Elaine C. Kamarck

Harvard Book Store welcomes senior fellow in the Governance Studies program at the Brookings Institution ELAINE C. KAMARCK for a discussion of her book Why Presidents Fail And How They Can Succeed Again.

About Why Presidents Fail And How They Can Succeed Again

At the beginning of the century, the majority of Americans were satisfied with the way things were going in the United States. And then a slow decline began, seemingly uninterrupted by changes in party or achievements by the White House. As the campaigning for the next president begins, the question we ask ourselves now is who will be the most competent leader? In Why Presidents Fail and How They Can Succeed Again, Elaine Kamarck asks another important question: When did Americans lose faith in their leaders? And how can they get it back?

Kamarack argues that presidents today spent too much time talking, and not enough time governing. After decades of "imperial" and "rhetorical" presidencies, we are in need of a "managerial" president. In her fully readable and accessible book, she explains the difficulties of governing in our modern political landscape, and offers examples and recommendations of how our next president can not only recreate faith in leadership, but also run a competent, successful administration.

Praise

"It's amazing how much we talk about politicians and how little we talk about what politicians actually do. Politicians govern. Elaine Kamarck has rectified that brilliantly in Why Presidents Fail, showing that an inability to govern effectively is at the heart of recent presidential failures. This is crucial information, compellingly told." —Joe Klein, columnist, Time Magazine

"Elaine Kamarck’s book is a must-read for all presidential candidates, correspondents, students of government, and citizens who hunger for Washington to function well again. There’s a stick of dynamite in every chapter." —Donna Brazile, commentator, CNN