-
Worthy Fights
- A Memoir of Leadership in War and Peace
- Narrated by: Leon Panetta
- Length: 19 hrs and 28 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Buy for $22.50
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Duty
- Memoirs of a Secretary at War
- By: Robert M. Gates
- Narrated by: George Newbern, Robert M. Gates
- Length: 25 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the former secretary of defense, a strikingly candid, vivid account of serving Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. When Robert M. Gates received a call from the White House, he thought he'd long left Washington politics behind: After working for six presidents in both the CIA and the National Security Council, he was happily serving as president of Texas A&M University. But when he was asked to help a nation mired in two wars and to aid the troops doing the fighting, he answered what he felt was the call of duty.
-
-
The Fighting Season
- By Cynthia on 01-28-14
By: Robert M. Gates
-
The Gatekeepers
- How the White House Chiefs of Staff Define Every Presidency
- By: Chris Whipple
- Narrated by: Mark Bramhall
- Length: 12 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The chiefs of staff, often referred to as "the gatekeepers", wield tremendous power in Washington and beyond; they decide who is allowed to see the president, negotiate with Congress to push POTUS's agenda, and - most crucially - enjoy unparalleled access to the leader of the free world. Through extensive, intimate interviews with 18 living chiefs (including Reince Priebus) and two former presidents, award-winning journalist and producer Chris Whipple pulls back the curtain on this unique fraternity. In doing so, he revises our understanding of presidential history.
-
-
Interesting, but lacking in political objectivity
- By Stephen Watson on 09-04-17
By: Chris Whipple
-
Playing to the Edge
- American Intelligence in the Age of Terror
- By: Michael V. Hayden
- Narrated by: Michael V. Hayden
- Length: 16 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An unprecedented high-level master narrative of America's intelligence wars from the only person ever to helm both the CIA and NSA, at a time of heinous new threats and wrenching change. For General Michael Hayden, playing to the edge means playing so close to the line that you get chalk dust on your cleats. Otherwise, by playing back, you may protect yourself, but you will be less successful in protecting America.
-
-
Fascinating - but distractingly disorganized.
- By Cynthia on 03-21-16
-
The Man Who Ran Washington
- The Life and Times of James A. Baker III
- By: Peter Baker, Susan Glasser
- Narrated by: Michael Quinlan
- Length: 26 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For a quarter-century, from the end of Watergate to the aftermath of the Cold War, no Republican won the presidency without his help or ran the White House without his advice. James Addison Baker III was the indispensable man for four presidents because he understood better than anyone how to make Washington work at a time when America was shaping events around the world. The Man Who Ran Washington is a pause-resisting portrait of a power broker who influenced America's destiny for generations.
-
-
We Need Baker Now More Than Ever
- By @Gazi2a on 01-08-21
By: Peter Baker, and others
-
Romney
- A Reckoning
- By: McKay Coppins
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis, McKay Coppins
- Length: 12 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Few figures in American politics have seen more and said less than Mitt Romney. An outspoken dissident in Donald Trump’s GOP, he has made headlines in recent years for standing alone against the forces he believes are poisoning the party he once led. Romney was the first senator in history to vote to remove from office a president of his own party. When that president’s supporters went on to storm the US Capitol, Romney delivered a thundering speech from the Senate floor accusing his fellow Republicans of stoking insurrection.
-
-
Political and intellectual biography at its best!
- By Amazon Customer on 10-25-23
By: McKay Coppins
-
No Higher Honor
- A Memoir of My Years in Washington
- By: Condoleezza Rice
- Narrated by: Condoleezza Rice
- Length: 28 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A native of Birmingham, Alabama, who overcame the racism of the civil rights era to become a brilliant academic and expert on foreign affairs, Condoleezza Rice first distinguished herself as an advisor to George W. Bush during the 2000 presidential campaign, and eventually became one of his closest confidantes.
-
-
A Disarming Memoir
- By Lynn on 03-19-12
By: Condoleezza Rice
-
Duty
- Memoirs of a Secretary at War
- By: Robert M. Gates
- Narrated by: George Newbern, Robert M. Gates
- Length: 25 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the former secretary of defense, a strikingly candid, vivid account of serving Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. When Robert M. Gates received a call from the White House, he thought he'd long left Washington politics behind: After working for six presidents in both the CIA and the National Security Council, he was happily serving as president of Texas A&M University. But when he was asked to help a nation mired in two wars and to aid the troops doing the fighting, he answered what he felt was the call of duty.
