The best memoirs in US politics
Unlike the social-media swamp, political memoirs provide first-hand insight into bureaucratic machinations. Here’s a handful to flick through while the US Election – and the fallout – unfolds
Words: Josh Lee
There has perhaps been no political era more polarising than the one in which we find ourselves. This week, the US will find out who will spearhead its agenda for the next four years: Kamala Harris, who became the Democratic presidential nominee following Joe Biden’s seismic decision to step down from running; or Donald Trump, the former president who’s been faced with impropriety, the courts and attempts on his life. It’s a fitting time, then, for those in America (as well as those of us across the water) to make some sort of sense of the current political landscape and that which came before it – and these are some pretty solid places to start.
Thirteen Days: A Memoir of the Cuban Missile Crisis by Robert F. Kennedy
As brothers who were slain relatively early in their life, JFK and Bobby left behind no life-covering memoirs (though the former president did pen several books that showcased the making of his early political ideology). In Thirteen Days, the younger Kennedy writes on the near-fortnight in which the world went to the brink of nuclear holocaust – and, more importantly, how the temperature was lowered in the ultimate face down.
A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership by James Comey
“This president is unethical, and untethered to truth and institutional values,” Comey writes about Trump. “His leadership is transactional, ego driven and about personal loyalty.” This book, by the ex-FBI director, was one of the most jumped-on reads during the years of POTUS45, with details on Trump overseeing the Hillary Clinton email investigation and his testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee.
What Happened by Hillary Rodham Clinton
Clinton’s post-mortem of the 2016 election supplies a plethora of jabs and rebukes about certain political figures. “I sometimes wonder: If you add together his time spent on golf, Twitter and cable news,” she writes, “what’s left?” Though criticised as a work of hubris (others, however, have said it should ‘serve as a useful model’ to women in politics), it at least provides some background as to how and why the cult of Trump still remains so strong.
In My Time: A Personal and Political Memoir by Dick Cheney
Those of a certain generation might only know of his on-screen portrayal by Christian Bale – but for older millennials and their predecessors, Dick Cheney was the dark-hearted VP who shaped the US war machine and its approach to national security. These pages present a first-hand account from the Capitol Hill journeyman who, following 9/11, played a fundamental role in prising open the gap between Republicans and Democrats.
A Promised Land by Barack Obama
Despite his smooth oration, Obama has been noted in certain circles as not being the finest of writers, with Dreams From My Father and The Audacity Of Hope flawed with janky structuring. Yet, in A Promised Land, the first of two volumes, Hawaii’s most famous son delivers a tight and methodical portrait of the big issues he oversaw during his first term in the Oval Office, including healthcare reform and the war in Afghanistan.
This feature was taken from our Autumn 2024 issue. Read more about it here.
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