President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime [Hardcover]

This is as it should be. As Gerald Seib notes in today's Wall Street Journal, Cannon was seen even before the Gipper's election in 1980 as "the journalistic world's foremost authority on Reagan." He was "the only reporter Reagan knew well." In "Role of a Lifetime," Cannon employs this knowledge and access without abusing it. In calling the presidency a "role," Cannon doesn't join the ranks of those who (still) demean Reagan as "just an actor." Instead, he provides a sophisticated look at how Reagan viewed the office: not simply the nation's premier technocrat or legislative whip, but as a position with important symbolic and inspirational functions. After the dismal Carter years, America (and the world) needed a president who understood just what Theodore Roosevelt meant by the office as a "bully pulpit."

In recognizing Reagan's insight -- without either belittling or overpraising it -- Cannon has given himself a solid foundation on which to build a narrative rich in research, story, and understanding. People who come out of this week desiring to know more about this remarkable man and his impact on the world could do much worse than to start by reading Lou Cannon's "Role of a Lifetime."

Lou Cannon is a reporter who began covering Reagan during his tenure as governor of California. He continued to cover Reagan for over twenty-five years with The Washington Post from 1972-1998. Despite his coverage of the man for so many years, and the fact that that the press is now calling him a close friend of Reagan, Cannon has been able to keep enough distance to keep impartiality in his writing. He discusses all the sides of Reagan, from the positive views of the man who accomplished great things as president to the man who found himself in the midst of the Iran/Contra scandal. 

The book may seem long especially when one considers that it deals only with the Regan presidency, and leaves Regan's early years and gubernatorial carrier to Cannon's other books. The book is long because of its exquisite detail. Cannon's sources are impeccable, and he has an extensive bibliography. The book contains comments by key staffers including George Shultz and Ed Meese, as well as conversations with Nancy Reagan. For a while now I've considered this book my Reagan Bible. A good book to have for reference on particular issues, even if you don't think you can handle all 764 pages in one sitting.  

With all the books that have come out recently, and all that are sure to come out now, it's nice to have a definitive volume that brings some balance.  

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