Inside the White House: The hidden lives of the modern presidents and the secrets of the world's most powerful institution

by Ronald Kessler

Award-winning journalist Ronald Kessler gets behind the scenes at the White House to reveal the often-scandalous secrets of this all-powerful institution. Kessler documents the hidden lives of the modern presidents:
Bill and Hilary Clinton's sham marriage and his pattern of alleged sexual indiscretions;
Johnson's legendary infidelities; Nixon's disorientation and mysterious disappearances during his last days in office;
the extent of Reagan's manipulation at the hands of his wife;
and Bush's out-of-control staff.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, History, Presidents, Historical, Audiobook, American History

302 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

Ronald Kessler is the New York Times bestselling author of 21 non-fiction books about the Trump White House, Secret Service, FBI, and CIA.

Kessler began his career as a journalist in 1964 on the Worcester Telegram, followed by three years as an investigative reporter and editorial writer with the Boston Herald. In 1968, he joined the Wall Street Journal as an investigative reporter in the New York bureau. He became an investigative reporter with the Washington Post in 1970 and continued in that position until 1985.

Kessler's new book is "The Trump White House: Changing the Rules of the Game."

Kessler has won eighteen journalism awards, including two George Polk awards--for national reporting and for community service. Kessler has also won the American Political Science Association's Public Affairs Reporting Award, the Associated Press' Sevellon Brown Memorial Award, and Washingtonian magazine's Washingtonian of the Year award. Franklin Pierce University awarded him the Marlin Fitzwater Medallion for excellence as a prolific author, journalist, and communicator. He is listed in Who's Who in America.

"Ron Kessler...has enjoyed a reputation for solid reporting over the past four decades." Lloyd Grove, The Daily Beast. "Kessler's such a skilled storyteller, you almost forget this is dead-serious nonfiction..." Newsweek. "[Ronald Kessler] is the man who broke the story about the [Secret Service prostitution] episode in Cartagena...." New York Times. "His [Kessler's] book quotes both flattering and unflattering observations about presidents of both parties." FactCheck.org. "[Ronald Kessler] is one of the nation's top investigative journalists." Fox & Friends. "Ron Kessler appears to get everything first." Slate.

Ron Kessler lives with his wife Pamela Kessler in the Washington, D.C. area. Also an author and former Washington Post reporter, Pam Kessler wrote "Undercover Washington: Where Famous Spies Lived, Worked and Loved." His daughter Rachel Kessler, an independent public relations consultant, and son Greg Kessler, an artist, live in New York.

Reviews

[Erik Graff · Rating 2 out of 5]

Based on interviews with White House employees, past and present, this book ranges from the occult matter of W.H./Presidential financing to the personal lives of presidents and their families from FDR to the Clintons. Thus its point is twofold: first, that the whole operation is vastly (too) expensive; second, that the presidency tends to be corrupting.

Few of the presidents come out looking well as regards their personal lives. Truman and Ford, yes, and the first Bush and Reagan, so far as their treatment of their underlings go (tho the author thinks little of the latter two as chief executives), but the rest--JFK, LBJ, Nixon, Carter and Clinton--are scathingly criticized. Clinton especially, as he was in office at the time of publication, comes under detailed attack, though his vice-president, Al Gore, is praised.

I knew that JFK was a philanderer, as detailed in the better-written account by Seymour Hersh, The Dark Side of Camelot, but I'd had no idea that LBJ was almost just as bad. I knew that Nixon was a paranoid, but I hadn't known that Carter and Clinton had their own paranoid tendencies.

--All in all, a disturbing picture of the moral failings of Americas first families.

[Granny · Rating 2 out of 5]

I started out enjoying this book, a peek through the keyhole at Presidents from Nixon to Clinton, but it bogs down about 3/4 of the way through. Frankly, none of the Presidents come away unscathed, as far as their personalities are concerned. Some are mean to the "little people" who serve them. Some surround themselves with buffoons and/or crooks. Not exactly an awe-inspiring character study of our heads of state. The book lost me when the narration began whining about the big change in the White House kitchen when Bush (the first one) left and the Clintons arrived. The Clintons wanted -- horrors! -- menus written in English, not French (gee, and all this time I thought English was actually the language used in the White House). Furthermore, oh, tacky tacky, the Clintons wanted to eliminate fat-laden French sauces and focus on grilled, broiled American cuisine, featuring dishes low in fat and calories. Oh, rebellion in the kitchen! The French chef left. The book treats healthy eating as if somehow this is a bad thing.
I leafed through the last 1/4th of the book like dealing out a deck of cards, flipping the pages very quickly. Only Ronald Reagen, an amiable boob, and Barbara Bush came out looking good in this snide rendering of anecdotes.

