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The Triumph & Tragedy of Lyndon Johnson: Biography of US President's White House Years - Perfect for History Buffs & Political Science Students
The Triumph & Tragedy of Lyndon Johnson: Biography of US President's White House Years - Perfect for History Buffs & Political Science Students
The Triumph & Tragedy of Lyndon Johnson: Biography of US President's White House Years - Perfect for History Buffs & Political Science Students
The Triumph & Tragedy of Lyndon Johnson: Biography of US President's White House Years - Perfect for History Buffs & Political Science Students

The Triumph & Tragedy of Lyndon Johnson: Biography of US President's White House Years - Perfect for History Buffs & Political Science Students

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One of “Five Best Books about Wartime Presidents”—Michael Bechloss, The Wall Street Journal From Lyndon Johnson’s closest domestic adviser during the White House years comes a book in which “Johnson leaps out of the pages in all his raw and earthy glory” (The New York Times Book Review) that’s been called “a joy to read” (Stephen Ambrose, The Washington Post Book World). And now, a new introductory essay brings the reader up to date on Johnson’s impact on America today.Califano takes us into the Oval Office as the decisions that irrevocably changed the United States were being crafted to create Johnson’s ambitious Great Society. He shows us LBJ’s commitment to economic and social revolution, and his willingness to do whatever it took to achieve his goals. Califano uncorks LBJ’s legislative genius and reveals the political guile it took to pass the laws in civil rights, poverty, immigration reform, health, education, environmental protection, consumer protection, the arts, and communications. President Lyndon Johnson was bigger than life—and no one who worked for him or was subjected to the “Johnson treatment” ever forgot it. As Johnson’s “Deputy President of Domestic Affairs” (The New York Times), Joseph A. Califano’s unique relationship with the president greatly enriches our understanding of our thirty-sixth president, whose historical significance continues to be felt throughout every corner of America to this day. A no-holds-barred account of Johnson’s presidency, The Triumph & Tragedy of Lyndon Johnson is an intimate portrait of a President whose towering ambition for his country and himself reshaped America—and ultimately led to his decision to withdraw from the political arena in which he fought so hard.

Reviews

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- Verified Buyer
This was a great book as much about Califano as LBJ. I was very impressed with Joe as an appointed, loyal and very effective public servant. I especially liked how he handled his close relationship with LBJ. LBJ was very lucky to have Joe endure him throughout their tenure.The triumph was impressive. I believe that LBJ was the really our first "black" president for his efforts to take the plans for civil rights inherited from the JFK assassination to transform them to public law. In that regard, I got this book for some insight into the relationship between MLK, Jr and LBJ. I had seem the movie "Selma" and read about the criticism of the LBJ legacy. I personally have no problem with LBJ in "Selma" and Joe provides no real insight into the LBJ/MLK, Jr relationship. Bottomline, the landmark Civil Rights Act was passed. With all LBJ's legislation, his involvement did not end with passing the law, it involved aggressive enforcement followup.The tragedy of VietNam will live forever. LBJ tried to prosecute the war and his social programs concurrently. Unfortunately, LBJ put a lot of blind faith in the Department of Defense and William C. Westmoreland specifically. Additionally, he fought the war with a "drafted" military force. A corrupted draft at that. The American people were moved to action. The war was the most divisive government action of my lifetime. I volunteered to avoid the draft and was given the opportunity to attend Officer's Candidate School in lieu of immediate assignment to the war zone. Timing was everything and by the time I completed my training it was clear the war was over. At that time the morale of the US Army was at an all time low. Black soldiers (I hate to use the word solider because these were thugs with gang affiliations)refused to obey the orders of both their non-commissioned as well as commissioned officers appointed over them. Leaders were being killed in their barracks in Germany and VietNam. These thugs were of the same culture of the blacks who were burning Washington, DC, Chicago, Detroit and LA. MLK, Jr said he would rather deal with the likes of Bull Connor than the northern black leaders who had no use for him either. This was a real dichotomy for LBJ, doing his best to support the non violent, Southern black civil rights movement when northern cities were in flames. Kind of like Ferguson, MO.At any rate LBJ's legacy will forever be tied to VietNam. The really sad part is, that as a nation, it does not appear that we learned anything from that horrible experience.Towards the end of his Presidency, LBJ tried to reach out to North VietNam leaders to bring closure to this tragedy. Joe Califano reveals that a private US citizen working for Richard Nixon's campaign, reached out to the same leaders and advised them not to listen to LBJ's and to wait till Nixon to be President for a better deal. The war lingered for 4 more years. I was not aware of this disgusting/treasonous (think of those soldiers lost during that period) action of Nixon. Kind of like the Republicans telling the Iranians not to deal with the sitting POTUS.