In this well-written book, Peter van der Heiden presents the lives of the US presidents (46 and counting), as well as excellent anecdotes, but without any scientific pretensions. “I don’t aspire to unveil anything that wasn’t known before. It’s almost impossible to do so, anyway, because all those lives have already been described extensively.” He grabs the four-part biography written by Robert A Caro: four thick volumes about Lyndon B. Johnson, who served as President of the United States between 1963 and 1969. And there are more books to come. “In the fourth volume, he has only just become president. It would take an immense lot of research to dig up anything new about this life.”
What to do after retiring? This is a question even American presidents must find an answer to
It may just become a tradition: in the run-up to the US elections, parliamentary historian-cum-Americanist Peter van der Heiden likes to treat readers to a juicy glimpse into the lives of the presidents of the USA. His book on what presidents do after retiring from public office will be published this month. Just imagine: one day you are the most powerful man in the world, and the next day you are a regular citizen without any official powers.
In his afterword, Van der Heiden seeks to identify a recurring theme in the sketches of the 46 lives, but it is hard to do so, as they all lived in different eras and had different characters, as well as different challenges to overcome. Yet at the end of the book, the author states that he has noticed that the presidents had a very similar ambition in their retirement years: “Nearly all of them were concerned about their presidential image. They wondered, will history take a favourable view of me?”
Concerns about their legacy
He found that the presidents’ concerns about their legacy manifest in many different ways. Many presidents have opted for lectures and books with which they tried to influence the way they are perceived – and they were increasingly paid millions of dollars to do so. Sometimes they did so with great success. For instance, Van der Heiden describes the successful comeback of Richard Nixon, the president who had to resign in disgrace in 1974 after a failed war in Vietnam and the Watergate scandal instigated by him. The man was a good writer, and a series of no fewer than nine books gave him the rehabilitation he was after. “No longer was he just the fallen president. Instead, he had become a venerable elder statesman,” Van der Heiden notes.
Polishing their image proves to be a key driver for many presidents. Some of them, like Nixon, succeeded, while others did not. Van der Heiden says it is a pity that, while many former presidents have written books, there are very few genuine memoirs among them. George Bush Jr is an exception to the rule, having detailed in the books he wrote how he came to make the decisions he made. “That should be an obligation for every former politician: to be accountable for your actions.”
Polished image
Some do it with books, others through charity or diplomatic efforts, or a combination of both. Carter, a somewhat colourless president (1977-1981), is the prime example here. His Carter Center, based in his home state of Georgia, did more for his legacy than his presidency. “He eliminated two deadly diseases,” Van der Heiden says, pointing to his successful efforts to eliminate Guinea-worm disease and river blindness. “Carter saved hundreds of thousands of lives, unlike many presidents, who only cost lives.”
From a democratic point of view, the presidents’ post-retirement efforts are not beyond a little criticism, says Van der Heiden. Quite a few of them have concerned themselves with the acts of their successors. In some cases they were asked to do so; in others they were not. “I like it when people are bold enough to say, ‘My time is up. I’m stepping down, as I’m supposed to.’ You mustn’t overstep boundaries.”
First Losers
The president he finds most fascinating is Lyndon B. Johnson, precisely because of the radical way in which he stepped back: he did write some books – “self-glorification, unfortunately” – but his retirement years revolved around his family, and around his ranch in his home state of Texas. “This is the one thing they’ll never be able to take from me: my land,” Johnson was quoted as saying. Another thing Van der Heiden likes about him: “As soon as he retired, he started smoking again, two packs a day. He wanted to enjoy all the pleasures of life.” However, he didn’t get to enjoy the life of a former president for long: Johnson, who had a weak heart (a problem that ran in the family), passed away in 1973, four years after retiring.
Has Van der Heiden established a tradition with this book? In the run-up to the previous US elections in 2020, he published Weirdo’s in het Witte Huis (Weirdos in the White House), and now he has published an anthology of the presidents’ retirement years. So what’s next? He seems to have plenty of ideas. Perhaps he will write a book about all the different roads that have led to the White House. “I’m also considering a book on all the people who just missed out on the presidency.” He has already come up with a title for the latter book: First Losers.
Peter van der Heiden | Weg uit het Witte Huis, presidenten met pensioen [After Leaving the White House: Presidents After Retiring] | Boom, Amsterdam
This is Part 1 in a series of articles on Radboud Recharge in the run-up to the US elections, which will be held in November.
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