The story: George Stephanopoulos takes look at the history of the Situation Room, from its inception during JFK’s presidency to how it’s being used today. Each chapter focuses on a different president, and most of them zero in on one specific incident that occurred during their presidency in which the Situation Room came into play (for example, the Jimmy Carter chapter focuses on the hostage crisis in Tehran).
Why I read it: My dad recommended it, and I love this kind of book.
What I thought of it: This book is really, really good. I learned so much about modern American history from reading this. The best chapters were the ones that focused on a specific incident. It’s hard to pick a standout chapter, but the one on Reagan–which focuses on the assassination attempt early in his presidency–was gripping, as were the ones on Bush 2 (covering 9/11, of course), and Obama (covering the killing of Osama bin Laden). Some of them were incredibly informative–the Obama chapter was a standout here, and so was the chapter on Ford which talked about the Mayaguez crisis in Cambodia. While a lot of the time the Situation Room itself is only tangentially related to what’s happening, since certain presidents didn’t like using it, Stephanopoulos always relates the historical event back to how it affected the Situation Room staffers and incorporates their perspective. There are also details in here about how the technology and functions of the Situation Room evolved over time to meet different needs (for example, the changes that were needed during COVID to allow officials to meet virtually). There’s no real political agenda here, although some presidents certainly come out looking better than others–and the two who come out of it looking the worst were certainly not surprising. I would recommend this book to anyone who’s interested in learning more about American history, particularly from this unique perspective.
