This retrospective study brings together twenty-two key associates
of President Truman's to consider the administrative operation of
the presidency from 1945 to 1953. A record of the discussions that
took place at the conference held in May 1977 sponsored by the
Harry S. Truman Library Institute for National and international
Affairs, it presents an assortment of views on Truman's
administrative philosophies and practices. The contributors are
persons who were close to Truman throughout his presidency: members
of the cabinet, the White House staff, and senior officials in
Executive Office agencies. Sharing personal reflections are, among
others, Charles Brannan, W. Averell Harriman, Leon H. Keyserling,
Charles S. Murphy, Richard E. Neustadt, John W. Snyder, Elmer B.
Staats, and the late Tom C. Clark. Coordinating the interaction
with incisive questions and comments on general administrative
history are Edward H. Hobbs of Auburn University, Dorothy Buckton
James of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University,
Louis W. Koenig of New York University, and Chester A. Newland of
the University of Southern California. A number of important
administrative aspects of Truman's presidency are touched upon as
the participants review the years of their White House experience.
They talk about policy making in the areas of national security and
foreign affairs, about budget and economic matters, relations with
Congress, domestic problems such as civil rights, presidential
appointments, and even press relations. They exchange anecdotes
about the president's style and their working relationships with
him in staff meetings, cabinet meetings, and private briefing
sessions. They consider whether Truman had a chief of staff or the
equivalent and debate the "liberal" versus the "conservative"
stance of the Truman presidency. The creation of the Central
Intelligence Agency and the establishment of the National Security
Council, the Council of Economic Advisers, and the National
Security Resources Board during Truman's administration clearly
improved and strengthened the organization of and the institutional
aids to the presidency. In answer to the question of what can be
learned from the way Truman operated the presidency, however the
overriding theme of the exchanges recorded here is that the style
of the White House is-inescapably-the president's style. The
picture that emerges in the pages of life and work in Truman's
administration is one of informality, enthusiasm, and camaraderie.
A family-like atmosphere pervaded the staff, and the president
played the crucial role in setting the tone. Thus, the White House
between 1945 and 1853 was orderly because Harry Truman was an
orderly person; it was profoundly human because that was Truman's
way. Truman is remembered by his key associates as a prodigious
worker and a thorough professional. To those who wrote and spoke
for this volume there is no question that the nation was well
served by the way Harry Truman managed his affairs in the White
House. Incorporating a broad spectrum of firsthand information on
the administrative concepts and practices of the Truman era, this
book will be of prime interest to all students of government and
executive organization.
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