Call The Briefing

Rating:
Summary: Riveting Tale of Real-Life Politics
Review: "Call the Briefing" by Marlin Fitzwater puts you inside the White House. The reader is brought right to the Podium, fielding questions from a voracious Press Corps ready to do almost anything for a story. And you are there with the President and the Cabinet, discussing strategy and estimating every action's media reaction.It was hard to put this book down. You meet the very idealistic Ronald Reagan and the very professional George H. W. Bush through the eyes of the man who served a Press Secretary in both Administrations. Mr. Fitzwater's longevity in that position attests to his skill at working with the White House insiders and the news media.

Many of the events covered are specific to the Reagan and Bush days, but you also experience the many duties of the White House Press Secretary in any Administration, a role that could give ulcers to almost anyone. This gave me a real appreciation of the "24/7" crises White House Staff in any Administration, must battle every day.I especially liked Mr. Fitzwater's writing, honed through years of experience. I liked his ability to paint events in a terse yet rich way. All the journeys of Marlin Fitzwater come alive, starting as a farm boy in Abeliene, Kansas and a reporter and editor in small-town Kansas newspapers.

Although he had originally wanted a career as a journalist, his opportunity came on the other side of the podium, handling public relations at Government agencies. Mr. Fitzwater got his baptism by fire at the Environmental Protection Agency, handling the hot potato of the Three Mile Island Nuclear leak. For better or worse, it is the news media which ultimately decides what is news and how that news is presented to the public. But their power is even greater than we perceive. They can choose to make any particular event, such as a Presidential Speech, front-page headline news or bury it on the Obituary page.

Mr. Fitzwater handled his dual challenge very well: to communicate the Administration's activities in the most favorable light, and at the same time building trust among the White House Press Corps by being fair and honest. One sees the successes, such as the Summit Meetings held by both Presidents Reagan and Bush with Premiere Gorbachev of the Soviet Union. And you see the bad times, such as the unfortunate illnesses suffered by Mr. Bush at Camp David and again in Japan, which caused many people to question his ability to finish his term. The reader also learns about the successes and failures of the Movers and Shakers in the White House, from Caspar Weiberger and Iran-Contra to the rise and fall of the autocratic Chief of Staff John Sununu. And of course the Media are happy to make a story at anyone's expense.

Definitely five stars, and recommended for anyone who wants to know more about what happens in White House and how it affects the Nation.

Rating:
Summary: Riveting Tale of Real Politics
Review: "Call the Briefing" by Marlin Fitzwater puts you inside the White House. The reader is brought right to the Podium, fielding questions from a voracious Press Corps ready to do almost anything for a story. And you are there with the President and the Cabinet, discussing strategy and estimating every action's media reaction.It was hard to put this book down. You meet the very idealistic Ronald Reagan and the very professional George H. W. Bush through the eyes of the man who served a Press Secretary in both Administrations. Mr. Fitzwater's longevity in that position attests to his skill at working with the White House insiders and the news media.

Many of the events covered are specific to the Reagan and Bush days, but you also experience the many duties of the White House Press Secretary in any Administration, a role that could give ulcers to almost anyone. This gave me a real appreciation of the "24/7" crises White House Staff in any Administration, must battle every day.I especially liked Mr. Fitzwater's writing, honed through years of experience. I liked his ability to paint events in a terse yet rich way. All the journeys of Marlin Fitzwater come alive, starting as a farm boy in Abeliene, Kansas and a reporter and editor in small-town Kansas newspapers.

Although he had originally wanted a career as a journalist, his opportunity came on the other side of the podium, handling public relations at Government agencies. Mr. Fitzwater got his baptism by fire at the Environmental Protection Agency, handling the hot potato of the Three Mile Island Nuclear leak. For better or worse, it is the news media which ultimately decides what is news and how that news is presented to the public. But their power is even greater than we perceive. They can choose to make any particular event, such as a Presidential Speech, front-page headline news or bury it on the Obituary page.

