Who was David Gergen? What to know about the advisor to four US presidents

USA Today

10 hours ago

David Gergen, a veteran political commentator and White House advisor to four former US presidents, died at a Massachusetts retirement community on July 10. He was 83 years old.
Gergen's son, Christopher, confirmed his death to The Washington Post and The New York Times on Friday. He shared that his father died from Lewy body dementia, a brain disorder which, according to the Mayo Clinic, affects thinking, memory and movement.
The prominent political insider and Harvard professor regularly served as a senior analyst for CNN, drawing on insights he gained from his experience in the White House under former Republican Presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan, as well as Democrat Bill Clinton.
A North Carolina native, he was married to English family therapist Anne Elizabeth Gergen since 1967. The pair shared two children and five grandchildren, according to Gergen's Harvard professor page. Their son is a North Carolina social entrepreneur and Duke faculty member, while their daughter, Katherine, works as a family doctor at the Boston Medical Center.
"We at the Kennedy School count David among our greatest leaders: a man of courage and commitment who inspired generations of students to go out and change the world for the better," said Jeremy Weinstein, dean of the Kennedy School and Don K. Price Professor of Public Policy, in an obituary.
A veteran, author and Ivy League grad with 27 honorary degrees
Gergen was an honors graduate of both Yale and Harvard Law School, though he went on to receive 27 honorary degrees throughout his career.
He is an attorney with the D.C. Bar, a veteran of the U.S. Navy, and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the U.S. executive committee for the Trilateral Commission.
He is also the author of two books: 2001's "Eyewitness to Power: The Essence of Leadership Nixon to Clinton" and 2022's "Hearts Touched with Fire: How Great Leaders Are Made."
In "Hearts Touched With Fire," Gergen wrote that Americans were living in an "immense volatility in our national life, when crises are hitting us from all directions," calling for "infusion of strong leaders to help us navigate safely."
"America is experiencing one of its worst crises since the beginning of the republic," he wrote. "While the next years are likely to be rough, we can be much more helpful about the long run if we remember who we are, if we take heart from our past, and if we prepare young generations for lives of service and leadership.
When did Gergen join Nixon's administration?
Gergen's political career began under President Richard Nixon's administration before the Republican's 1974 resignation following speculation he was potentially involved in the Watergate scandal.
In his memoir, Gergen wrote, "Before he self-destructed, Nixon was among the best of modern presidents," according to an excerpt quoted by CNN.
In the 1996 memoir "Call the Briefing," former White House Secretary Marlin Fitzwater described Gergen as "a political legend, a survivor of the Nixon White House" and "trusted member of the Reagan inner circle."
Fitzwater, who would serve as White House press secretary from 1982 to 1992, for Presidents Ronald Reagan and then George H.W. Bush, called Gergen the "spin master" because he had "a special knack for engaging a reporter in discussion, ascertaining the reporter's attitude on an issue, and, in midconversation, turning his explanation to fit the reporter's bias."
His White House career didn't end with the Watergate scandal as Gergen later advised GOP presidents Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan and eventually Democrat Bill Clinton.
When did Gergen become a journalist?
Gergen began his career as a journalist in 1984, first working for MacNeil-Lehrer NewsHour on PBS. Later that decade, he served as the editor-in-chief of U.S. News & World Report and went on to be a public affairs commentator for three decades.
Many Americans, however, best recognize him as one of CNN's longtime talking heads providing analysis on all things politics.
His work has earned him two Emmy Awards for political analysis and two Peabody Awards for his contributions to election coverage teams.
Gergen was also involved in various non-profit boards, including some at Yale and Duke Universities. He also served on the board of the New Profit, the leadership council of New Politics, and as an academic advisor to Leadership Now. In 2017, he co-founded and co-chaired non-profit With Honor, a group that aims to help pass bipartisan legislation and elect principled veterans.
What has Gergen said about former presidents?
David Gergen on the presidents he served, from his book "Eyewitness to Power: The Essence of Leadership Nixon to Clinton," published in 2000:
Richard Nixon: "Richard Nixon as the most fascinating man I have met in thirty years of public life. ... There was a side to Nixon, not reflected by Watergate or by the tapes, that to this day has inspired a legion of fine public servants. ... Nixon had it all and kicked it away. He complained later that he had simply made a bad mistake and it was really his enemies who destroyed him. ... He brought himself down."
Gerald Ford: "While I was in office, that image of Ford as a bumble, someone who meant well, but, as Lyndon Johnson once said, couldn't walk straight and chew gum at the same time, took deep root in public thinking. ... It was an unfair characterization, but something journalists ... and many others readily popularized, as did Ford's critics on the Democratic side of the aisle. Those of us around him in the government knew that he was more intelligent and more physically graceful than the press said (after all, he had been offered a contract to play professional football), and we struggled to help people see the man we worked for each day."
Ronald Reagan: "Reagan wasn't just comfortable in his own skin. He was serene. And he had a clear sense of what he was trying to accomplish. Those were among his greatest strengths as a leader. Nobody had to tell him those things. He knew where he wanted to go and how he might get there. Instead of trying to treat him like a marionette, as we did sometimes, the best thing we could do on staff was to help clear the obstacles from his path."
Bill Clinton: "To friend and foe, Bill Clinton is a mass of contradictions. He is one of the smartest men ever elected president and has done some of the dumbest things. He has a deeper knowledge of history than most of his predecessors and has used less of it. He genuinely wanted, as he pledged, to have 'the most ethical administration in history,' and enters history as the first elected president ever impeached. He is attached to his wife and needs her daily affirmation, yet he has wounded her repeatedly."
What is Lewy body dementia?
Lewy body dementia is a type of progressive dementia and the second most common form of the condition after Alzheimer's Disease, according to Norma Loeb, the founder of the Lewy Body Dementia Resource Center.
There are two forms of Lewy body dementia: Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and Parkinson's disease dementia.
The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke states that those with LBD may live anywhere between two to 20 years from diagnosis to death.
Contributing: USA TODAY's Joshua Bote and Jayme Deerwester