-
-
The Fighting Season
- By Cynthia on 01-28-14
By: Robert M. Gates
-
The Gatekeepers
- How the White House Chiefs of Staff Define Every Presidency
- By: Chris Whipple
- Narrated by: Mark Bramhall
- Length: 12 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The chiefs of staff, often referred to as "the gatekeepers", wield tremendous power in Washington and beyond; they decide who is allowed to see the president, negotiate with Congress to push POTUS's agenda, and - most crucially - enjoy unparalleled access to the leader of the free world. Through extensive, intimate interviews with 18 living chiefs (including Reince Priebus) and two former presidents, award-winning journalist and producer Chris Whipple pulls back the curtain on this unique fraternity. In doing so, he revises our understanding of presidential history.
-
-
Interesting, but lacking in political objectivity
- By Stephen Watson on 09-04-17
By: Chris Whipple
-
Playing to the Edge
- American Intelligence in the Age of Terror
- By: Michael V. Hayden
- Narrated by: Michael V. Hayden
- Length: 16 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An unprecedented high-level master narrative of America's intelligence wars from the only person ever to helm both the CIA and NSA, at a time of heinous new threats and wrenching change. For General Michael Hayden, playing to the edge means playing so close to the line that you get chalk dust on your cleats. Otherwise, by playing back, you may protect yourself, but you will be less successful in protecting America.
-
-
Fascinating - but distractingly disorganized.
- By Cynthia on 03-21-16
-
The Man Who Ran Washington
- The Life and Times of James A. Baker III
- By: Peter Baker, Susan Glasser
- Narrated by: Michael Quinlan
- Length: 26 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For a quarter-century, from the end of Watergate to the aftermath of the Cold War, no Republican won the presidency without his help or ran the White House without his advice. James Addison Baker III was the indispensable man for four presidents because he understood better than anyone how to make Washington work at a time when America was shaping events around the world. The Man Who Ran Washington is a pause-resisting portrait of a power broker who influenced America's destiny for generations.
-
-
We Need Baker Now More Than Ever
- By @Gazi2a on 01-08-21
By: Peter Baker, and others
-
Romney
- A Reckoning
- By: McKay Coppins
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis, McKay Coppins
- Length: 12 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Few figures in American politics have seen more and said less than Mitt Romney. An outspoken dissident in Donald Trump’s GOP, he has made headlines in recent years for standing alone against the forces he believes are poisoning the party he once led. Romney was the first senator in history to vote to remove from office a president of his own party. When that president’s supporters went on to storm the US Capitol, Romney delivered a thundering speech from the Senate floor accusing his fellow Republicans of stoking insurrection.
-
-
Political and intellectual biography at its best!
- By Amazon Customer on 10-25-23
By: McKay Coppins
-
No Higher Honor
- A Memoir of My Years in Washington
- By: Condoleezza Rice
- Narrated by: Condoleezza Rice
- Length: 28 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A native of Birmingham, Alabama, who overcame the racism of the civil rights era to become a brilliant academic and expert on foreign affairs, Condoleezza Rice first distinguished herself as an advisor to George W. Bush during the 2000 presidential campaign, and eventually became one of his closest confidantes.
-
-
A Disarming Memoir
- By Lynn on 03-19-12
By: Condoleezza Rice
-
Undaunted
- My Fight Against America’s Enemies, at Home and Abroad
- By: John O. Brennan
- Narrated by: John O. Brennan
- Length: 14 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A powerful and revelatory memoir from former CIA director John Brennan, spanning his more than 30 years in government.
-
-
Excellent
- By Georgann Lautner on 10-11-20
By: John O. Brennan
-
In My Time
- A Personal and Political Memoir
- By: Dick Cheney, Liz Cheney
- Narrated by: Edward Herrmann, Dick Cheney
- Length: 20 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In his unmistakable voice and with an insider's eye on history, former Vice President Dick Cheney tells the story of his life and the nearly four decades he has spent at the center of American politics and power. In My Time is truly the last word about an incredible political era, by a man who lived it and helped define it - with courage and without compromise.
-
-
Great Book
- By reader on 09-05-11
By: Dick Cheney, and others
-
A Sacred Oath
- Memoirs of a Secretary of Defense During Extraordinary Times
- By: Mark T. Esper
- Narrated by: Joe Knezevich
- Length: 20 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From June of 2019 until his firing by President Trump after the November 2020 election, Secretary Mark T. Esper led the Department of Defense through an unprecedented time in history—a period marked by growing threats and conflict abroad, a global pandemic unseen in a century, the greatest domestic unrest in two generations, and a White House seemingly bent on breaking accepted norms and conventions for political advantage. A Sacred Oath is Secretary Esper’s unvarnished and candid memoir of those extraordinary and dangerous times, and includes events and moments never before told.
-
-
Boring. Lots of excuses.
- By Dennis on 05-11-22
By: Mark T. Esper
-
A Higher Loyalty
- Truth, Lies, and Leadership
- By: James Comey
- Narrated by: James Comey
- Length: 9 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In his audiobook, A Higher Loyalty, former FBI director James Comey shares his never-before-told experiences from some of the highest stakes situations of his career in the past two decades of American government, exploring what good, ethical leadership looks like and how it drives sound decisions. His journey provides an unprecedented entry into the corridors of powe, and a remarkable lesson in what makes an effective leader.
