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The Education of a Senator: From JFK to Trump
A behind-the-scenes story of the last sixty years of American politics, told with purpose and humor by a political legend who worked with ten presidents, made deals with both Obama and Trump, and believes that serving in public office is the best way to help the largest number of people and to keep our Republic from falling apart.
“To read Lamar Alexander’s vivid and surprising memoir is to be in conversation with a man who knows how to tell a great story.” —Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author
“What a wonderful and refreshing memoir! Lamar Alexander has been a gift to us—more interested in getting things done and improving the lives of others than in grabbing headlines and bashing an opponent. Bravo!” —Ken Burns, Filmmaker, The American Revolution
“Revealing and highly entertaining...takes us inside some of the most important moments in our nation’s history.” —Karl Rove, Sr. Advisor to President George W. Bush
Can we survive this?” worried friends ask Lamar Alexander.
A US senator who started in JFK’s Justice Department, worked in the Nixon White House, turned down serving as GOP Watergate counsel and as Ford’s campaign manager, walked for six months across Tennessee to become governor, lost two runs for president, and served as a university president and education secretary before winning three senate terms—Lamar Alexander answers that question with a resounding, “Yes.”
Over nearly six decades, Alexander saw the public arena from as many angles as any living American. With wry humor and wisdom, he reminds us that Americans have asked this question in times more troubling than today—through wars, economic panics, pandemics, and social upheaval.
Alexander paints insider portraits of the ten presidents he worked with—including the one best suited to the job, the most skillful politician, most accomplished in foreign affairs, most “normal,” and another who was on his way to being the most consequential.
His book is for Americans hungry for optimism and leadership. It will inspire anyone who wants to serve in public office but doesn’t know how to start. It is a blueprint for those who want to join the 519,682 Americans already elected to office and the millions who work with them.
“I woke up every day thinking I might do something good for my state or country and went to bed most nights thinking that I had.” — Lamar Alexander
“To read Lamar Alexander’s vivid and surprising memoir is to be in conversation with a man who knows how to tell a great story.” —Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author
“What a wonderful and refreshing memoir! Lamar Alexander has been a gift to us—more interested in getting things done and improving the lives of others than in grabbing headlines and bashing an opponent. Bravo!” —Ken Burns, Filmmaker, The American Revolution
“Revealing and highly entertaining...takes us inside some of the most important moments in our nation’s history.” —Karl Rove, Sr. Advisor to President George W. Bush
Can we survive this?” worried friends ask Lamar Alexander.
A US senator who started in JFK’s Justice Department, worked in the Nixon White House, turned down serving as GOP Watergate counsel and as Ford’s campaign manager, walked for six months across Tennessee to become governor, lost two runs for president, and served as a university president and education secretary before winning three senate terms—Lamar Alexander answers that question with a resounding, “Yes.”
Over nearly six decades, Alexander saw the public arena from as many angles as any living American. With wry humor and wisdom, he reminds us that Americans have asked this question in times more troubling than today—through wars, economic panics, pandemics, and social upheaval.
Alexander paints insider portraits of the ten presidents he worked with—including the one best suited to the job, the most skillful politician, most accomplished in foreign affairs, most “normal,” and another who was on his way to being the most consequential.
His book is for Americans hungry for optimism and leadership. It will inspire anyone who wants to serve in public office but doesn’t know how to start. It is a blueprint for those who want to join the 519,682 Americans already elected to office and the millions who work with them.
“I woke up every day thinking I might do something good for my state or country and went to bed most nights thinking that I had.” — Lamar Alexander
568 pages, Hardcover
Published May 19, 2026
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June 2, 2026
There may be no better political storyteller than Lamar Alexander. He brings the folksiness of East Tennessee, the classiness of a Southern gentleman, and the common sense of someone who truly led a life of consequence for his state and our country. What I liked most was his stories about the major policy proposals that passed during his time in the Senate. For far too long, we only hear about the name-calling and division. But whether it’s overhauling our National Parks, supporting cures for diseases, or many other things, people like Lamar Alexander showed that bipartisanship can work. It’s a lesson I hope we can take to heart.
Displaying 1 of 1 review