In this book a former Assistant Secretary of State and Washington
insider recalls the lighter moments of a lifetime in politics,
diplomacy, intelligence and the foundation world. Based on personal
notes jotted down during his official assignments in the Kennedy,
Johnson, and Nixon administrations, and subsequently in the
non-governmental universe in Washington, this lively book recounts
conversations and episodes of high humor involving American
presidents and other leading national figures from the 1950s to the
1980s. Major events, no matter how serious were often laced with
humor, even farce. Some of these stories offer rare glimpses into
American presidential and political history. Many are hilarious
accounts of diplomatic and bureaucratic foibles at home and abroad.
Others are tales of rare encounters simply too amusing to lose.
Over several decades, the author's choice assignments in Washington
gave him unusual opportunities to experience the lighter side of
famous Presidents and their advisers. The grander settings range
from the White House to the State Department, and from Capitol Hill
to Embassy Row. Insightful glimpses of Lyndon Johnson, John F.
Kennedy, Adlai Stevenson and Hubert Humphrey begin with the
author's service in the United States Senate in the 1950s. A
sub-cabinet role in the Kennedy and Johnson administrations
provided opportunities to know and work with Dean Rusk, Chester
Bowles, Robert McNamara, Robert F. Kennedy, Clark Clifford, Averell
Harriman, McGeorge Bundy, Richard Helms and John McCone, not to
speak of Allen Dulles and J. Edgar Hoover. Later an assignment as
deputy ambassador in the American Embassy in London, provided a
rich round of amusing anecdotes on Anglo-American relations. as
well as colorful insights on Richard Nixon, Henry Kissinger, and
Ronald Reagan Over the years, official and unofficial assignments
took the author all around the world. Encounters abound with such
diverse celebrities as Josip Broz Tito, Indira Gandhi, Douglas
MacArthur, Munoz Marin, David Bruce, Queen Elizabeth, Fidel Castro,
Helmut Schmidt, Lady Astor, Deng Xiaoping, Clare Booth Luce,
Richard Holbrooke, and the former German royal family. There are
abundant accounts of diplomatic, congressional, and bureaucratic
horseplay. This is a book not to be missed for and about Washington
insiders.
General
Imprint: |
Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
|
Country of origin: |
United States |
Release date: |
2014 |
First published: |
2014 |
Authors: |
Thomas L. Hughes
|
Dimensions: |
229 x 152 x 16mm (L x W x T) |
Format: |
Paperback - Trade
|
Pages: |
298 |
ISBN-13: |
978-1-4903-4021-0 |
Categories: |
Books >
Sport & Leisure >
Humour >
General
|
LSN: |
1-4903-4021-1 |
Barcode: |
9781490340210 |
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