The American President's cabinet

The American President's Cabinet examines the very different ways in which the seven presidents from Kennedy to Bush used the institution of the cabinet. Kennedy, for example, virtually ignored it, while Ford saw it as a vital institution which fulfilled a number of useful functions. It considers the way people get into the president's cabinet, even why a surprising number decline an invitation. The president's cabinet turns out to be a fascinating blend of strangers and presidential cronies. Dentists, ranchers, Wall Street financiers as well as some politicians - they make an interesting collection. The conduct of cabinet meetings is also examined. Some thought them a bore while others found them stimulating. Why the difference? Also considered is the sometimes fraught relationships between the cabinet members, working in the various departments scattered around Washington, and those who work in the White House itself in the Executive Office of the President. A chapter on the Clinton cabinet has also been included.

Beyond its central premise, the book can be read through the connected lenses of Nonfiction. Those themes offer useful points of attention as the characters, ideas, or world develop, especially where the book complicates the expectations of its primary category.