The Gatekeepers
How the White House Chiefs of Staff Define Every Presidency
Get The Book — Amazon, Opens in a new window. Other retailers & formats ↓About The Gatekeepers
Chris Whipple examines the White House chief of staff and the influence that role can exert over a presidency.
Through accounts of decision-making across administrations, the book explores access, organization, judgment, and the relationship between a president and the person managing the White House.
It opens the leadership sequence by looking at the often less visible work that enables or undermines executive performance.
Why I include it
I read this while preparing for an interview with Leon Panetta. Whipple’s account of White House chiefs of staff makes the human realities of leadership unusually clear, particularly the responsibility and judgment behind consequential decisions.