Mr. Fitzwater handled his dual challenge very well: to communicate the Administration's activities in the most favorable light, and at the same time building trust among the White House Press Corps by being fair and honest. One sees the successes, such as the Summit Meetings held by both Presidents Reagan and Bush with Premiere Gorbachev of the Soviet Union. And you see the bad times, such as the unfortunate illnesses suffered by Mr. Bush at Camp David and again in Japan, which caused many people to question his ability to finish his term. The reader also learns about the successes and failures of the Movers and Shakers in the White House, from Caspar Weiberger and Iran-Contra to the rise and fall of the autocratic Chief of Staff John Sununu. And of course the Media are happy to make a story at anyone's expense.

Definitely five stars, and recommended for anyone who wants to know more about what happens in White House and how it affects the Nation.

Rating:
Summary: Riveting Tale of Real-Life Politics
Review: "Call the Briefing" by Marlin Fitzwater puts you inside the White House. The reader is brought right to the Podium, fielding questions from a voracious Press Corps ready to do almost anything for a story. And you are there with the President and the Cabinet, discussing strategy and estimating every action's media reaction.It was hard to put this book down. You meet the very idealistic Ronald Reagan and the very professional George H. W. Bush through the eyes of the man who served a Press Secretary in both Administrations. Mr. Fitzwater's longevity in that position attests to his skill at working with the White House insiders and the news media.

Many of the events covered are specific to the Reagan and Bush days, but you also experience the many duties of the White House Press Secretary in any Administration, a role that could give ulcers to almost anyone. This gave me a real appreciation of the "24/7" crises White House Staff in any Administration, must battle every day.I especially liked Mr. Fitzwater's writing, honed through years of experience. I liked his ability to paint events in a terse yet rich way. All the journeys of Marlin Fitzwater come alive, starting as a farm boy in Abeliene, Kansas and a reporter and editor in small-town Kansas newspapers.

Although he had originally wanted a career as a journalist, his opportunity came on the other side of the podium, handling public relations at Government agencies. Mr. Fitzwater got his baptism by fire at the Environmental Protection Agency, handling the hot potato of the Three Mile Island Nuclear leak. For better or worse, it is the news media which ultimately decides what is news and how that news is presented to the public. But their power is even greater than we perceive. They can choose to make any particular event, such as a Presidential Speech, front-page headline news or bury it on the Obituary page.

Mr. Fitzwater handled his dual challenge very well: to communicate the Administration's activities in the most favorable light, and at the same time building trust among the White House Press Corps by being fair and honest. One sees the successes, such as the Summit Meetings held by both Presidents Reagan and Bush with Premiere Gorbachev of the Soviet Union. And you see the bad times, such as the unfortunate illnesses suffered by Mr. Bush at Camp David and again in Japan, which caused many people to question his ability to finish his term. The reader also learns about the successes and failures of the Movers and Shakers in the White House, from Caspar Weiberger and Iran-Contra to the rise and fall of the autocratic Chief of Staff John Sununu. And of course the Media are happy to make a story at anyone's expense.

Definitely five stars, and recommended for anyone who wants to know more about what happens in White House and how it affects the Nation.

Rating:
Summary: Outstanding Insider's View of the White House
Review: Fitzwater's book is perhaps one of the finest insiders views of the White House and the White House press corps to ever be published.
Fitzwater details the inner workings of the Reagan White House like none other, including the scandals and how they did not affect the inside of the White House regardless of the pressure from the media. His admiration for Ronald Reagan is palpable in this book, however he's not as favorable to George Bush. While it's clear he personally likes Bush, it's also clear that he did not agree with Bush's policies and the rest of the Bush White House team as much as he seemed to agree with much of the Reagan White House. However, overall the only person to come out of Fitzwater's book looking bad is John Sununu the former Chief of Staff. He comes off as paranoid and really a generally nasty guy.
Fitzwater also writes probably the finest view of why Bush lost the 1992 Presidental race and the bungling inside of the White House that caused it. Unfortunately he avoids writing much about the invasion of Panama and Desert Storm, two of the biggest events of the Bush Presidency. Fitzwater rationalizes this by stating many other books will be written on those two events, however I would liked to have known how he handled it in terms of the briefings and the announcement of the invasion of Panama and the beginning of Desert Storm.
Overall, this is a fine book and should be read by anyone who wants an insider's view of what the Washington Press Corps and their relationship with the White House is really like as well as anyone interested in how Bush managed to turn huge popularity raitings during and after Desert Storm into a political defeat in 1992.

