Harry and Ike: The Partnership That Remade the Postwar World

by Steve Neal

Harry S. Truman and Dwight D. Eisenhower worked more closely between 1945 and 1952 than any other two American presidents of the twentieth century. They were partners in changing America's role in the world and in responding to the challenge of a Soviet Europe, yet they are remembered more for the acrimony that ended their friendship. Both were men of character, intelligence, and principle, and as the nation learned in the 1950s, they could also hold a grudge. Drawing on letters, diaries, and interviews with close associates, this is the first examination of the warm friendship, bitter rupture, and eventual reconciliation between two remarkable Americans. From the author of The Reluctant Dynasty and Dark Horse comes a unique volume focusing exclusively on the relationship between Dwight D. Eisenhower and Harry S. Truman. Harry and "Ike" grew up 150 miles apart in the heart of America. They met during World War II, when Truman became commander-in-chief after FDR's death. Together they would oversee not only the great Allied victory but also the restructuring of the U.S. military and the reconstruction of Europe. Together they would forge history's most successful alliance, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Their initial relationship was so respectful and warm that Truman offered to step aside in the 1948 presidential election if Ike would agree to run on the Democratic ticket. Preferring to remain out of politics, Eisenhower declined and instead became president of Columbia Uni-versity. Truman helped make Ike a wealthy man by granting him a special tax break for his memoirs. Eisenhower later prepared to remove himself from contention for the presidency in 1952 if Robert A. Taft supported Truman on NATO. But Ike's friendship with Truman would not survive the 1952 presidential campaign, and for nearly a decade the former allies were engaged in an epic feud. It was not until the funeral of John F. Kennedy that the two men put aside their differences and reestablished a semblance of their previous bond. In exploring the complexity of character, intelligence, and principle, Neal provides a fresh perspective on two giants of the twentieth century, and on the American presidency.

Genres: History, Presidents, Biography

Hardcover

First published August 28, 2001

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads data base.

Born in 1949, Steve Neal earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Oregon and a master’s in journalism from Columbia University. During his career in journalism, he worked for a number of newspapers, most notably as a political columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times.

Reviews

[Aaron · Rating 2 out of 5]

Study of the deteriorating relationship between Presidents Truman and Eisenhower, and how there was somewhat of a reconciliation after Kennedy was assassinated.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am a bigger fan of Truman than Ike. Sensing from this author - he may also be a bigger fan of Truman than Ike. This book was not an easy book for me to get through, took a minute or two.
Harry and Ike had very similar backgrounds growing up, they grew up 150 miles from each other both in middle class families hovering dangerously close to poverty. These two men had more in common with one another than the 7 other men who preceded them in the White House. The biggest achievement these two men did as Presidents were ending the isolationism in America with the outside world.
Truman was the first former solider to be President since Theodore Roosevelt. He was a keen student of warfare but was unable to go that route because of poor eyesight, but he did participate in World War One. Eisenhower lived that route that Truman was unable to participate in. FDR won his fourth term as President with Truman as his Vice President. Truman would only serve 82 days before he would be sworn in as President.
President Truman and General Eisenhower had a very good working relationship during Truman's time in office. Truman did a lot for the armed forces, such as the G.I. Bill, unifying the armed services under a single cabinet secretary and the creation of the Air Force. Ike and Harry were on the same terms for foreign and national defense. Eisenhower ignored the racial inequality that was happening to Black Veterans - Truman put his presidency at risk for this cause (given his family's background of a owning slaves, fighting for the confederacy and hating President Lincoln, it was an impressive stand).
One could say Truman was one of our most humblest Presidents, he was a highly regarded senator and became accidentally President after FDR's passing. He had an impossible act to follow. Truman knew he was not indispensable and was actively looking for his possible successor. Eisenhower was always the name that came up. Eisenhower was not looking for a promotion, especially in 1948. There was a lot of trying to get Ike to throw his name into the race but that never happened. Truman easily won the 1948 election. It was presumed that Truman would try to go for another term, he did favorable in the polls leading up to the 1952 election.
Senator Joseph McCarthy was a thorn in both Harry and Ike's side. They viewed him as a cheap demagogue and a liar, in 1952 he would turn the Truman and Eisenhower against one another. Eisenhower would run on the Republican ticket as their Presidential Nominee in 1952. Truman felt betrayed by Eisenhower running as a Republican. It was actually Ike's dream to be nominated by both parties - shows how politically naïve he was coming into the game. During Ike's campaign for Presidency he insulted General George Marshall, a man Truman felt as a "the greatest living American." Truman was outraged that Ike would insult the man who in Truman's words, "made him." Truman took the gloves off after than and went after Ike during the 1952 campaign, specifically his endorsement of Senator McCarthy. Ike would complain about Truman's attacks for the rest of his life, although he regretted his endorsement with McCarthy. The bond between the two men was in shambles by the time Eisenhower was sworn in as President. Truman did order his son home from the Army for his father's inauguration, which Ike thanked him for.
Eisenhower moved quickly to cut all ties from the Truman administration, however some of his more important accomplishments as President can be traced back to Truman. The first Civil Rights Act, the St. Lawrence seaway and the statehoods of Hawaii and Alaska all have roots back to Truman. Ike never reached out to Harry for advice, he made sure to snub Truman every chance he could get while in the White House. The death of President JFK brought the men together again, everything that happened between them was like water under the bridge.

