclude is both obsolete and sorely needed. (May)Kirkus Book Review
A penetrating portrait of a powerful Washington insider. New York Times chief White House correspondent Baker and New Yorker staff writer Glasser bring political acumen and thorough research to their absorbing biography of James Addison Baker III (b. 1930), who served presidents Ford, Reagan, and both Bushes, decisively shaping American policies at home and abroad. Drawing on prodigious sources, including more than 210 interviews (70 hours with Baker), the authors offer a balanced view of a man praised for being pragmatic, scrupulously organized, and authoritative, and derided as manipulative, self-aggrandizing, and cynical. He habitually leaked information and "cunningly took credit for something he actually opposed in order to pocket a chit." One political columnist noted, "taking responsibility isn't Jim Baker's style." Born into an influential Texas family, he followed his father into corporate law, where he felt bored. In 1975, his longtime friend George H.W. Bush recommended him for undersecretary of commerce in Ford's administration. His impressive political savvy led Ford to tap Baker to run his 1976 presidential campaign; although Ford lost to Jimmy Carter, Baker saw his own reputation rise. When Reagan took office in 1981, he made Baker his White House chief of staff. The authors portray Reagan as distracted and distant but also "a man of driving ambition and more calculation than his public image suggested." Baker, too, was ambitious, and he could be ruthless in pursuing his goals. After running the White House, Baker became secretary of the treasury and, in George H.W. Bush's administration, secretary of state. Although he spoke no foreign languages and had no international relations experience, he succeeded in helping to reunify Germany, organize a crucial Middle East peace conference, deal with the Iran-Contra scandal and Iraq's incursion into Kuwait, and preside over the end of the Cold War. He later served as chief counsel for George W. Bush during the 2000 election recount. With Baker as their focus, the authors afford a sharp, insightful view into Washington dealmaking. An engrossing biography that is highly relevant in today's America. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.Author notes provided by Syndetics
Peter Baker is an American political writer and newspaper reporter who is currently White House correspondent for New York Times and a contributing writer for the The New York Times Magazine. He is responsible for covering President Obama and his administration.Prior to joining The New York Times (NYT) in 2008, Baker was a reporter for 20 years at The Washington Post, where he also covered the White House during the presidencies of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. Baker co-authored the original story breaking the Lewinsky scandal during Clinton's presidency and served as the paper¿s lead writer during the subsequent impeachment battle. During Bush¿s second term, Baker covered the Iraq War, Hurricane Katrina and the Supreme Court nomination fights.
Baker is the author of many NYT bestselling books: The Breach: Inside the Impeachment and Trial of William Jefferson Clinton, Kremlin Rising: Vladimir Putin¿s Russia and the End of Revolution, and Days of Fire: Bush and Cheney in the White House. He won the Gerald R. Ford Prize for Distinguished Coverage of the Presidency for his reporting on Bush. Baker is a regular panelist on PBS¿s Washington Week and a frequent guest on other television and radio programs.
(Bowker Author Biography)
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