The Passage of Power (The Years of Lyndon Johnson, #4)

by Robert A. Caro

Saying he would have to let the President decide, O’Donnell ushered Johnson into the Oval Office, where the President, after listening to the dispute as if he’d never heard about it before, told Johnson, “Well, I’ll stick by my agreement.” Swiveling his chair, he stared out the window as if he had no further interest in the matter—and the scenario began to unfold. O’Donnell put his hand on the telephone on Kennedy’s desk. “Who are you calling?” Johnson asked. “The Speaker,” O’Donnell replied. Hurriedly stretching out his hand, Johnson put it on top of O’Donnell’s to prevent him from lifting the receiver. “What are you going to tell him?” he asked. O’Donnell said he was going to tell him that Johnson wouldn’t clear the appointment. “You can’t do that!” Johnson said. “You tell him that you don’t want him appointed.” O’Donnell said that was impossible, that he had no power over appointments.