Ronald Reagan in Private: A Memoir of My Years in the White House

by Jim Kuhn

From the Oval Office to Camp David to Air Force One, a portrait of the real Ronald Reagan, away from the journalists, cameras, and microphones.

During his White House years, President Reagan earned the love and admiration of millions, and altered the course of history. Jim Kuhn, his executive assistant, was one of the very few people privileged to see the Great Communicator not just during his historic public events, but also behind the scenes, during quiet moments.

Kuhn was responsible for helping the most powerful man in the world manage his time and information. His memoir of an unguarded and unedited Ronald Reagan captures the laughter, resolve, sensitivity, and discomforts of the man who won the Cold War and restored America’s confidence.

President Reagan frequently shared with Kuhn his personal views on matters great and small, including his thoughts about world leaders such as Mikhail Gorbachev and Margaret Thatcher, and controversial issues such as nuclear weapons, taxes, and women’s rights. Kuhn recalls many poignant moments that will surprise readers, no matter how much they already know about President Reagan.

For example:
· How the President reacted when staff disappointed him and things didn’t go as planned
· The time he felt distraught over arms negotiations with the Soviets
· President Reagan’s true personal thoughts about abortion
· What aspersion bothered him more than any other
· How President Reagan felt about the Iran-Contra scandal and the figures involved

During his 13 years of service to Ronald Reagan, Kuhn discovered a man who acted the same off camera as he did in front of the world; who showed the same respect to an anonymous caller to the White House as he did to Pope John Paul II; who was more nuanced and perceptive than the press would ever admit; who never let the power and prestige of the Presidency go to his head.

Now that Ronald Reagan has passed away, there is a hunger for a deeper understanding of what made him a great President. Jim Kuhn offers a unique perspective on the private Ronald Reagan that will fascinate his millions of admirers.

Genres: Politics, History, Nonfiction, Biography, Memoir, Presidents, Biography Memoir

288 pages, Hardcover

First published July 22, 2004

Reviews

[Erik Nelson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderfully candid glimpse into the character and quirkiness of President Reagan, this book shows how Ronald Reagan interacted with people as individuals. Although the story is written chronologically, the author tends to jump back and forth between experiences throughout his career with Reagan. The result is a bumpy ride that seems to lack a consistent flow.

[Laurie Sytsma · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a very easy reading book discussing Jim Kuhn's work relationship to President Ronald Reagan through his campaign for president and 8 years in the White House.

[Nick · Rating 5 out of 5]

An enjoyable engaging read about the behind the scenes operations of the White House during of the Reagan years and what it was like to personally work with and for President Reagan.

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting behind the scenes look at a presidential advance man's job. Most of the stories about Reagan have been told elsewhere, though.

[Gracie Kolbenschlag · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fine.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my first foray into the realm of political memoirs. I picked the book because I needed a political memoir for a reading challenge, and because I work in Simi Valley. Considering how proud the patrons of my library are of "their" president, I figured that I should educate myself on Reagan.

This book has two distinct parts. The first part is pre 1980 election, and the second part is post 1980 election. During the first part, Kuhn follows a relatively chronological format. However, when he is illustrating his points about Reagan's character, he pulls examples from any time during his relationship with Reagan. It seemed rather disjointed in this section because he was constantly jumping from 1975 to 1983 to 1975 to 1976 to 1988 to 1976 to 1983 etc whenever he wanted pull in a parallel comparing the campaign imes to the presidency times.

The second part flowed a little better. Instead of being organized chronologically, the book was organized in sections. There were a few section detailing Reagan's relations with Gorbachev and the USSR. There was a section detailing Reagan's relationship with Nancy. There was a section detailing Iran-Contra, and many more. While the sections were in loose chronological order, each section could include anecdotes from anytime between 1980 and 1988. The second part was much less distracting.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. It was nice to learn a little bit about the personality behind the president and see him through the eyes of someone close to him. This book would have gotten 4 stars if it hadn't been for the disorganization of the first part.

[Kent · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a mildly interesting book. Lots of inside info on President Reagan, but nothing negative.

The book was chronological, except the narrative would skip back and forth to bring in a related story or anecdote.

Very light reading.

[Rachelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was great to read a book that was so positive about a great man. He was not perfect, but he did his best to serve this country and to make it better. He was an amazing man.