[Dan Dundon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The political intrigue reflected in Steve Neal's book "Harry and Ike" is indicative of what you would expect from a political columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times and a former White House correspondent. There is a wealth of information of who said what when and the reaction to comments by both Truman and Eisenhower especially during the presidential campaign of 1952. Perhaps the most interesting part of the book comes first rather than last when we see the two men working closely together during the later stages of World War II following FDR's death and into the Korean War. Neal does an excellent job of showing how these two men admired one another and worked closely together to shape the world. The author uses a balanced approach as he takes jabs at both men especially portraying the way Truman refused to admit he offered to step aside for Eisenhower if he decided to run on the Democratic ticket. Ike also comes in for a few jabs for not coming to the defense of Gen. Marshall during the McCarthy era a major cause of the rift with Truman. The sad way in which this friendship crumbles under the political pressures of a presidential election is well documented.

[John Albers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dwight Eisenhower and Harry Truman were born roughly 150 miles apart: Truman in Missouri, Eisenhower in Texas. Both came from families of hard-working farmers, both served in the army in World War I: Truman as an artillery captain in France, Eisenhower training soldiers in using tanks. In World War II Eisenhower commanded Allied Forces in Europe and was responsible for the D-Day invasion. Truman was a senator who was selected as FDR's vice president and became president when Roosevelt died.
Harry and Ike tells the story of the relationship between the two, their role in the postwar world, the Integration of the armed forces, the Korean War and the events that ended their friendship and the decade long feud between the two before they reconciled a few years before they died.

[Joseph J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very readable, warm and informal history/dual biography. Never allies on the domestic front, POLITICS drove these two WWII leaders apart. Of course HST was the more experiences and battle scarred pol; Ike was career military and a war hero to boot. Best to balance this somewhat sentimental account with William Lee Miller's study of the same two personalities. A very different author conclusion emerges! However Neal's is the more readable, and Miller gets mixed up on details of the day of JFK's burial: JFK was a Catholic!

[Alex Dergal · Rating 4 out of 5]

A superb read. Both of these men were brought fully to life on every page. As someone who lives in Kansas City and sees daily reminders of these two presidents, I couldn't have asked for a better biography of their relationship.

[JBresson · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

[Debbie Howell · Rating 1 out of 5]

The best part of this book was reading correspondence between Harry Truman and Dwight Eisenhower, because their personalities came through in their letters, especially Truman's. Overall, though, I came away wondering why this was a book. I don't feel the author effectively made his case that the partnership between these two individuals was the key to remaking the post-WWII world. They had great influence, definitely, but it seems the contributions of others were downplayed in order to focus on the "Harry and Ike" relationship. I also felt that at times there was a lack of context which would have been helpful in understanding the significance of things that happened. Perhaps a little more detail about how much Gen. Marshall's peers revered him and why would have helped the reader understand Truman's intense reaction to Eisenhower's willingness to throw Marshall under the bus during the 1952 presidential campaign. Likewise, the fall of Joe McCarthy received brief mention, then the author quickly moved on. It felt like the last chapters rushed through big chunks of time, and in the end the truce between the two men seemed sudden, given the intensity of their decade-long feud. The book's narrative didn't come to life for me the way the letters did, but then it would be a hard thing for an author to write more vividly than Truman. So maybe it was just a no-win situation for him.

[Phillip · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book was well written and captured my attention all the way through. The author did a great job balancing the subject matter by not writing more about one than the other.