-
-
More Than Trump: All Comey's Life/Working Years--
- By Gillian on 04-17-18
By: James Comey
-
Facts and Fears
- Hard Truths from a Life in Intelligence
- By: Trey Brown, James R. Clapper
- Narrated by: Mark Bramhall
- Length: 18 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When he stepped down in January 2017 as the fourth US Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper had been President Obama's senior intelligence advisor for six and a half years, longer than his three predecessors combined. He led the US Intelligence Community through a period that included the raid on Osama bin Laden, the Benghazi attack, the leaks of Edward Snowden, and Russia's influence operation on the 2016 US election.
-
-
Speaking Straight, Unbiased Truth to Power
- By Cynthia on 05-29-18
By: Trey Brown, and others
-
The World as It Is
- A Memoir of the Obama White House
- By: Ben Rhodes
- Narrated by: Ben Rhodes, Mark Deakins
- Length: 15 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For nearly 10 years, Ben Rhodes saw almost everything that happened at the center of the Obama administration - first as a speechwriter, then as deputy national security advisor, and finally as a multipurpose aide and close collaborator. He started every morning in the Oval Office with the President’s Daily Brief, traveled the world with Obama, and was at the center of some of the most consequential and controversial moments of the presidency. Now, he tells the full story of his partnership with a man who also happened to be a historic president of the United States.
-
-
An immersive read; a thoughtful book; a tribute to
- By Jonathan Callies on 06-06-18
By: Ben Rhodes
-
The Wisdom of the Bullfrog
- Leadership Made Simple (But Not Easy)
- By: Admiral William H. McRaven
- Narrated by: Admiral William H. McRaven
- Length: 3 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The title “Bullfrog” is given to the Navy SEAL who has served the longest on active duty. Admiral McRaven was honored to receive this honor in 2011 when he took charge of the United States Special Operations Command. When McRaven retired in 2014, he had 37 years as a Navy SEAL under his belt, leading men and women at every level of the special operations community. During those four decades, Admiral McRaven dealt with every conceivable leadership challenge. The Wisdom of The Bullfrog draws on these and countless other experiences from Admiral McRaven’s incredible life.
-
-
Great book for anyone in Leadership position
- By Myrl on 04-06-23
-
Hard Choices
- By: Hillary Rodham Clinton
- Narrated by: Kathleen Chalfant, Hillary Rodham Clinton
- Length: 26 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hillary Rodham Clinton's inside account of the crises, choices, and challenges she faced during her four years as America's 67th Secretary of State, and how those experiences drive her view of the future. In the aftermath of her 2008 presidential run, she expected to return to representing New York in the United States Senate. To her surprise, her former rival for the Democratic Party nomination, newly elected President Barack Obama, asked her to serve in his administration as Secretary of State. This memoir is the story of the four extraordinary and historic years that followed.
-
-
Senior Stateswoman in need of Editor
- By Cynthia on 07-20-14
-
Battlegrounds
- The Fight to Defend the Free World
- By: H. R. McMaster
- Narrated by: H. R. McMaster
- Length: 17 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From Lt. General H.R. McMaster, US Army, ret., the former national security advisor and author of the best-selling classic Dereliction of Duty, comes a bold and provocative re-examination of the most critical foreign policy and national security challenges that face the United States, and an urgent call to compete to preserve America’s standing and security.
-
-
Remember: This guy was fired! WTF.
- By larry b on 09-28-20
By: H. R. McMaster
-
Decision Points
- By: George W. Bush
- Narrated by: George W. Bush
- Length: 6 hrs and 58 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
President George W. Bush describes the critical decisions of his presidency and personal life. Decision Points is the extraordinary memoir of America’s 43rd president. Shattering the conventions of political autobiography, George W. Bush offers a strikingly candid journey through the defining decisions of his life. In gripping, never-before-heard detail, President Bush brings listeners inside the Texas Governor’s Mansion on the night of the contested 2000 election; aboard Air Force One on 9/11, in the hours after America’s most devastating attack since Pearl Harbor...
-
-
Loved It
- By Debra on 11-10-10
By: George W. Bush
-
Lessons from the Edge
- A Memoir
- By: Marie Yovanovitch
- Narrated by: Marie Yovanovitch
- Length: 17 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
By the time she became US Ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch had seen her share of corruption, instability, and tragedy in developing countries. But it came as a shock when, in early 2019, she was recalled from her post after a smear campaign by President Trump’s personal attorney and his associates—men operating outside of normal governmental channels, and apparently motivated by personal gain. Her courageous participation in the subsequent impeachment inquiry earned Yovanovitch the nation’s respect, and her dignified response to the president’s attacks won our hearts.
