A revelatory, behind-the-scenes account of the Obama presidency
from perhaps his closest collaborator, and a political memoir about
the power of words to change our world.
From 2009 to 2017, Ben Rhodes served as Deputy National Security Advisor to President Obama overseeing the Administration's national security communications, speechwriting, public diplomacy and global engagement programming. Prior to joining the Obama Administration, from 2007-2008 Rhodes was a senior speech-writer and foreign policy advisor to the Obama campaign. Before joining then Senator Obama's campaign, he worked for former Congressman Lee Hamilton from 2002-2007. He was the co-author, with Tom Keen and Lee Hamilton, of Without Precedent- The Inside Story of the 9/11 Commission. A native New Yorker, Rhodes has a B.A. from Rice University and an M.F.A. from New York University.
Ben's one of the few who've been with me since that first
presidential campaign. His memoir is one of the most compelling
stories I've seen about what it's actually like to serve the
American people for eight years in the White House -- BARACK
OBAMA
Ben Rhodes ... has written a book that reflects the president he
served - intelligent, amiable, compelling and principled ...
a classic coming-of-age story, about the journey from
idealism to realism, told with candor and immediacy ...
There are anecdotes galore, but they illuminate rather than
scandalize ... Ben Rhodes is a charming and humble guide through an
unprecedented presidency ... As a result, his achievement is
rare for a political memoir: He has written a humane and honorable
book * New York Times *
Vivid, lucid, enjoyable ... A compelling account of
life in the Obama White House -- Justin Webb * The Times *
Taut, compelling. -- Peter Conrad * Observer *
A page-turning, unfiltered, altogether human look at Barack
Obama's presidency. Ben Rhodes - one of Obama's closest and
most important advisers - opens up the defining issues of the
presidency: from the role of race and the rise of conspiracy
theories to the hunt for bin Laden, the Syria "red line" debate,
and the secret negotiations Ben himself led to normalize ties with
Cuba. Insightful, funny, and moving, this is a
beautifully observed, essential record of what it was like to be
there. -- Samantha Power, Former United States Ambassador to
the United Nations
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