by Bret Capranica | Mar 29, 2011 | Featured Articles, Presidential History, Time/Life Management
Last year on President”™s Day, Kelly and I took a trip down to Yorba Linda and the Richard Nixon Library and Foundation. Admission was free, so we joined some 5,000 other people taking advantage of the opportunity. The highlight of the day was the panel lecture on “The Effective Use of the President”™s Time.” The panel was made up of four men who served in the West Wing of the White House and, more specifically, worked directly under H. R. “Bob” Haldeman, Nixon”™s Chief of Staff. They discussed the climate of which Nixon assumed the presidency, how foreign trips were staffed, and most importantly, how they helped the President make the best use of his time. Nixon”™s end is usually where we begin in thinking about his time in office and tends to dominate the flavor of the entirety of his presidency. That is unfortunate. Many, initiatives, policies, and governmental advancements that remain in place today were initiated during his years in the White House. In fact, the entire structure of the modern day Office of the President was essentially created during his tenure and remains in tact today. The lecture was a fascinating look into the Presidency. Today and Friday I”™ll post my bulleted notes from the lecture. On Saturday, I”™ll give a few thoughts on how these themes could bring helpful consideration to an ordinary pastor”™s ministry. Nixon was friendly, but we were not friends. Nixon lost the 1960 election because he tried to run the campaign himself. In 1968 (the year he won the Presidency), he put key managers in every position. Haldeman issued a memo in the 1968...
