The Presidential Recordings: Lyndon B. Johnson: Mississippi Burning and the Passage of the Civil Rights Act: June 1, 1964-July 4, 1964 (Two-volume ... (Vol. 7-8) (The Presidential Recordings) [Hardcover]

Guian A. McKee (Editor), Kent B. Germany (Editor), David C. Carter (Editor), Timothy Naftali (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 25, 2011 | ISBN-10: 0393081184 | ISBN-13: 978-0393081183 | Edition: Two-volume slipcased set

A two-volume hardcover slipcased with audio DVD: this is presidential power in its rawest form, revealed alongside the private vulnerabilities of the world's most public man.

As one of Lyndon B. Johnson's first presidential acts following the tragic assassination of John F. Kennedy, he ordered a secret taping system installed in the White House and began recording his telephone conversations. These volumes, which continue the University of Virginia's Miller Center of Public Affairs's acclaimed Presidential Recordings series, cover the time period between June 1, 1964, and July 4, 1964. During these dramatic weeks, Johnson continued to struggle with America's course in Vietnam, sought to implement his vision of a Great Society, finally signed into law the momentous civil rights bill introduced by Kennedy before his assassination, and dealt with his first national domestic crisis when, after the bill's passage, three civil rights workers went missing in Mississippi, an incident that would test Johnson's commitment to civil rights and become one of the defining moments of his presidency.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Drawing on President Johnson's Oval Office recordings, these volumes of carefully annotated transcripts from the University of Virginia's Miller Center for Public Affairs cover one critical month during which Johnson's landmark civil rights bill passed the Senate, and three student civil rights workers were murdered in Mississippi. The transcripts, mostly of phone conversations, reveal LBJ in a virtuoso performance, challenging and cajoling his cabinet members and advisers on Southeast Asia ("We've already violated in sending an armed plane , haven't we?"), rattling off poll results for the upcoming presidential election, maneuvering around Sen. John Stennis of Mississippi regarding the murdered civil rights workers. (Stennis says, "There's... a local colored man had been making himself obnoxious, smart-aleck troublemaker, I'm afraid somebody's after him and just got the others along with him.") Although a priceless historical record—sometimes disturbing, sometimes surprising—the voluminous transcripts are frustratingly choppy, riddled with the ramblings, interjections, and false starts of unscripted conversation. But this is a significant record of American history in the making, and for anyone fascinated by LBJ or the inner working of the White House, this is an invaluable record. (Apr.)
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Review

“Starred Review. [C]arefully annotated transcripts… reveal LBJ in a virtuoso performance… this is a significant record of American history in the making, and for anyone fascinated by LBJ or the inner working of the White House, this is an invaluable record.” (Publishers Weekly )

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 1120 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company; Two-volume slipcased set edition (April 25, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393081184
• ISBN-13: 978-0393081183
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 6.6 x 3.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #903,931 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #62 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( J ) > Johnson, Lyndon