You can use your St. Louis County Library card to borrow titles from these partner libraries:
Write It When I'm Gone
Remarkable Off-the-Record Conversations with Gerald R. Ford
1 of 1 copy available
In 1974, Newsweek correspondent Thomas M. DeFrank was interviewing Gerald Ford when the Vice President blurted out something astonishingly indiscreet. He then extracted a promise not to publish it. ?Write it when I?m dead,? Ford said? and thus began a thirty-two-year relationship.
During the last fifteen years of their conversations, Ford opened up to DeFrank, speaking in a way few presidents ever have. Here the award-winning journalist reveals these private talks, as Ford discusses his experiences with his fellow presidents, the Warren Commission, and his exchanges with Bill Clinton during the latter?s impeachment process. In addition, he shares his thoughts about both Bush administrations, the Iraq war, his beloved wife Betty, and the frustrations of aging. Write It When I?m Gone is not only a historical document but an unprecedented portrait of a president.
-
Creators
-
Publisher
-
Release date
October 30, 2007 -
Formats
-
Kindle Book
-
OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781101207468
-
EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781101207468
- File size: 482 KB
-
-
Languages
- English
-
Reviews
-
October 29, 2007
Longtime Newsweek correspondent DeFrank was an untested reporter when he was placed on what seemed like a hard-luck beat: covering Vice President Gerald Ford. After all, what could be less thrilling than reporting on the doings of the congressman from Michigan who had been appointed to replace Spiro Agnew as Richard Nixon's veep? DeFrank was given an unprecedented scoop early in his job, when Ford let spill that he believed Nixon's presidency was doomed, but the reporter agreed to put a lid on it: "Write it when I'm gone," Ford told him. Brick reads dramatically, with fitful stops and starts, giving the patina of history to some of the less fondly remembered elements of 1970s politics. His reading conveys some of DeFrank's sincere fondness for Ford and the friendly relationship they struck up while Ford was vice president and in the White House. Simultaneous release with the Putnam hardcover. -
December 15, 2007
Four months before President Richard Nixon resigned in 1974, Vice President Ford blurted out to DeFrank, a young "Newsweek" reporter, that Nixon would be forced out of office. Realizing that he would lose credibility if this remark were made public, Ford grabbed the shocked reporter and made him promise not to quote him until after his (Ford's) death. So began a close personal and professional relationship. DeFrank (Washington bureau chief, "New York Daily News"; coauthor, with James A. Baker III, "The Politics of Diplomacy") and Ford met 30 times from 1991 to soon before Ford's death a year ago, their talks serving as the core of this engaging account. DeFrank remembers Ford as a likable guy and down-to-earth president who actually enjoyed reporters. Ford claimed that the Nixon pardon was his greatest policy achievement, necessary to getting the nation moving again, although it likely cost him the 1976 election. Even his notable political enemies, especially Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter, became Ford's personal friends. Ford retained his loyalty and fondness for his two chiefs of staff, Donald Rumsfeld and Dick Cheney, despite his misgivings about the Iraq War. This book radiates the warmth between Ford and DeFrank and contains enough enlightening and gossipy stories to maintain the reader's interest. A fine selection for all public libraries. [See Prepub Alert, "LJ" 7/07.]Karl Helicher, Upper Merion Twp. Lib., King of Prussia, PACopyright 2007 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
-