Rating:
Summary: Payback Time
Review: I have read my fair share of political memoirs and to me they always seem to all into one of two categories. It is either the disgruntled guy that maybe did not leave on such good terms who is going to put as much venom as possible into anyone that slightly crossed him during his time in the administration, or it is the guy that thinks the President he served walked on water and is wondering why the American population did not create a monarchy with his President as the King. This book falls into the later category. I am not apposed to these types of books, I tend to like them if I liked the President so I was ok with the authors glowing review of Reagan and Bush. I just wished the author had given us little more meat with his comments. Most of the book reminded me of a rambling conversation you might have with a friend where, at the end, you really do not know what was talked about. One thing did come out very clearly, the author loved working for these two Presidents and there is absolutely no criticism, fair or unfair, within these pages.

The one thing that I did get a little annoyed at was the author's attacks on the Clinton administration. I could understand the comments about the 1992 election and those comments were fair, but what was with the comments of what the Clinton team was doing in 95? These looked to me as nothing else but simple-minded attacks to help a bruised ego. As the book went on into the Bush administration this author started to really tear into the press. On and on he would spout off about the liberal press that was just out to get good old George when maybe the author should have realized that it was the Bush team that was losing focus and was losing the election one day at a time. The author hardly ever admitted that the Bush administration made mistakes; the No New Taxes issue was not even discussed. And as other reviewers here have mentioned, the author did not touch on the two military actions undertaken during the Bush administration. Overall the book was light on new facts, but had some interesting parts about the press and some internal meetings and issues. I could not get past the petty attacks on the Clinton administration and the obsessive mantra about the negative, unfair liberal press.

Rating:
Summary: Payback Time
Review: I have read my fair share of political memoirs and to me they always seem to all into one of two categories. It is either the disgruntled guy that maybe did not leave on such good terms who is going to put as much venom as possible into anyone that slightly crossed him during his time in the administration, or it is the guy that thinks the President he served walked on water and is wondering why the American population did not create a monarchy with his President as the King. This book falls into the later category. I am not apposed to these types of books, I tend to like them if I liked the President so I was ok with the authors glowing review of Reagan and Bush. I just wished the author had given us little more meat with his comments. Most of the book reminded me of a rambling conversation you might have with a friend where, at the end, you really do not know what was talked about. One thing did come out very clearly, the author loved working for these two Presidents and there is absolutely no criticism, fair or unfair, within these pages.

The one thing that I did get a little annoyed at was the author's attacks on the Clinton administration. I could understand the comments about the 1992 election and those comments were fair, but what was with the comments of what the Clinton team was doing in 95? These looked to me as nothing else but simple-minded attacks to help a bruised ego. As the book went on into the Bush administration this author started to really tear into the press. On and on he would spout off about the liberal press that was just out to get good old George when maybe the author should have realized that it was the Bush team that was losing focus and was losing the election one day at a time. The author hardly ever admitted that the Bush administration made mistakes; the No New Taxes issue was not even discussed. And as other reviewers here have mentioned, the author did not touch on the two military actions undertaken during the Bush administration. Overall the book was light on new facts, but had some interesting parts about the press and some internal meetings and issues. I could not get past the petty attacks on the Clinton administration and the obsessive mantra about the negative, unfair liberal press.