-
-
Heroic patriot's amazing story
- By Victoria Eriksson on 03-19-22
-
Sea Stories
- My Life in Special Operations
- By: William H. McRaven
- Narrated by: William H. McRaven
- Length: 10 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Admiral William H. McRaven is back with amazing stories of bravery and heroism from his career as a Navy SEAL and commander of America's Special Operations Forces.
-
-
Behind-the-scenes look at high level military life
- By N. on 10-23-19
Publisher's summary
It could be said that Leon Panetta has had two of the most consequential careers of any American public servant in the past 50 years. His first career, beginning as an army intelligence officer and including a distinguished run as one of Congress' most powerful and respected members, lasted 35 years and culminated in his transformational role as Clinton's budget czar and White House chief of staff. He then "retired" to establish the Panetta Institute with his wife of 50 years, Sylvia; to serve on the Iraq Study Group; and to protect his beloved California coastline. But in 2009, he accepted what many said was a thankless task: returning to public office as the director of the CIA, taking it from a state of turmoil after the Bush-era torture debates and moving it back to the vital center of America's war against Al Qaeda, including the campaign that led to the killing of Osama bin Laden. And then, in the wake of bin Laden's death, Panetta became the U.S. secretary of defense, inheriting two troubled wars in a time of austerity and painful choices.
Like his career, Worthy Fights is a reflection of Panetta's values. It is imbued with the frank, grounded, and often quite funny spirit of a man who never lost touch with where he came from: his family's walnut farm in beautiful Carmel Valley, California. It is also a testament to a lost kind of political leadership, which favors progress and duty to country over partisanship. Panetta is a Democrat who pushed for balanced budgets while also expanding care for the elderly and sick; a devout Catholic who opposes the death penalty but had to weigh every drone strike from 2009 through 2011. Throughout his career, Panetta's polestar has been his belief that a public servant's real choice is between leadership or crisis. Troubles always come about through no fault of one's own, but most can be prevented with courage and foresight.
Critic reviews
"Worthy Fights is Panetta’s addition to the Cabinet bookshelf, and it’s very readable, with the frank descriptions of personalities and events that distinguish this genre at its best." (The Washington Post)
Related to this topic
-
In My Time
- A Personal and Political Memoir
- By: Dick Cheney, Liz Cheney
- Narrated by: Edward Herrmann, Dick Cheney
- Length: 20 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In his unmistakable voice and with an insider's eye on history, former Vice President Dick Cheney tells the story of his life and the nearly four decades he has spent at the center of American politics and power. In My Time is truly the last word about an incredible political era, by a man who lived it and helped define it - with courage and without compromise.
-
-
Great Book
- By reader on 09-05-11
By: Dick Cheney, and others
-
Known and Unknown
- A Memoir
- By: Donald Rumsfeld
- Narrated by: Donald Rumsfeld
- Length: 30 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A powerful memoir from the late former US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. With the same directness that defined his career in public service, Rumsfeld's memoir is filled with previously undisclosed details and insights about the Bush administration, 9/11, and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. It also features Rumsfeld's unique and often surprising observations on eight decades of history. Both a fascinating narrative and an unprecedented glimpse into history, Known and Unknown captures the legacy of one of the most influential men in public service.
-
-
Inside view of five decades in politics
- By Brooks on 02-19-11
By: Donald Rumsfeld
-
Bush
- By: Jean Edward Smith
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 25 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Bush, Jean Edward Smith demonstrates that it was not Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, or Condoleezza Rice, but President Bush himself who took personal control of foreign policy. Bush drew on his deep religious conviction that important foreign-policy decisions were simply a matter of good versus evil. Domestically, he overreacted to 9/11 and endangered Americans' civil liberties.
-
-
Delusions of Competence
- By Rick on 11-18-16
-
Days of Fire
- Bush and Cheney in the White House
- By: Peter Baker
- Narrated by: Mark Deakins
- Length: 29 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Theirs was the most captivating American political partnership since Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger: a bold and untested president and his seasoned, relentless vice president. Confronted by one crisis after another, they struggled to protect the country, remake the world, and define their own relationship along the way. In Days of Fire, Peter Baker chronicles the history of the most consequential presidency in modern times through the prism of its two most compelling characters, capturing the elusive and shifting alliance of George Walker Bush and Richard Bruce Cheney as no historian has done before.
-
-
A balanced account of the W and Cheney White House
- By Scott on 11-15-13
By: Peter Baker
-
Duty
- Memoirs of a Secretary at War
- By: Robert M. Gates
- Narrated by: George Newbern, Robert M. Gates
- Length: 25 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the former secretary of defense, a strikingly candid, vivid account of serving Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. When Robert M. Gates received a call from the White House, he thought he'd long left Washington politics behind: After working for six presidents in both the CIA and the National Security Council, he was happily serving as president of Texas A&M University. But when he was asked to help a nation mired in two wars and to aid the troops doing the fighting, he answered what he felt was the call of duty.
