What It Was Like Working for Lyndon B. Johnson, with Tom Johnson

He has been called one of the most consequential presidents in American history—and one of the most complicated. He was described as crude and compassionate, domineering and deeply empathetic. A political force of nature, Lyndon B. Johnson possessed a legendary ability to persuade, cajole, and outmaneuver nearly anyone in his path. He shepherded landmark civil rights legislation through Congress, won one of the greatest landslide victories in American history, and is often regarded as the most effective legislator ever to occupy the White House. Yet by the end of his presidency, the Vietnam War had made him a deeply polarizing figure, besieged by protesters and increasingly isolated. The president was Lyndon B. Johnson—and Tom Johnson had a front-row seat to it all. In this episode, Tom Johnson, former aide to LBJ and later publisher of the Los Angeles Times and president of CNN, reflects on his years alongside the 36th president during one of the most turbulent periods in American history. Drawing from his new memoir, Driven: A Life in Public Service and Journalism from LBJ to CNN, Johnson shares what it was really like to work for LBJ amid the civil rights movement, the Vietnam War, and the upheaval of the 1960s. DRIVEN: A LIFE IN PUBLIC SERVICE AND JOURNALISM FROM LBJ TO CNN https://www.amazon.com/Driven-Life-Public-Service-Journalism/dp/0820374539 JOIN PREMIUM Listen ad-free for only $5/month at www.bit.ly/TAPpremium BUY US A COFFEE buymeacoffee.com/thisamericanpresident FOLLOW US: www.thisamericanpresident.com/ CREDITS Host: Richard Lim Producer: Michael Neal Cover Art: Nip Rogers, www.NipRogers.com

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