Personality and Politics

Stephen J. Wayne is a well-known author and lecturer on the American presidency and electoral politics. A professor of government at Georgetown University since 1988 and a Washington-based "insider" for more than 40 years, Wayne has written or edited 12 books and authored over 100 articles, chapters, and reviews that have appeared in professional journals, scholarly compilations, newspapers, and magazines. At Georgetown, Wayne teaches courses on the presidency, elections, and psychology and politics. Wayne is frequently quoted by White House journalists and regularly appears on television and radio news shows. He lectures widely at home and abroad to international visitors, college students, federal executives, and business leaders. He has testified before Congress on the subject of presidential elections and governance and before Democratic and Republican party advisory committees on the presidential nomination processes. He participated in transition projects for the National Academy of Public Administration and the Presidency Research Group.

Introduction A Disciplinary Dilemma Character and Its Derivatives Organization of the Book Character Development Race and Roots Ambition and Politics Adaption and Approval Ego Checks and Guilt Basic Beliefs Commonality as a Value Church and Community Government and Society Progressive Pragmatism Operating Style Cognition Decision Making Organization Communication Conciliation Character-Based Tensions Idealism and Pragmatism Direction and Delegation Vision and Compromise Rationality and Empathy Boldness and Caution Political Impediments Transitioning from Campaigning to Governing The Limits of Presidential Power Public Attitudes Toward Government Democratic Leadership Dilemmas Obama's Theory of Democratic Leadership The Bully Pulpit and Its Limits Obama's Practice of Democratic Leadership The Interaction of Personality and Politics: Three Case Studies Stimulating the Economy Reforming Health Care Upping the Ante in Afghanistan

The impact of presidential personality on governing in the White House is one of the great puzzles of presidential politics. There is no one better than Steve Wayne at helping us solve this puzzle and achieve a better understanding of the Obama presidency -- George C. Edwards III This fine book goes a long way toward capturing the essence of the complex, elusive, and politically important Barack Obama. -- Fred I. Greenstein Stephen Wayne combines the rigor of a political scientist with the insights of a psychologist to explain how President Obama's character intersects with politics to produce the policies of his administration. Wayne explores the tensions between Obama's ideals and the reality of American politics as well as the fissures between his transformational vision and his transactional style. If you want to know what makes Obama tick, this book is a good place to start -- James P. Pfiffner