-
-
The Fighting Season
- By Cynthia on 01-28-14
By: Robert M. Gates
-
Reagan
- The Life
- By: H. W. Brands
- Narrated by: Stephen Hoye
- Length: 31 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ronald Reagan today is a conservative icon, celebrated for transforming the American domestic agenda and playing a crucial part in ending communism in the Soviet Union. In his masterful new biography, H. W. Brands argues that Reagan, along with FDR, was the most consequential president of the 20th century. Reagan took office at a time when the public sector, after a half century of New Deal liberalism, was widely perceived as bloated and inefficient, an impediment to personal liberty.
-
-
Very little about Reagan
- By Jack Merritt on 07-30-15
By: H. W. Brands
-
In My Time
- A Personal and Political Memoir
- By: Dick Cheney, Liz Cheney
- Narrated by: Edward Herrmann, Dick Cheney
- Length: 20 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In his unmistakable voice and with an insider's eye on history, former Vice President Dick Cheney tells the story of his life and the nearly four decades he has spent at the center of American politics and power. In My Time is truly the last word about an incredible political era, by a man who lived it and helped define it - with courage and without compromise.
-
-
Great Book
- By reader on 09-05-11
By: Dick Cheney, and others
-
Known and Unknown
- A Memoir
- By: Donald Rumsfeld
- Narrated by: Donald Rumsfeld
- Length: 30 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A powerful memoir from the late former US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. With the same directness that defined his career in public service, Rumsfeld's memoir is filled with previously undisclosed details and insights about the Bush administration, 9/11, and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. It also features Rumsfeld's unique and often surprising observations on eight decades of history. Both a fascinating narrative and an unprecedented glimpse into history, Known and Unknown captures the legacy of one of the most influential men in public service.
-
-
Inside view of five decades in politics
- By Brooks on 02-19-11
By: Donald Rumsfeld
-
Bush
- By: Jean Edward Smith
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 25 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Bush, Jean Edward Smith demonstrates that it was not Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, or Condoleezza Rice, but President Bush himself who took personal control of foreign policy. Bush drew on his deep religious conviction that important foreign-policy decisions were simply a matter of good versus evil. Domestically, he overreacted to 9/11 and endangered Americans' civil liberties.
-
-
Delusions of Competence
- By Rick on 11-18-16
-
Days of Fire
- Bush and Cheney in the White House
- By: Peter Baker
- Narrated by: Mark Deakins
- Length: 29 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Theirs was the most captivating American political partnership since Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger: a bold and untested president and his seasoned, relentless vice president. Confronted by one crisis after another, they struggled to protect the country, remake the world, and define their own relationship along the way. In Days of Fire, Peter Baker chronicles the history of the most consequential presidency in modern times through the prism of its two most compelling characters, capturing the elusive and shifting alliance of George Walker Bush and Richard Bruce Cheney as no historian has done before.
-
-
A balanced account of the W and Cheney White House
- By Scott on 11-15-13
By: Peter Baker
-
Duty
- Memoirs of a Secretary at War
- By: Robert M. Gates
- Narrated by: George Newbern, Robert M. Gates
- Length: 25 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the former secretary of defense, a strikingly candid, vivid account of serving Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. When Robert M. Gates received a call from the White House, he thought he'd long left Washington politics behind: After working for six presidents in both the CIA and the National Security Council, he was happily serving as president of Texas A&M University. But when he was asked to help a nation mired in two wars and to aid the troops doing the fighting, he answered what he felt was the call of duty.
-
-
The Fighting Season
- By Cynthia on 01-28-14
By: Robert M. Gates
-
Reagan
- The Life
- By: H. W. Brands
- Narrated by: Stephen Hoye
- Length: 31 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ronald Reagan today is a conservative icon, celebrated for transforming the American domestic agenda and playing a crucial part in ending communism in the Soviet Union. In his masterful new biography, H. W. Brands argues that Reagan, along with FDR, was the most consequential president of the 20th century. Reagan took office at a time when the public sector, after a half century of New Deal liberalism, was widely perceived as bloated and inefficient, an impediment to personal liberty.
-
-
Very little about Reagan
- By Jack Merritt on 07-30-15
By: H. W. Brands
-
The Restless Wave
- Good Times, Just Causes, Great Fights, and Other Appreciations
- By: John McCain, Mark Salter
- Narrated by: John McCain, Beau Bridges
- Length: 14 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In a time when Washington, DC and the country are more polarized than they have been for decades, John McCain is the rare public figure who has earned the respect of people on both sides of the aisle. He is a model for bipartisanship and political integrity. In his 40 years in politics, McCain has never been afraid to buck trends or ruffle a few feathers. His words are more important today than ever.
