The Art of Power: My Story as America's First Woman Speaker of the House

Tremendous review of recent history. Speaker Pelosi has been at the center of the action. She tells the story brilliantly and with colorful detail. Excellent read.

When DC-based literary extraordinaire Marita Golden mentioned “The Art of Power,” on Facebook, I immediately ordered a copy.This memoir demonstrates, “… when you’re in the arena, you have to be able to take a punch, and sometimes you have to be able to throw a punch …” – Nancy Pelosi’s modification of Theodore Roosevelt’s quote.This is her story of how she decided to go into Congress and why she is still there, thirty-seven years later. And the topics within this valuable memoir not only her work, but also her private life’s experiences. This review looks at 3 of the many power moves that were necessary for Ms. Pelosi to congruently express her fighting spirit on behalf of finding common ground on behalf of domestic and global needs.For example, when Ms. Pelosi announced her candidacy for House Democratic whip, one of the male colleagues complained “Who said she could run?” Other men explained to her that the other male representative had been waiting for the spot to open, and that by her running for that position, she was breaking the established order. They also told her, “Why don’t you just make a list of what you want to do, and we will do it for you?” She responded with a “no thanks,” followed by a description of the over two hundred years women have been waiting for that spot, and how that meant that she had been waiting longer than the other gentleman. This powerful response was a great way to tell the men in the room, and the women colleague that she decides her path.When she accepted the gavel, Ms. Pelosi was surrounded by her grandchildren and those of her colleagues, in the spirit of her commitment to be in Congress for the children.Besides graciously and congruently telling her male colleagues that she decides when it is her turn, during the George W. Bush administration, Ms. Pelosi owned her voice when everyone told her that doing so would cost her career.In 2002, President W. Bush had told everyone that Saddam Hussein was hiding weapons of mass destruction (WMD). This was not long after the 9/11. Except, as this memoir described, before voting to go to war with Iraq, members of both chambers didn’t bother to verify whether or not the threat was real. The intelligence community also hadn’t asked for a National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), which would be a report from sixteen intelligence agencies on whether or not there is a threat of war.Ms. Pelosi told both chambers, “The intelligence does not support the threat.” Yet the American public were misled to believe that there was a threat; and Congress granted the president the power to use military force against the Iraqi government. In the end, they learned, after over 100,000 Iraqi’s were killed, there were no WMDs.Yet another of the many powerful examples captured in this memoir can be seen in how Congress, along with many outside groups, to include nuns, made sure that the Affordable Care Act passed.When we consider that 62% of bankruptcies in the United States are caused by health care expenses, according to the “American Journal of Medicine,” (2007), we have Ms. Pelosi to thank or doing something that presidents as far back as one hundred years did not accomplish.Though everyone believed that Americans should have affordable healthcare, up to 2009, which was during the financial crisis, the Obama administration collaborated with Congress to create legislation to create the Affordable Care Act. Prior to this, attempts to show Americans that health care is a right, not a privilege had been made through the execute branch, not Congress.This time, it passed, but not without a great deal of stonewalling from the Republicans, priests, and from big insurance companies who had not realized how strong the public sentiment was to finally see that everyone in the United States could get affordable care.Some its 2010 enactment, the ACA has been showing many impacts on America’s health and finances.Here are some of them:• More than 40 million Americans have gained insurance;• Nearly 130 million Americans can no longer be denied health insurance because they have preexisting health conditions;• Women are no longer being charged up to 50% more than men;• Over 28 million jobs have been created in the Obama and Biden administrations since ACA was passed; and,• ACA is providing the biggest deficit reduction bill in decades, saving over $1 trillion.Because this is such a powerful read, I was inspired by many new questions.Here are some of them:1. After the June 4, 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, why did President George H.W. Bus allow Brent Scowcroft, his national security advisor, and Deputy Secretary of State Lawrence Eagleberger travel to China to pledge that the United States would not let anyone come between China and the U.S.? Is it because that administration put commercial interest above human rights abuses? Also, are we as much at the China’s mercy now?2. What repercussions, if any, had Secretary of the Treasure, Hank Paulson, experienced for his never having admitted the truth about the 2008 financial crisis, until Ms. Pelosi called him, and pressed for answers?3. If Bush was hoping that by covering up the financial crisis in 2006 – 2007, long enough that he could blame the crisis on President Obama, what measures are in place to prevent a repeat of this?4. Why had President Obama’s administration not told House Democrats that he placed a $900 billion cost limitation of the Affordable Care Act legislation? If he told this to both chambers, how might the Republicans had used this against the Democrats?5. If one of the main reasons Ms. Pelosi has stayed in Congress after the 2016 was to make sure that the ACA would survive, does this mean that if Kamala Harris becomes our next president, Ms. Pelosi will retire?I recommend “The Art of Power” to undergraduate students in: political science; women’s studies; business communications; and, finance, because the details in this memoir walks readers through these topics on a level that I’ve never seen before.Still, this book is also written for those who are interested in what goes on in the federal government long before we hear about it in the media. The details will give readers many “ah ha” moments. There are also many hilarious details around her “verbal judo” approaches towards resistant interlocutors. This nearly 4-decade snapshot of who she is a resource to read more than once as our U.S. politics evolve from heading towards autocracy, to leading back to democracy.

