"The Natural" - an account of the Clinton Administration by Joe Klein

[leyton]

I am not much of a reader but I read this book in about a day and a half. It's a narrative of Clinton's national career, from the chairmanship of the DLC through his two Presidential terms.

I was not really politically aware during the Clinton years, so mostly what I knew of his Administration was that he was elected in 1992 as a candidate who would usher in a new, more hopeful, more "sunny" era, but who stumbled and then was impeded by the Republican Congress and a number of scandals.

Klein's conclusion seems to be that Clinton succeeded in making lots of incremental steps that added up to create the economic boom of the late 1990's but that he had few large victories and many large and visible failures (such as healthcare reform). He also posits that since the 1990's were not marked by any war or national tragedy that would call for extraordinary leadership on Clinton's part, and that as a result Clinton never had the opportunity to truly shine in that department and distinguish himself as a leader and not just a successful policymaker and politician. Instead, he says, Clinton is remarkable in that he was the reflection of the baby-boomer generation (style over substance, aware of his personal flaws, etc).

Anyway, I thought it was an interesting assessment of the Clinton Presidency. For me, a person who is not incredibly knowledgeable about U.S. history and who gets lost in huge 500-page tomes, it was a very readable and informative overview that confirmed what I already knew vaguely about the Clinton administration.

Has anyone read Klein's book? Also, has anyone read similar accounts of previous Presidencies?

[Pendrench]

1. I read Klein's book about a year ago -

I also thought it was very good. By the way, he also wrote a great Woody Guthrie biography (called: Woody Guthrie - A Life).

As far as reading "similar" accounts of previous Presidencies, the one that came to mind right away was "Theodore Rex" by Edmund Morris - in the sense that Roosevelt's years as president were also "not marked by any war or national tragedy that would call for extraordinary leadership"...much to T.R.'s regret.

I would also be curious to see what others have to say.

Tim