-
-
A true patriot
- By Diane Peresie on 05-29-18
By: John McCain, and others
-
Lessons from the Edge
- A Memoir
- By: Marie Yovanovitch
- Narrated by: Marie Yovanovitch
- Length: 17 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
By the time she became US Ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch had seen her share of corruption, instability, and tragedy in developing countries. But it came as a shock when, in early 2019, she was recalled from her post after a smear campaign by President Trump’s personal attorney and his associates—men operating outside of normal governmental channels, and apparently motivated by personal gain. Her courageous participation in the subsequent impeachment inquiry earned Yovanovitch the nation’s respect, and her dignified response to the president’s attacks won our hearts.
-
-
Heroic patriot's amazing story
- By Victoria Eriksson on 03-19-22
-
Hard Choices
- By: Hillary Rodham Clinton
- Narrated by: Kathleen Chalfant, Hillary Rodham Clinton
- Length: 26 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hillary Rodham Clinton's inside account of the crises, choices, and challenges she faced during her four years as America's 67th Secretary of State, and how those experiences drive her view of the future. In the aftermath of her 2008 presidential run, she expected to return to representing New York in the United States Senate. To her surprise, her former rival for the Democratic Party nomination, newly elected President Barack Obama, asked her to serve in his administration as Secretary of State. This memoir is the story of the four extraordinary and historic years that followed.
-
-
Senior Stateswoman in need of Editor
- By Cynthia on 07-20-14
-
The Quiet Man
- The Indispensable Presidency of George H.W. Bush
- By: John H. Sununu
- Narrated by: Qarie Marshall
- Length: 12 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this unique insider account, John H. Sununu pays tribute to his former boss - an intelligent, thoughtful, modest leader - and his overlooked accomplishments. Though George H. W. Bush is remembered for orchestrating one of the largest and most successful military campaigns in history - the Gulf War - Sununu argues that conventional wisdom misses many of Bush's other great achievements.
-
-
Outstanding Biograpy
- By Warren Brookes on 07-25-15
By: John H. Sununu
-
State of Denial
- Bush at War, Part III
- By: Bob Woodward
- Narrated by: Boyd Gaines
- Length: 7 hrs and 14 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Bob Woodward examines how the Bush administration avoided telling the truth about Iraq to the public, to the Congress, and often to themselves in State of Denial. Woodward's third book on President Bush is a sweeping narrative from the first days George W. Bush thought seriously about running for president, through the recruitment of his national security team, the war in Afghanistan, the invasion and occupation of Iraq, and the struggle for political survival in the second term.
-
-
Concerning and hard to put down
- By Chris on 12-10-06
By: Bob Woodward
-
The War Within
- A Secret White House History 2006-2008
- By: Bob Woodward
- Narrated by: Boyd Gaines
- Length: 6 hrs and 24 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As violence in Iraq reaches unnerving levels in 2006, a second front in the war rages at the highest levels of the Bush administration. With unparalleled intimacy and detail, Bob Woodward takes listeners deep inside the tensions, secret debates, unofficial back channels, distrust, and determination within the White House, Pentagon, State Department, intelligence agencies, and U.S. military headquarters in Iraq.
-
-
Too short the story...
- By Mr. Miint on 10-21-08
By: Bob Woodward
-
Confront and Conceal
- Obama's Secret Wars and Surprising Use of American Power
- By: David E. Sanger
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 15 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Three and a half years ago, David Sanger’s book The Inheritance: The World Obama Confronts and the Challenges to American Power described how a new American president came to office with the world on fire. Now, just as the 2012 presidential election battle begins, Sanger follows up with an eye-opening, news-packed account of how Obama has dealt with those challenges, relying on innovative weapons and reconfigured tools of American power to try to manage a series of new threats.
-
-
Sobering reminder on what the presidency requires
- By Marilyn on 09-03-12
By: David E. Sanger
-
The Presidents Club
- Inside the World's Most Exclusive Fraternity
- By: Nancy Gibbs, Michael Duffy
- Narrated by: Bob Walter
- Length: 22 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Presidents Club was born at Eisenhower’s inauguration when Harry Truman and Herbert Hoover first conceived the idea. Over the years that followed - and to this day - the presidents relied on, misunderstood, sabotaged, and formed alliances with one another that changed history. The world’s most exclusive fraternity is a complicated place: its members are bound forever because they sat in the Oval Office and know its secrets, yet they are immortal rivals for history’s favor.
-
-
Engaging subject, but fact-checking needed
- By loix on 04-25-12
By: Nancy Gibbs, and others
-
Eisenhower
- The White House Years
- By: Jim Newton
- Narrated by: John H. Mayer
- Length: 19 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
If you think of our 34th president as little more than the babysitter-in-chief during the prosperous fifties, think again. Dwight Eisenhower was bequeathed an atomic bomb and was the first American president not to use it. He ground down Joseph McCarthy and McCarthyism until both became, as he said, "McCarthywasm".
