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The Strategic President: Persuasion and Opportunity in Presidential Leadership. By George C. Edwards III. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2009. 270 pp.
Almost 50 years ago, President John F. Kennedy brought Richard Neustadt's Presidential Power to the White House. Since that time, presidential politics has undergone many developments. The presidency has become a more plebiscitary institution, with greater dependence on public communications. Presidents have had to deal with a more decentralized legislature and, in recent years, increasingly polarized parties. The Strategic President shows how presidents can effectively bring about policy change, given these and other developments. The book should be read and reread by occupants of the White House, as well as by students and scholars of the presidency.
The major premise of The Strategic President is that presidents can best achieve change when they exploit existing opportunities rather than attempt to persuade others to alter their preferences or behavior. Therefore, presidential leadership is most effective when presidents are facilitators who recognize opportunities, prioritize among them, and, only at the margins, convince a small number of undecided actors to support particular goals. This is not to say that facilitators are followers rather than leaders. As Edwards notes,
The facilitator is not simply one who seizes opportunities as they present themselves and invites people to do what they already want to do. Change is not inevitable, and facilitators make things happen that otherwise would not. Effective facilitators are skilled...