by John W. Dean
First published 2001
John Dean sits in the White House as Nixon's counsel, watching the president struggle to fill a Supreme Court vacancy in 1971. The Senate expects a smooth confirmation for William Rehnquist, but Dean knows the real story behind closed doors. Nixon had dismissed Rehnquist as a "clown" and nearly passed him over entirely. The nomination emerged from political chaos, last minute reversals, and Nixon's secret schemes to pack the court by forcing resignations. Dean navigates the West Wing drama as Nixon, Haldeman, Ehrlichman, and Mitchell debate candidates and strategy. White House tapes capture the raw conversations that shaped the selection of a man who would later write the Bush v. Gore decision and preside over Clinton's impeachment trial. Dean reveals how an obscure Assistant Attorney General survived Nixon's mercurial process to reach the judiciary's peak.
Genres: history, 20th-century, political-science, politics, biography-memoir, american-history
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: behind-the-scenes, political-intrigue
Setting: White House
Period: 1971
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