Passage To Power by Robert Caro

The author of this volume, the fourth in his opus on the life and times of Lyndon Johnson, is long winded. The book opens in the final years of the Dwight D. Eisenhower administration, with Johnson contemplating a presidential run. It chugs through the grand detour of John F. Kennedy's reign, with LBJ sulking on the sidelines. And it ends in the first weeks of Johnson's presidency, which has been thrust upon him by JFK's assassination. Although these are, for Johnson, years of relative inaction, Caro infuses his pages with suspense, pathos, bitter rivalry and historic import — with Robert F. Kennedy in particular emerging as a nearly co-equal, second lead in the psychodrama, always looming offstage and threatening frequently to steal the spotlight from his arch rival. LBJ comes across by turns as insecure, canny, bighearted, self-defeating, petty, brilliant, cruel and, as ever, domineering. In the opening pages, he longingly eyes the presidency but, psychologically paralyzed, can’t bring himself to declare his candidacy or enter even a few primaries. Instead, he rages at the upstart Kennedy, who shows unforeseen proficiency in the old game of locking down governors and state Democratic Party leaders for the convention and in the new game of winning over the masses via television. He is a sore loser, a slighted VP, and about at his wits end when one day in Dallas it all changes course. Rising to the immense challenges before him, he guides the country with a strong hand through the dark days of November using Kennedy’s martyrdom to realize his slain predecessor’s unfulfilled agenda, although not without exacerbating already-miserable relations with Robert Kennedy (who comes off badly here--like father like son unfortunately). I was not left wanting more--I picked this up because it was on the New York Times 100 Best Books of the Twenty First Century, and it was more than enough for me, but it was also well worth reading, especially in light of what is happening in 2025.