[Dorie · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Hypocrisy, seamy behavior, and poor judgment practiced in one arena are likely to show up in another. All the clauses in the Constitution cannot make a president an admirable human beings who inspires loyalty and confidence. Only when Americans recognize this will they begin to distinguish between scoundrels and con men, on one hand, and genuine heroes, on the other."

[Steve Statler · Rating 1 out of 5]

Listening to this was like being tied to a chair, sitting next to a crazy, drunk, right-wing uncle at Thanksgiving dinner for eight hours.

It starts off interesting, with little known facts and research from lots of interviews with ex-Whitehouse staff and secret service agents. This pulls you in. Then the tone meanders to more and more value judgements and negative subjective opinions about the first families (... apart from Regan). There are a lot of repetitive verbatim quotes from staff who use bad language and insults to describe the first families. This moves the narrative from history to a bitter form of gossip. It was depressing.

Listening to the audio book was like fingers on a chalk board to me. The pace is monotonous, and sounds like a policeman is going through his statement in court. The formality is jarring as it is peppered with the language of spiteful personal barbs from the mouths of disgruntled employees.

I stopped listening at Part 9 of 12, after a long rehash of stuff about Bill Clinton's affairs that is already well covered by newspapers and talk radio.

If you hate politicians and you want to get more angry and worked up about how awful the government is, this book is for you.

[Fred Klein · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not proud of having read this book. It's like a disorganized mass of bad things the author heard about presidents. The last two chapters are slightly cohesive because they focus just on Clinton, whom the author obviously can't stand. But, because it's all hearsay, it's really hard to distinguish what is true and what is not. Maybe it's all true . . . Maybe some of it . . . Either way, the book is readable but extremely sleazy, like a long tabloid article.

[Connie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't learn much new information about our "modern" presidents but I always find these types of books to be entertaining if nothing else.

[chucklesthescot · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great behind the scenes look at the good and bad habits of the Presidents and their families as written by the staff who worked for them. Several Presidents come of of it looking very bad ie control freak Jimmy Carter and ignorant pig Lyndon Johnson. The scene where staff talk about Johnson holding a meeting with them in the bathroom while he was squatting on the toilet really turned my stomach! How GROSS is that???

Other Presidents are well spoken of especially Ronald Reagan who everyone said was friendly and down to earth, treating the staff well.

The book tells of the squabbles, the personality clashes, the events that showed the real face of each President. The staff do not hold back on memories of their bosses! For someone like me who loves scandals, history and American politics, this was a great chance to learn more about the men behind the title. My copy goes right through to the Clintons.

[Kurtbg · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was one of those books that somehow made it onto my reading stack about 10 years ago and finally was read.

This book covers "inside" information on the goings on from white house occupants starting with Kennedy and ending with Clinton. I think the publishing date was 1996.

In it are tidbits of what presidents slept in the same bed as their wife, favorite beer the book illustrates the clash between staff (who are mostly there across terms) and the mostly clueless occupants on how things work and protocol of the whitehouse. The budget of the casa blanca is said to be unknown and hard to pinpoint. Multiple agencies (mainly military) run different aspects from the food, security, travel, etc.

This may deserve an quick flip through on a bored day, but I'm sure something much more modern has been published.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

An entertaining read despite being two decades old now! The only issue with it being old is that dollar amounts are given, and precise procedures disclosed which would be out of date. For instance, at the time of authorship (94) operating the White House was a $billion+ endeavor.

The true value of the book is in gaining color on recent history. LBJ was a megalomaniac. Nixon was mentally ill and not even running the office at points in his presidency. Ford was down to Earth - maybe too much. Clinton's early mistake was that his staff was in way over their heads. The sheltered environment led to one of GHB's most famous gaffes.

In the closing pages, Kessler asks the reader to reflect upon just how horrid our selections have been.

Kessler did an excellent job on the book, and I plan on reading his other insider books in the future.

[Carrie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book wasn't exactly what I thought it would be. I had two issues with it.

The primary was that it was very mean-spirited. It's like the author wanted revenge--on every sitting U.S. president since Johnson. He had very little that was interesting or kind to say about any of them, but instead tried to show them all in the least favorable light possible. Obviously I don't think any of them were perfect leaders, either personally or as presidents, but I also think the book could have been much better balanced.

The secondary was that it wasn't very well organized and tended to ramble on. While each chapter was about a different administration, from Johnson through Clinton, within those chapters skipped back and forth with no rhyme or reason. Also, the rampant and frequent name dropping was confusing.

I probably wouldn't read another of Kessler's books.

