July 16, 2025 by Glenn Mangurian
Last week David Gergen passed away at age 83. David served as presidential advisor to four Presidents – Nixon, Ford, Reagan and Clinton. He was author of the New York Times best-selling book “Eyewitness to Power,” which gives some personal accounts of his work with U.S. Presidents.
In the early 2000s I had the opportunity and privilege of forming a group of UMass executive alumni that met several times a year for breakfast. For these breakfasts I created a unique program – the “Uncommon Leadership” Series. Then UMass President Jack Wilson served as my cohost. David Gergen was one of our featured guests.
I found David very kind, wise and humble. He believed that true leadership is rooted in character, humility, and service. Having worked closely with both Republican and Democratic presidents, he witnessed firsthand how integrity—or the lack of it—can shape history. He had often said that leadership is not about power or charisma, but about building trust, showing courage, and being willing to listen and learn.
Although our conversation took place in April 2009 (shortly after Obama took office), many of Gergen’s insights continue to be prescient in the 2025 political environment. Here are excerpts of my conversation with David.
Glenn M: Let me start by asking a sensitive question: how do you advise the leader of the free world?
Mr. Gergen: Carefully! In terms of talking to Presidents, the first thing to learn is to speak truth to power. Sometimes you can be out of step with what the President wants to hear, and you risk disfavor. It is probably even more important to speak conscience to power.
Glenn M: Which of the four Presidents was the easiest to advise?
Mr. Gergen: Oh, there is no question that the easiest was Gerry Ford. Gerry Ford was a man who looked better and better in the rear-view mirror of history. At the time, because he was such a transitional figure, he did not look very consequential. There is no question, Ford helped to heal the country. There’s an old aphorism in Washington: people forget a lot, but trust is the coin of the realm. Trust is what really makes a democratic system work.
Glenn M: What were Nixon’s final days like?
Mr. Gergen: In August of 1974, Nixon had reached the end of the line. He went on television to tell the country that he was leaving the office the next day at noon. About half an hour after he went off television, I got a call from Al Haig, who was then the Chief of Staff. Al said, “David, we forgot one thing. We forgot to get a resignation letter from the President. I’ll see you in the morning. Just bring me a letter.”
The resignation letter contained one sentence: ‘I hereby resign as President of the United States, effective immediately.’ That is the letter of resignation that hangs today in the National Archives. Yes, that’s probably the biggest contribution I made to the Nixon presidency.
Glenn M: Who was the best leader you advised?
Mr. Gergen: I actually thought Reagan was the best leader of the group that I worked for. Put aside whether you agree or disagree with his policies. Reagan was far and away the best leader we had in the White House since FDR. Like Reagan, Obama has this sort of calm at his center.
Glenn M: If you look over the four Presidents that you’ve advised, what advice do you think had the most impact?
Mr. Gergen: Bill Clinton was one of the smartest people I’ve ever worked for. I think I had more influence on trying to help get Bill Clinton “out of the ditch” from his stumbling start. My advice to Bill Clinton was, “Remember who you are. Let Clinton be Clinton.” He’d lost his self-confidence after about six months. He was just really down. He’d been an “all star” all his life. Everything had come easily to him, and suddenly he was getting knocked down. I reminded him what strengths brought him to the presidency. He regained his self- confidence by building on those strengths.
Glenn M: With Obama’s recent election, do you think he has the public’s trust?
Mr. Gergen: I think there is way too much populism in the country right now. Many people want to hang a lot of corporate leaders from a tree because of the 2008 financial crisis. I’d go back to the Gerry Ford point about trust. I think Obama is gradually winning people’s trust as someone who does what he says he’s going to do. The trust in Obama is transferring over to trust in the future of the country and, in turn, may help the economy.
Glenn M: Do you think of the current economic challenges with major print media will hurt their ability to be “watchdogs” on government?
Mr. Gergen: The press is one of the institutions that you need in a society. If you go back to the beginnings of the Republic, our founders thought it was important to teach people to be virtuous. Public schools are intended, in part, to teach children reading, writing and arithmetic. But they’re also there, as Jefferson and Adams argued, to teach the next generation virtue—to be good citizens. But the founders also realized that even as we try to make people virtuous, some people are not going to be, and you need checks and balances in the system to make sure there are restraints on power.
Glenn M: Do these “restraints” work?
Mr. Gergen: I happen to believe that restraints on power are a good thing. The more I’ve seen of the exercise of power, the more I believe there needs to be accountability and checks and balances on how political leaders exercise their power. A vigilant press is one of those restraints. I happen to be a big believer in a press playing a watchdog role. Now there’s a difference between being a watchdog and a pit bull.
Gergen’s views on integrity, trust and courage in governance continue to be relevant today. Perhaps, more than ever, we are in need of these qualities in our political corridors of power.
Glenn! What a timely, much-needed reminder of what true talent, comradery, honesty, and commitment to our country looks like. Not only in the presidents that David Gergen recounts, but Gergen himself. Thanks for sharing your terrific interview.