-
-
A simpler time?
- By Ray on 11-12-11
By: Jim Newton
-
The Netanyahu Years
- Translated by Ora Cummings
- By: Ben Caspit
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 17 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A portrait of the current Israeli prime minister, one of Israel's more noticeable leaders in recent decades. Benjamin Netanyahu is currently serving his fourth term in office as prime minister of Israel, the longest serving prime minister in the country's history. Now Israeli journalist Ben Caspit puts Netanyahu's life under a magnifying glass, focusing on his last two terms in office.
-
-
weak
- By kay on 06-11-18
By: Ben Caspit
-
Kissinger
- A Biography
- By: Walter Isaacson
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 34 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
By the time Henry Kissinger was made secretary of state in 1973, he had become, according to a Gallup poll, the most admired person in America and one of the most unlikely celebrities ever to capture the world’s imagination. Yet Kissinger was also reviled by large segments of the American public, ranging from liberal intellectuals to conservative activists. Kissinger explores the relationship between this complex man's personality and the foreign policy he pursued.
-
-
A dissapointment
- By Mike From Mesa on 12-16-13
By: Walter Isaacson
-
At the Center of the Storm
- My Years at the CIA
- By: George Tenet
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 18 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the whirlwind of accusations and recriminations that has attended the post 9/11 world, one man's vital testimony has been conspicuously absent. Candid and compelling, At the Center of the Storm is George Tenet's memoir of his life at the CIA - a revelatory look at the inner workings of America's top intelligence agency and its dealings with national leaders at home and abroad.
-
-
Brilliant!
- By Karen on 05-05-07
By: George Tenet
What listeners say about Worthy Fights
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jean
- 10-10-14
Outstanding
Panetta memoir is the third cabinet member’s memoir and Obama is still in office. The memoir is a sub category of the autobiography. When I read a memoir I expect a narrow focus and want to feel I am looking at the situations as if I was that person. I am reading to get a better understanding of the events for a historical perspective. Panetta’s book gives a brief review of his earlier life so we can understand how he got to the point in the book that he is focusing on. He successfully puts me into the life of the director of CIA and Secretary of Defense. I felt as if I was in the meetings with him, understanding what he knew and thought and reactions to people and events as he covers his time as director of the CIA and Secretary of Defense. More than half of the book covers Panetta’s time as director of the CIA and his time as Secretary of Defense.
Panetta’s book is well-written with frank descriptions of personalities and events. Panetta had been in government service for a long time and was the Congressman for the Monterey Bay area for many years. I enjoyed the story of his parents and grandparents immigration from Italy to the Monterey Bay area and Leon’s stories of childhood in Monterey. Panetta’s personality and his honesty came through in the book. The author covers in-depth the jobs he had in government including his being fired by Nixon when Panetta worked at Dept. of HEW enforcing the new laws about school segregation. I remember when the law was passed to create the Monterey Bay Marine Sanctuary to protect our beautiful coast (I live here). Therefore I found Panetta’s discussion about how he went about trying to protect the coast from off shore drilling and all the methods he tried and failed at until coming up on the creation of a marine sanctuary very interesting. Panetta tells of his time in the Clinton White House as first budget director and later chief of staff. He is frank about the problems he had trying to bring order and discipline to the White House when Clinton had no self discipline. He describes Clinton as brilliant but disorganized. He resigned in 1997 and thought his career was over.
Panetta created the Panetta Institute that is on the campus of the Monterey Bay State University. He was running this until 2009 when Obama asked him to be director of the CIA. Panetta is a master of the budget and the CIA was in dire need of his services and organization skills. Panetta discusses his problems with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and retired Admiral Dennis Blair who was Director of National Intelligence. He also tells the fascinating story of finding Osama bin Laden and sending in the seal team.
Panetta’s disagreements with the Obama White House when he was director of CIA and Secretary of Defense is well documented in his testimony before Congress therefore his frank to almost blistering comments in this book should not be surprising. Panetta opposed the prisoner exchange for Bowe Bergdahl. He disagreed with the removal of all troops from Iraq. He agreed with Hillary Clinton and David Petreius about intervening in Syria. Most of all he said Obama’s failure to act when Syria crossed the red line Obama laid down about the use of chemical weapons on the Syrian people destroyed American credibility. The author provides us with his opinion about Obama’s ability as a president and he is careful to provide both positive and negative points of his abilities. Most of all Panetta minced no words about the dysfunction of Congress. He says there will be lots of problems coming up to blame on Congress because of their failure to agree on a budget and forcing the 10% across the board cuts that is going to destroy the ability of the military to do their job. Panetta had no good words for our dysfunctional Congress. I feel this memoir has provided an inside look into the workings of the CIA, department of defense and the white house.
