Fight House: Rivalries in the White House from Truman to Trump

by Tevi Troy

In Rivals: Factions, Feuds and Fights that Have Defined the Modern Presidency, Washington Post best-selling presidential historian and former senior White House aide Tevi Troy will examine some of the juiciest, nastiest, and most consequential internecine administration struggles in modern American history. In doing so, he will not only provide context on the administrations, the players, and their in-fighting, but also show how those fights shaped the administrations in question, the presidents’ historical reputations, and the policy landscape of modern America. In showing these fights, the book will highlight tough tactics used by sharp-elbowed operatives to prevail in bureaucratic disputes, from leaks to delays in submitting items for review to moving rivals out of cherished office spaces.

Rivals will also look at the presidents’ role in all of this, and question long-standing assumptions about whether creative tension is really the best method of governing. In watching recent White House battles play out in public, it appears that Kearns-Goodwin’s “Team of Rivals” approach has its limits, and that perhaps presidents should seek to create a time that reduces tensions rather than exacerbating them. Troy will employ both his historical knowledge as well as his own high level White House experience to inform recommendations on the best ways to staff and organize a White House to ensure the best results for the president, and for the American people. Part riveting interpersonal history, part case study, and part analysis of the commanders in chief and their teams, Rivals will be essential reading for students of the presidency, and of the nation as a whole.

 

Genres: Politics, History, American History, Nonfiction

336 pages, Hardcover

First published February 11, 2020

Reviews

[Barbara]

Interesting comparative look

[Mich · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to know why presidents accomplish so little even when they have their own party controlling Congress, read this book. The infighting within White House staff is detailed from Truman to Trump. Backbiting and leaking to disparage rivals and to gain power are the favorite tools. It seems that all staffers in the various administrations, particularly White House chiefs of staff, national security advisers, and state department heads just can’t seem to get along.

Following a winning campaign the president has to figure out who on his campaign staff and who outside of it will obtain key positions in the new administration. Loyalty vs. competence are the key balancing factors and this inevitably leads to conflict and jealousy. Built in conflicts will always arise between White House staffers and cabinet officers who face off against each other. This is especially true when you have different political ideologies among key staffers who then try to influence presidential decisions. It’s no wonder that there are so often stalemates and conflicting messages coming out of the administration.

Tevi Troy does a great job dissecting the failures of these administrations particularly in the domestic policy arena. This is not a theoretical organizational analysis but is replete with detailed blow by blow accounts of each administration’s characters and their fights. He reminds us of the battles between RFK and LBJ, Schlesinger and Sorensen, Kissinger and Rogers, Haig and Hartmann, Brzezinski and Vance, Baker and Meese, Regan and Nancy Reagan, Darman/Sununu and everyone, Rumsfeld/Cheney and Rice/Powell, Jarrett and Rahm, and Bannon and Kushner/Ivanka. They all there and he skillfully evaluates the impact of their battles on effective government.

[Urey Patrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Internecine warfare in Presidential administrations is a fact of life - people jockey for prestige, power, position and point of view. Much of it is as personal as it might be ideological. Much of it is driven by ego and status-seeking. Troy provides an interesting, often fascinating, exposition of White House rivalries and the consequences that arose. It's fun reading, although also depressing in the sense that one would hope human facilities were less rampant in such exalted settings. History repeatedly teaches us otherwise. There is no escaping the human condition, no matter the setting or the seriousness of the circumstances. Something to keep in mind...

[Omri Marcus · Rating 4 out of 5]

To get away from the POTUS having COVID-19 TV coverage, and to fight my addiction to polls, I dived into a book. I just finished reading Tevi Troy's "Fight House: Rivalries in the White House from Truman to Trump." Maybe it should have a shorter title. Something like "White Narcissistic Men Who Messed Up the Free World." It's a book about management from the angle of how-not-to do it. But, as chaotic past administrations have been, as short-sighted and power-hungry past presidents have been - I'm sure that what we're seeing now is unprecedented.
So much for escaping the news but a fascinating read.

[Douglas Meyer · Rating 3 out of 5]

A compelling, organized, well-researched, and easily digestible read. Troy lays out a sound thesis of three criteria by which he evaluates the internal rivalries within every administration since Truman. He ends with a brief review of President Trumps first few years in office. While not on the level of a book such a Gibbs & Duffy's, The Presidents Club - Fight House is a fascinating review of management techniques, and the form and function of White House staffs and cabinets.

[Ron A · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining review of the infighting among White House staff from Truman to Trump. Quick read and I couldn’t help but notice the similarities between the struggles for power described in the book and the infighting I witnessed during my career at a large labor organization. Fun read but no real surprises.

[Joshua Shorter · Rating 4 out of 5]

White House palace intrigue is nothing new. Trump’s WH was exposed based on social media and the 24-hour entertainment news cycle but this book shows us the bitter rivalries going back to the Truman administration. Worth a read for all the politicos out there.

[Lynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Easy, short, pretty interesting if you are interested in politics and presidential history. The book is very lightweight though - not a whole lot to sink your teeth into. Kind of a gossipy, fun read.

[David Manney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Became redundant

[Ebookwormy1]

This captivating review shot this book high up my to-read list...
https://www.realclearbooks.com/articl...

[John Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found it very slow reading. It did contain some interesting information. I often find final chapters that try to summarize or prove the message in the book to be very boring