The executive branch of our government is like a chameleon. To a startling degree itreflects the character and personality of the President. Clark M. Clifford, 1972Page 189.Ford was not a natural administrator, but he a was an experienced political professional. His practice was to steer clear of jurisdictional rivalries, avoid having confidants withinhis cabinet, have private sources of advice outside the cabinet, leave “management andprogram implementation to the department heads,: and encourage dissent when he wasmaking up his mind, but reserve the final decisions for himself. Page 120Your motives will help maintain a positive outlookYour speaking style and body language can be a liability. As was for Ford, who hit hishead while debarking from a helicopter and thereafter late-night television comediansportrayed him as a bumbling incompetent. Page 120Organizational Capacity —When we turn to the internal face of presidential leadership,Eisenhower deserves the closest of attention. No other chief executive has entered theWhite House with his organizational experience, and none has put comparable effort intostructuring his presidency. Eisenhower gave careful thought to finding the rightincumbents for the right roles. Once his aides were in place, he observed theirperformance carefully, adjusting their responsibilities accordingly. Page 55Public Communication —Of all of Eisenhower’s qualities, his political communicationstyle has least to command it to future chief executives. The preexisting public supportthe popular IKE carried over into the White House made it unnecessary for him to sellhimself; his propensity to get results by indirection reduced his interest in publicpersuasion; and his wartime achievements left him with no need to use his presidency toestablish a place in history. Page 54Eisenhower was enormously popular with the American people from the period of hisservice...