Panetta is plain spoken and impassioned in the book. I found it to be most informative and easy to read. Leon Panetta narrated his own book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
27 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Dana
- 10-12-14
Wonderful memoir, highly recommended
Would you listen to Worthy Fights again? Why?
Goes well beyond the narrowly focused media coverage and provides a look at the kind of thoughtful, centered person one hopes to find in public service, as well as a sense of the context behind the actions in several Administrations.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
7 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Gerry
- 10-24-14
WINING AN ART FORM
Would you try another book from Leon Panetta and Jim Newton and/or Leon Panetta?
Mr. Panetta is obviously quite well-educated, but I couldn't even get through his new book on audible level loan try to read it, I believe the Italians invented the stiletto, Leon Panetta certainly knows how to use it.
What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?
Mr. Panetta was the captain of the ship but the think that he would be experienced enough to set up complicated counterterrorism operations is stretching it, so when he takes the blame for something most good agents understand it's a deception.
Would you be willing to try another one of Leon Panetta’s performances?
Mr. Panetta's pathetic attempt at reading this book, was ham-handed at best.
You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?
Mr. Panetta I believe you're a patriot I believe your American of the highest standing, I also believe you're reasonably well educated in the art of the stiletto with no particular party or person left out.
Any additional comments?
I returned the book, I just couldn't listen to you any longer, to be very honest I do not know if I returned it because of the whining or the content or delivery
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ken
- 11-24-14
I should have read the reviews more carefuly
Any additional comments?
Mr. Panetta is a great American whose contributions in Congress and the executive branch were profound. Mr. Panetta is NOT, however, a great narrator, and this contribution to this book was to drag it down into sheer boredom. This is not an action story to begin with so a little drama in the performance might have held my interest. It was as if Mr. Panetta was testifying before Congress rather than trying to entertain and inform his readers.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Drew Brown
- 04-07-20
Great read,
Great American Wish he had,had presidential aspirations.We could use his leadership now. Thank you Mr Panetta.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ann O'Toole
- 12-07-19
A Worthy Read ...
I remember seeing Leon Panetta on TV, CSpan, and trusting the man. I watched as he rose in the ranks and fought some of the fights he waged. I liked the man. He wasn't from Texas, where I live, but I would have voted for him had he been on a national ticket. And...then I heard His memories of CIA, it confirmed much of my impressions from afar about the times, the front-seat view and backstage entre provided and ... my Final Decision IS ... Again ... I Trust Him. I Am Grateful HE Choose Public Service and I will See-To-IT ~ His work is passed On to the Future Generations of My Family with copies of this Audio Book! They Need to Know This Stuff. And, Leon Panetta, is a Role Model. Thank You, Sir, for Everything and this Christmas Gift, too!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- GARY DURGIN
- 06-25-19
I Hope his optimism in democracy is justified.
leon's book gives an insider's view to the two party system we govern under and the growing problems of polarization at the expense of good government
I highly recommend this book to all regardless of which side of the divide you are on . we must all consider how to return to good goverment!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- EDH Father of Four
- 06-13-16
A great book addressing contemporary history
This book, read by Secretary Leon Paneta addresses the major issues of the Clinton and Obama administrations as well as his experiences as a Congressman. I really enjoyed this book which was doubly interesting being read by the author.
His expressiveness and tension served as clues to identify those issues that he felt strongly about.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- QQMKXP938
- 07-29-15
Monotonous Monotone Voice. Recitation of Facts.
Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?
Time well spent? Not so much. I expected a lot from Leon Panetta but what I got was a boring recitation of facts in a slow monotonous voice. Perhaps if I had read the book instead of listening to it, I might have given it a higher rating. Couldn't take his voice any longer halfway through the book.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- SK
- 05-24-15
Extremely disappointed
What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?
A more balanced view instead of a partisan political view
What did you like best about this story?
Insight about the functioning of CIA and the Pentagon
Any additional comments?
Let me start by thanking Leon Panetta for his service to this great country. I have been a member of Audible for well over a decade and this is the first review I have written. I have always respected Leon Panetta for his level headed view of things but this book is not one of his greatest moments. Instead of speaking out as an American, he spoke as a Democrat. Ask not what you can do for your country, ask what you can do for your party. He bickers about partisanship at the same time he pens a book that is partisan. I would have expected someone of Leon's stature to at least touch upon the exploding budget deficit but that is left untouched. This book is about defending Obama more than telling people about the risks to the greatness of America going forward. If you are a hard core Democrat who is interesting in defending Obama's record, this is a really good feel good book. If you are a rational middle of the road person, save yourself time and money, this book is all about blaming Republicans and praising Obama. To borrow a line from SNL, "Democrats and Obama, good. Republicans, bad". I am truly saddened.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful