A Governor's Story: The Fight for Jobs and America's Economic Future [Hardcover]

Jennifer Granholm (Author), Dan Mulhern (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 20, 2011

Jennifer Granholm was the two-term governor of Michigan, a state synonymous with manufacturing during a financial crisis that threatened to put all America’s major car companies into bankruptcy. The immediate and knock-on effects were catastrophic. Granholm’s grand plans for education reform, economic revitalization, clean energy, and infrastructure development were blitzed by a perfect economic storm.

Granholm was a determined and undefeated governor, who enjoyed close access to the White House at critical moments (Granholm stood in for Sarah Palin during Joe Biden’s debate preparation), and her account offers a front row seat on the effects of the crisis. Ultimately, her story is a model of hope. She hauls Michigan towards unprecedented private-public partnerships, forged in the chaos of financial freefall, built on new technologies that promise to revolutionize not only the century-old auto industry but Michigan’s entire manufacturing base. They offer the potential for a remarkable recovery not just for her state, but for American industry nationwide.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Governor Jennifer Granholm faced extraordinary challenges with grace, intelligence, and tenacity. In a weak economy, no state was hit harder than hers. She embraced the challenge of rebuilding Michigan’s economy for the 21st Century with new ideas, new jobs, and new businesses. In 2011, Michigan had the largest drop in unemployment in the U.S., thanks in large measure to her tireless effort. A Governor’s Story: The Fight for Jobs and America’s Economic Future is a remarkable narrative. Everyone who wants to revive the American economy and restore the American dream should read it.” —President Bill Clinton

“Jennifer Granholm spent eight years fighting for Michigan, and now the rest of the nation can benefit from the hard lessons she and her team learned as they positioned Michigan for recovery. A Governor’s Story offers a dramatic inside political story and an urgent call to recognize that our industry is competing not just with foreign companies but with the governments supporting them. It also offers a candid and moving personal story of a governor who is forced to devote her ‘all’ to turn around her state’s seemingly unyielding bad economy, with the resulting family pressures she faced as a loving wife and mother.” —U.S. Senator Carl Levin

“During her tenure as governor, Jennifer Granholm had to grapple with unprecedented economic crises that foreshadowed what other leaders around the world would eventually experience. A Governor’s Story is one leader’s recounting of what it’s like and what it takes to lead in the crucible of challenge and change. It is an engagingly personal, absolutely riveting, and completely honest story. As you walk in Jennifer Granholm’s shoes through the pages of this gripping narrative, you understand more fully the resilience, optimism, and grit it takes to lead in challenging times. Every executive, every politician, every student of leadership, and every citizen needs to read this book. There is hope here. A Governor’s Story gets my vote for the best leadership book of the year.” —Jim Kouzes, coauthor of the bestselling The Leadership Challenge and Credibility

“Governor Granholm is a passionate voice for manufacturing in America. During her time in office, she consistently put manufacturing front and center because it is so essential to the state's and the nation's economic vitality.” —Alan Mulally, President and CEO, Ford Motor Company

“Governor Granholm has governed during some of the toughest times I can remember in Michigan and has never wavered in her commitment and love for our state. From wind and solar energy to advanced batteries, she has championed the development of clean energy in Michigan and laid the groundwork for Michigan”s economic recovery and world-wide leadership in alternative energy.  She has been a strong partner with me in the fight to save our auto industry and American manufacturing.” —Senator Debbie Stabenow

“Now is the time to create the jobs of the future by growing industries, including a new clean energy economy.  And Jennifer Granholm has been all on top of this as the governor of Michigan. . . .  I want to applaud Governor Granholm…. The rest of the country should learn from the effort.” —President Barack Obama

“Jennifer Granholm … is the genuine article. She’s proved her mettle as governor on tough terrain.” —Senator John Kerry
 

About the Author

Jennifer Granholm was elected governor of Michigan in 2002 and re-elected in 2006. She was born in Vancouver, Canada, grew up in California, and is an honors graduate of both the University of California at Berkeley, where she now teaches in the law and public policy schools, and Harvard Law School. She is a senior advisor to the Pew Charitable Trusts Clean Energy Program, a contributor to Meet the Press, and a regular guest on other national news programs.

Dan Mulhern is an honors graduate of both Yale University and Harvard Law School, teaches at the business and law schools at the University of California at Berkeley, and is an advisor to the Families and Work Institute. He is an author, talk show host, public speaker, and expert in leadership development and the changing roles of men and women. He is married to Jennifer Granholm.

 

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: PublicAffairs (September 20, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1586489976
• ISBN-13: 978-1586489977
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 1.4 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #680,025 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 56 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An important book and a significant contribution to the national dialog September 20, 2011

By Eclectablog

Format:Hardcover

This is an excerpt from a more comprenhensive review which can be read at [...].

"A Governor's Story" is a first-person account told in Granholm's voice. However, as is made clear from the start, it is a collaborative effort between her and Mulhern. The book tells four different stories. First, it is a history lesson about the impact on Michigan of the Great Recession of this decade, a state with seven times more manufacturing jobs per capita than any other state.

Second, it is a behind-the-scenes look at how states are run at the highest level. It shows the tightrope walking that must be done, the non-stop compromising, cajoling and effort that it takes to get things done, particularly during the time when Granholm was governor and the state legislature was either partially or entirely controlled by Republicans.

Third, it is an important textbook describing the successes and failures Michigan experienced as it dealt with the economic collapse -- including an entire chapter devoted to outlining concrete things that can be done at the federal level to help our country out of the recession, all based on lessons painfully learned in Michigan.

Finally, it is a love story between Jennifer Granholm and Dan Mulhern. Few married couples deal with the types of challenges these two did and come out of it on the other end clearly still a dynamic and loving team.

The parallels between Jennifer Granholm's time in office and what Barack Obama is confronting in his first term as president are unmistakable. Both came to office facing frightening economic challenges but with bold ideas for change. Both faced stiff headwinds from ideologically-motivated opponents intent on thwarting everything they attempted. Both are, frankly, blamed for things that were beyond their control. As Granholm and Mulhern exit stage left, they are leaving us with a thoughtful, well-informed and honest account of what went right, what went wrong and what lessons we can learn from Michigan, a state Granholm called a "laboratory of democracy" in a New York Times interview this week. Whether you are a Democrat or Republican, conservative or liberal or independent, "A Governor's Story" teaches important lessons. Let's hope our leaders are willing to learn from them.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars This book shows how hard it is to be a politician who cares. November 20, 2011

By Allen Weitsman

Format:Hardcover

Reading the first 7 chapters in this book was painful. It explains how Governor Granholm took office full of optimism about what she would accomplish only to find that events would unfold almost daily keeping her in survival mode. However, from chapter 8 on, one sees the many ways that stimulus did help, and could have helped even more if it had been bigger. She makes a cogent case for more government involvement, not less, and details her own activities at attracting business to Michigan....... and not by busting unions. There are 2 unfortunate epilogues. One is that clearly the citizens of the state are woefully uninformed (they should read the book) since they elected a Republican as her successor. The second is that Governor Granholm is currently out of government service, where she is so badly needed.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great read! December 25, 2011

By dcwumpus

Format:Hardcover

I've spent my whole life in Michigan and care deeply about this state. This book is an intimate look inside a passionate, thoughtful governor's efforts to turn my state around. It's a must-read for anyone upset with the direction of politics today, wanting to understand what needs to be done to turn our struggling economy around. This book is a really great read.