[Joe Orozco · Rating 4 out of 5]

What does the other face look like when you see modern presidents behind closed doors? From Kennedy through the first two years of Clinton, this book is an excellent means of finding out. This was my first Kessler book. One should not expect thorough accounts, not the elaborate detail Caro devoted to LBJ, but I don’t think that was ever the point. I approached it like a written documentary and thus came away very satisfied. I failed to give it 5 stars only because it’s not the type of book I am likely to read again. However, I am very likely to read another in Kessler’s glimpses into popular institutions.

[Greyson DeVries · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's interesting to learn about the different presidents that lived in the white house. It's even more interesting to learn about the stuff that those presidents don't want you to know about. This book is very interesting if you don't mind your view of the white house and why it works to be altered, and not for the better. Especially from someone who knew that the white house wasn't the perfect place, but didn't know just how bad it was, it is very interesting. It makes you question the different presidents that have served, and also makes you question the president's to come.

[Darren · Rating 3 out of 5]

He was deeply fascinated, almost obsessed, with the White House budget. I didn't think he was too kind to the Democratic presidents but had some dirt on all of the recent occupants of the White House. An easy read but to read it now is just old gossip and not much about the inner workings of the White House considering technology and security has changed so much since the mid '90's.

[Sarita · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is one of those books one is glad one read, but I am not inclined to recommend because at times it felt it was gossipy versus factual. Many of the stories about our modern presidents who are well known womanizers, that all three of them are lucky not to be president now. This book made a fine beach reading.

[Kurt Young · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not really worth reading anymore. Nothing to learn that you haven't heard about, and what is there is told so dryly as to be uninteresting. Unless you are really determined to find out that the Carter's liked Peach pie. Skip it.

[Lynda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Juicy tidbits about the White House - but none of it was a surprise to me. The book was published in 1995 so it is a bit dated. Monica Lewinsky's affair with Bill Clinton was not mentioned for instance as it occurred after the book was published.

[Lizzy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Poorly written, redundant, badly organized. Some stuff is egregious and bothersome, but a lot of bullshit and overdramatizing. Who cares about the hair cuts!? Needs more editing. Reads like a crappy tabloid.

[MyLien · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is the US Weekly of the White House...

[Don · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kessler recounts several stories from his book about the Secret Service but adds enough, mostly gossipy, insight to keep my interest if not to particularly educate.

[Cathy Seither · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting and in-depth accounts of what occurs behind the scenes within the Whitehouse, including misappropriations of funds, scandals, sexual misconduct, and ordinary, every-day life.

[Michell Karnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is interesting to read about the private lives of our first families. Funny how they are not that respectable!

[Kk]

Great! It made me so mad at the waste in Washington.

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting look into the lives of the Presidents from Nixon to Clinton while they were in the White House. It was interesting but I didn't learn a lot and some parts seemed to drag on a bit.

[Hope · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is delightful, giving insight into the inner workings of America's great house. Detailing life from FDR to the Nixon's, full of trivia and stories, an entertaining listen!

[Dennis O'Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some interesting facts you learn about the budget and operation of the White House as well as some things that make you go hmmmmmmmmmm

[Ryan Strother · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of neat stories and facts to please anyone who loves history.

[Marguerite Woodward · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this book!!!! Lots of twists and turns, interesting facts and a few oh my's!!!! I highly recommend this book!!!!!

[Michael Toleno · Rating 3 out of 5]

As the title suggests, this is an insider's view of the White House from JFK to Clinton. There are many interesting observations about how the presidents and their families treated the Secret Service and White House personnel. The author describes how expensive it is to operate the White House and explains that the cost is very difficult to calculate accurately and is not transparent to the public or even to budget insiders because of the byzantine way the funding flows. Along with observations of personalities, there are also insights into the presidents' executive leadership (e.g., selection of and interaction with immediate advisors).

[Brooke Feaster · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although this book is dated (it covers presidents from Johnson into the first couple of years of Clinton’s presidency), it was well researched and interesting. We usually elect presidents based off of their stance on issues, but this book highlights the fact that an efficient and well-run executive branch is best run by those who have experience at the federal level. Reagan appears to be the exception to this rule. He earns high praise from those who worked for him and with him. Kessler portrays the White House as a breeding ground for paranoia and privilege for its occupants.

[Phillip · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written when Clinton was president, a few chapters were devoted to him alone; however, the book does cover a number of presidents before, during, and after their terms in office. Quite a bit of the material was also repetitive from the author's In the President's Secret Service. Having started this book at the tail end of 2021, I finally got around to finishing it today. (Working two jobs diminishes what free time I would otherwise have.) This work is definitely worth reading. Don't miss out!