The hidden-hand presidency

About This Book

"When Eisenhower left office more than twenty years ago, he was generally regarded as the very model of an ineffective president, a benign but politically indecisive leader who reigned but did not rule. Only now, five unsuccessful presidents and a disastrous war later, are we beginning to wonder how this seemingly bumbling and inarticulate man was able to get so much done while appearing to do so little. In The Hidden-Hand Presidency, Fred I. Greenstein, one of the country's leading political scientists, shows that behind Ike's bland 'statesmanlike' exterior there was a distinctive, self-consciously articulated style of leadership. Drawing on recently declassified confidential diaries, letters, and memoranda--including evidence of a secret Eisenhower campaign to terminate Joe McCarthy's political effectiveness--Greenstein shows us an intelligent and articulate leader who knew exactly what he wanted and was prepared to work hard to get it. Time and again, in the way he rallied subordinates and isolated political opponents, in his maneuvers to win support among both isolationalist right wingers and liberal Republicans, Eisenhower proved himself a skilled politician while self-consciously projecting an uncontroversial public image."--Jacket.