Passages to the Presidency From Campaigning to Governing

by Jones, Charles O.

• ISBN13: 9780815747130
• ISBN10: 0815747136
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1998-06-01
• Publisher: Brookings Institution Press

Summary

The standard view of the transition is based on a distinction between campaigning and governing, with election day as the marker: campaigning before, preparing to govern after. Yet changes are blurring the distinction between the two activities. The Clinton transition in 1992 is the watershed case. Dubbed the "worst" for failing to meet many of the standard tests, Clinton and his aides, nevertheless, were attuned to a campaigning style of governing that was fine-tuned after the 1994 mid-term election.Future transitions will be judged by a revised set of expectations. The conventional rules will be supplemented by tests that account for campaigning as integral to governing. What is called the "permanent campaign" is upon us. Presidents in the 21st century will prepare to govern more publicly from the start, anxious to establish and enhance their status in a more communal style of governing.This book considers the critical ten weeks of transition for recent party changes in the White House (Nixon, Carter, Reagan, Clinton) and signals a pivotal change for the future. Charles Jones identifies the conventional expectations for an effective transition in regard to such topics as dismantling the campaign, connecting with Congress, establishing a theme, and relating to the press.

Author Biography

Charles O. Jones is emeritus professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution.

Table of Contents

Transitions and Democracy	p. 1
Changing Transitions	p. 3
Thinking about Transitions	p. 4
A Leisurely Pace	p. 7
Budgeting for Transitional Government	p. 10
Variations in Transitions	p. 14
Transitions in a Separated System	p. 18
Future Presidents as Candidates	p. 20
Four Presidents	p. 22
Signals along the Way	p. 50
Beyond the Campaign Psychology	p. 52
Campaigning Is Not Governing	p. 54
Lessons from the Campaign for Governing	p. 57
The Matter of a Theme	p. 62
Preelection Transition Planning	p. 66
Summary	p. 81
Preparing to Govern	p. 83
The Agenda	p. 85
The Preferred Sequence	p. 87
The Practice: Four Cases	p. 93
The Role of the President-Elect	p. 98
Making Appointments	p. 103
Choosing from among Campaign Aides	p. 106
A Public Presence	p. 113
The Transition and Congress	p. 118
Transition Teams	p. 125
Summary	p. 132
The Press and the Transition	p. 134
Inside the Window Looking Out: Transition Aides	p. 136
Outside the Window Looking In: Press Perspectives	p. 147
Concluding Comments	p. 170
"The Biggest Mistake" and Other Lessons	p. 173
A Biggest Mistake?	p. 175
Importance of the Transition for Governing	p. 179
Realities of the Conventional Transition	p. 184
The Clinton Case: Preparing to Govern by Campaigning	p. 188
From Campaigning to Governing	p. 194
Notes	p. 199
Index	p. 217
Tables
Lame-Duck Presidents and Congresses, 1940-94
Characteristics of Originated Presidencies, 1896-1992
Characteristics of Regenerated Presidencies, 1896-1992
Characteristics of Received Presidencies, 1896-1992
Transition Period Press Conferences and Appearances of Presidents-Elect Nixon, Carter, Reagan, and Clinton
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