Reaching for Glory: Lyndon Johnson's Secret White House Tapes, 1964-1965 (Paperback)

LBJ shows, through his own words, how frustrating and stressful life can be in Washington, especially when engaged in an unpopular war. Read as LBJ expresses his disgust with those who oppose the war while at the same time admitting in private that the Vietnam War cannot be won. He felt that the commitment had been made and there was no way to turn back, even though the chances for victory were slim to none.

Besides the Vietnam War, LBJ has a full plate of other problems to deal with. Racial tensions at home, civil rights, voting rights, the Great Society, possible Communism in the Dominican Republic, and a sex scandal involving one of his closest aides has the president up in arms and stressed to the max. LBJ seems exhausted throughout most of this book, and consistently in a bad mood. He battles depression and anxiety throughout this year of his presidency, knowing that things are not the way they should be and feeling helpless to make them any better.

LBJ was worried about his legacy and always wanted to be remembered as the next Lincoln or FDR and not as "another Harding" as he would often say. But he didn't really get a chance to fulfill his desires as president, thanks to the Vietnam War and other obstacles. He was paranoid and distrustful of most everyone, including many of his friends. Aside from his immediate family, his relationships were not very strong at all during this time in his presidency.

"Reaching for Glory" is, overall, a fun and informative book to read. You feel like you're eavesdropping on the former president and his associates as they converse on the phone. It's all here, with only a small amount of editing and it shows what life was like in the LBJ White House as he tackled the difficult issues during his second year in office.

Of course, the fact that negative and humdrum things characterized part of the Johnson's presidency during the two years covered was not Beschluss's fault. But I felt some material, most notably some of the well-wishing calls made by the President and Lady Bird to friends, could have been left out or shortened.

Speaking of Lady Bird, however, she becomes a larger and refreshing presence in these tapes. Johnson apparently looked to her as his best critic (in the best sense of the word); she is heard giving him feedback about many speeches. In an era where we tend to think of Hilary Clinton as the first "co-president", it is interesting to learn how much Johnson relied on his wife.

Although it might not be a CD set to take to the beach, I still recommend the audio version of this work (not the written version; Johnson's delivery is an indivisible component of his personality). These annotated tape excerpts are nothing less than a piece of history.

The tape system which proved to be Nixon's downfall was also used by LBJ and JFK. Luckily for us 40 years later, we have wonderful insight into LBJ and the operation of his administration. The cassette versions are abridged, but getting to hear the actual recordings is fantastic. I anxiously await the third volume of the trilogy.