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Dallek takes us through Johnson's tumultuous years in the White House, his unprecedented accomplishments there, and the tragic war that would be his downfall. Drawing on hundreds of newly released tapes and extensive interviews with those closest to LBJ - including fresh insights from Lady Bird and his press secretary Bill Moyers - Dallek takes us behind the scenes to give us a portrait of Johnson that is at once even-handed and completely engrossing. We see Johnson as the visionary leader who worked his will on Congress like no president before or since, enacting a range of crucial legislation, from Medicare, Clean Air and Water Acts, the establishment of the National Endowments for the Arts and for the Humanities, and Public Broadcasting to the most significant advances in civil rights for black Americans ever achieved. And we see for the first time the depth of Johnson's private anguish as he became increasingly ensnared in Vietnam, a war he did not want to expand and which destroyed his hopes for The Great Society and a second term.… (more)
User reviews
It is said that biographies often have the tendency to either canonise or vilify the subject, but this does neither and appears to be largely objective. It is essentially a political history of the administration with LBJ as the focus.
Read if you seek a better understanding of this fascinating period in US history or the decision making process during the early part of the Vietnam war.
Volume 2 deals with his term as President his election to his own term as President and his domestic accomplishments including his passage of legislation dealing with The Great Society and Civil Rights legislation his foreign policy largely concerning the continuing escalation of the Vietnam War and his attempts to find a way to win and exit the war all unsuccessfully.
These 2 volumes are outstanding and I definitely recommend both.