Locked in the Cabinet

By Robert B. Reich

Book Overview

Locked in the Cabinet is a close-up view of the way things work, and often don't work, at the highest levels of government--and a uniquely personal account by the man whose ideas inspired and animated much of the Clinton campaign of 1992 and who became the cabinet officer in charge of helping ordinary Americans get better jobs. Robert B. Reich, writer, teacher, social critic--and a friend of the Clintons since they were all in their twenties--came to be known as the "conscience of the Clinton administration and one of the most successful Labor Secretaries in history. Here is his sometimes hilarious, sometimes poignant chronicle of trying to put ideas and ideals into practice. With wit, passion, and dead-aim honesty, Reich writes of those in Washington who possess hard heads and soft hearts, and those with exactly the opposite attributes. He introduces us to the career bureaucrats who make Washington run and the politicians who, on occasion, make it stop; to business tycoons and labor leaders who clash by day and party together by night; to a president who wants to change America and his opponents (on both the left and the right) who want to keep it as it is or return it to where it used to be. Reich guides us to the pinnacles of power and pretension, as bills are passed or stalled, reputations built or destroyed, secrets leaked, numbers fudged, egos bruised, news stories spun, hypocrisies exposed, and good intentions occasionally derailed. And to the places across America where those who are the objects of this drama are simply trying to get by--assembly lines, sweatshops, union halls, the main streets of small towns and the tough streets of central cities. Locked in the Cabinet is an intimate odyssey involving a memorable cast--a friend who is elected President of the United States, only to discover the limits of power; Alan Greenspan, who is the most powerful man in America; and Newt Gingrich, who tries to be. Plus a host of others: White House staffers and cabinet members who can't find "the loop; political consultant Dick Morris, who becomes "the loop; baseball players and owners who can't agree on how to divide up $2 billion a year; a union leader who accuses Reich of not knowing what a screwdriver looks like; a heretofore invisible civil servant deep in the Labor Department whose brainchild becomes the law of the land; and a wondrous collection of senators, foreign ministers, cabinet officers, and television celebrities. And it is also an odyssey for Reich's wife and two young sons, who learn to tolerate their own cabinet member but not to abide Washington. Here is Reich--determined to work for a more just society, laboring in a capital obsessed with exorcising the deficit and keeping Wall Street happy--learning that Washington is not only altogether different from the world of ordinary citizens but ultimately, and more importantly, exactly like it: a world in which Murphy's Law reigns alongside the powerful and the privileged, but where hope amazingly persists. There are triumphs here to fill a lifetime, and frustrations to fill two more. Never has this world been revealed with such richness of evidence, humor, and warmhearted candor.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0375700617
• ISBN13: 9780375700613
• Release Date: February 1998
• Publisher: Vintage
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 0.98 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

The Washington DC political process revealed

In 1992 Robert B. Reich joined his friend Governor Bill Clinton's Presidential election campaign. Dr. Reich intended to explore a new territory -- a nation where Government subsidized the training of young and displaced workers for modern *better* jobs. Upon President Clinton's election Dr. Reich was appointed Secretary of Labor, a Cabinet post that Dr. Reich held until after President Clinton's successful re-election. "Locked In The Cabinet" chronicles Dr. Reich's workers' advocacy.Dr. Reich was an able Labor Secretary with tangible accomplishments (e.g., a minimum wage increase and enactment of the Family and Medical Leave Act). He supported NAFTA while *strongly* advocating Federal subsidies to train new and displaced United States' workers -- ***better jobs for all Americans***."Locked ..." chronicles idealism, hard work, personal sacrifice, salesmanship, compromise and frustration. Dr. Reich brought his workers' agenda to Washington at a time when the poor and middle class had lost employment and real income for two decades. During his four years as Labor Secretary, Dr. Reich increasingly saw his workers' agenda tabled as other, more powerful constituencies (e.g., Wall Street and the military) got priority. Dr. Reich did not achieve his workers' agenda -- his agenda remains tabled today.Dr. Reich is an *extremely* intelligent man and an able author. "Locked ..." is his story told with a sharp and depreciating wit. Dr. Reich's strong wit occasionally obscures his message: Continuity of Government is each Administration's goal and everybody must support the Administration, yet politics hinders 'team play' by dissecting, analyzing and criticizing *every utterance*. One day you are 'locked in'. If something happens the next day you are 'locked out'.I believe that after his resignation Dr. Reich wrote "Locked In The Cabinet" to place his experiences in perspective. I highly recommend this serious book both for its wit and also for its important message.

A Philosopher in a Whorehouse

This facinating book, by a man who really cares, tells it just how it is to try to get meaningful things done in the whorehouse which is Washington, D.C. The book is written in a humorous, self-deprecating style, but at it's heart it is a cry for help.The book is more than easy reading, it is very hard to put down.Anyone who aspires to a politcal position should read this book, and then decide whether he/she will be able to stand the process.It is a primer for those who wish to understand the Washington sceene and how things are done (or not done.) His description of the confirmation process is pure tragi-comedy.Reich is a thinking man's liberal. He went to Washington with the hope that under Clinton some of the things he believed in could be accomplished. In the end he was largely frustrated.He is a man I would like to invite to dinner. I can't say that about many others who have worked in government.

Brilliant

I am a student of Robert Reich's at Brandeis Univeristy and have found him to be one of the most honest, kind, and insightful people I've met. Locked in the Cabinet is a well-crafted, honest, and humorous book by a brilliant man. I happen to hold Reich's views, but even students here at Brandeis who completely disagree with him still read his books and take his courses because they respect the intelligence behind his writing and teaching style, the candidness with which he sets his ideas forth, and the respect he shows for those who disagree with his ideas. (He's also very funny, frank, and charming--attributes which come accross in this and all of his works.)Reich talks about the world as it is, and isn't afraid to say how he thinks it should be.

Great Inside Look

I had to read Mr. Reich's book for my college Politics class. From the moment I picked it up I knew it was interesting and humorous. His inside tales of the political system are astonishing. He truly makes the Government feel so close, yet so far away from us. Although some may not like his ideas about how to govern, everyone that reads this will agree that his point of view is strongly stated and supported by numorous facts and real-life situations. Of the eight political science books I had to read for my class, this one was truly my favorite. Best of all it's an easy read.

An uncanny personal account of a liberal's struggle in DC

This is one of the finest personal accounts of the daily struggles of being a Washington insider. Mr. Reich is equally critical of himself and those around him and tells a compelling story of the divergence of classes in society and his efforts to actualize change in a self-interested Washington. While I do not agree with many of Mr. Reich's economic theories, he does have a seemingly endless passion for ideas and argues from the heart. The book is a brilliant commentary on how the powerful stay powerful in Washington, while demonstrating who really influences the direction of the White House. This is a thoughtful read even for those not interested in politics and really is a page-turner, despite being a memoir of one man's four year stint in Washington.