A Call to Greatness examines how our next President can learn from the successes and failures of past Presidents to be an effective leader during a time of tremendous challenges at home and abroad.
From army days, to working with lawmakers for the State Department, to international diplomacy, to his time as counselor to presidents, David Abshire was a fixture in the effort to make America a superpower with a higher purpose"--
. . . required reading for all presidents and White House aides to come . . . "--from the foreword by Richard E. Neustadt What did the president know, and when did he know it? Once again, only a dozen years after Watergate, the nation faced these troubling questions. Would we see another president forced to resign or be impeached? Could our democracy survive another presidential scandal so soon? As the Iran-Contra affair unfolded, the nation waited tensely for answers. At this crucial moment, advisors to President Ronald Reagan called home the Ambassador to NATO, David Abshire, to serve in the cabinet as Special Counselor. His charge: to assure that a full investigation of the sale of arms to Iran in exchange for freeing American hostages and the subsequent channeling of those funds to Nicaraguan rebels be conducted expeditiously and transparently, to restore the confidence of the nation in the shaken Reagan presidency. Two decades later, David Abshire for the first time reveals the full behind-the-scenes story of his private meetings with the president, how he and his team conducted this crucial process, his alliance with Nancy Reagan, the role of the Tower Board, and how the Reagan presidency was saved. Abshire's efforts helped Reagan fill the credibility gap created by revelation of the Iran-Contra scandal and thus restored the president's power to lead the nation and its allies toward the end of the Cold War. His unique recollections show the inner workings of the Reagan White House in this critical period: the conflicts with the powerful Chief of Staff Donald Regan, the politically astute First Lady, the involvement of CIA Director William Casey, and Reagan's triumph of personal character to overcome his indiscretion, a feat unmatched by Clinton or Nixon. Abshire's story casts new light on the episode and draws important lessons about how presidents should respond to unfolding scandals to limit the threat not only to their own reputations but also to national confidence in democratic institutions.
A Call to Greatness examines how our next President can learn from the successes and failures of past Presidents to be an effective leader during a time of tremendous challenges at home and abroad.
Originally published in 1960, in The Edge of War Georgetown University associate professor and author James David Atkinson provides an examination of both the Western and Communist approaches to war. He also covers the evolution of unconventional war, and includes case histories of Guatemala and the stand-up of the Shah of Iran. “It is a privilege to have the opportunity to state my agreement with Dr. Atkinson’s general thesis and especially his observation that ‘warfare of the latter part of the 20th Century is, above all, a battle of the spirit, of ideas, and of the human will.’ This battle will be fought in the hearts, in the minds, and in the souls of men everywhere. It is hoped that this book will serve to awaken many to this fact.”—Adm. Arleigh A. Burke
The late Ambassador David Abshire lived a quintessentially American life, one that spanned the Great Depression, World War II and the Cold War. He graduated from West Point, fought in the Korean War, earned a doctorate in history from Georgetown University, and served in government during the Vietnam War. He also co-founded one of the world’s preeminent think tanks in the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Along the way he became a personal adviser to multiple presidents, earning a reputation as one of Washington, D.C.’s truly wise men. All of which makes the warnings contained in these memoirs so topical. Writing near the end of his life, Abshire concludes that our country has lost its sense of strategic direction and common purpose. Our domestic politics have entered an era of hyper-partisanship and gridlock, even as dangerous challenges to U.S. interests gather overseas. America, Abshire concludes, is in deep trouble. In this extraordinary final love letter to his country, Abshire tells his fellow citizens how to reclaim American exceptionalism. That journey begins with rejecting the great incivility that has infected our national discourse. That fundamental lack respect among political partisans has eroded our trust in each other, and faith in our leaders. The only way to recapture them, Abshire argues persuasively, is to reinvigorate a politics of lively, robust debate within a framework of respect and civil behavior. Before it is too late.
As a point-of-view text, AMERICA: THE POLITICS OF DIVERSITY organizes introductory American government material around the themes of diversity and hyperpluralism. Author David Lawrence examines how the diversity of the country, and, in particular, of the government, bears on American politics. He introduces American government through clear and lively discussions. The text is shorter and less expansive than most Introduction to American Government texts.
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