First published 2014
Robert Gates thought his Washington career was over when he became president of Texas A&M University in 2006. Then the White House called. Gates had already worked for six presidents through the CIA and National Security Council, but the nation was fighting two wars and needed his help. He answered the call and spent nearly five years as Defense Secretary under George W. Bush and Barack Obama. Gates fought battles on multiple fronts: Congress, the Pentagon bureaucracy, and within both administrations. He pushed Bush toward the Iraq surge and often disagreed with Obama's approach. Throughout major controversies like troop surges, Iran policy, Don't Ask Don't Tell, and Guantánamo Bay, Gates watched politicians prioritize party interests over soldier welfare. He traveled repeatedly to war zones, meeting troops and commanders while signing every deployment order. He greeted returning coffins and felt the weight of each decision. Gates offers unfiltered assessments of Dick Cheney, Joe Biden, Hillary Clinton, and both presidents. His memoir reveals the inner workings of government during wartime, from Situation Room deliberations during the bin Laden raid to congressional battles over military budgets.
Genres: history, politics, non-fiction, biography-memoir, 21st-century, military-history, government, american-history
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: insider-perspective, political-intrigue
Setting: Iraq, Guantánamo Bay, Texas A&M University, Washington
Period: 2006, 2011
640 pages · Hardcover · Knopf