Very interesting. I greatly admire Nancy Pelosi. This book is less of interesting due to Pelosi’s discipline. It is not personal, but a telling of history from her perspective. Shewas in the room when it happened.

Nancy Pelosi entered the House of Representatives in 1987. Her main goal, at that time, was to address the AIDS epidemic that was devastating the lives of many of her constituents in San Francisco. She has fought and continues to fight many battles, but she remains fearless and undaunted. She relates how legislation is generated in the House. It is not always a seamless or pretty process, but for the good of her country, Nancy persists. She cites many of her helpmates and many of her adversaries. She has always been willing to reach across the aisle to get things done. She is a role model for all Americans. This was a terrific read!

Read this book over a flight, and I will say, it is a great/easy read. What I like most, is that the chapters are broken up into smaller stories that kept me engaged. While I may not agree with Nancy Pelosi on every topic, I value her leadership abilities in creating change. She is a force that mut be recognized as a great power for women. I was impacted and saddened most on the chapter of Iraq. The blatant disregard for facts and evidence that led to so many unnecessary deaths was truly disturbing to read. Congress failed the American people, and the world with voting without the facts.

While I appreciated the insights into what actually has transpired in the House of Representatives, I felt her account was self-serving, She positions herself as the Saint protecting all of us, yet she failed to achieve many of her goals. What it lacks is a vision for how we move forward or lessons we can take to succeed in the future.

Loved learning about the first woman Speaker’s career. Such a strong lady in so many ways. Highly recommend reading it.

Every American really should read this book - even and perhaps especially those who view Nancy Pelosi as an "enemy". She explains in plain language the stories of a career fighting for the people and especially "for the children." Better than I expected, a good read.

I am not an American but reading this book has given me great awareness of the battles lawmakers in the US have been dealing with politically for the past 30-40 years through the eyes of Nancy Pelosi. Many things that were never shared before. Nancy must be a force of nature to have done everything she talks about in the book all the while keeping her eyes on her purpose for entering politics in the first place - For the Children!Worth the read - I learned a lot!!

A must read for anyone that cares to know the truth

Très bon livre qui nous fait découvrir non seulement une grande dame de la politique américaine mais également mieux comprendre le système politique de ce pays.

Anyone who follows American politics would appreciate the significance and significant contribution of Nancy Pelosi. While this book fills in many details, the main purpose seems to be to enhance the performance and polishe the legacy of Nancy Pelosi. Highlighting that negotiation is critical to cooperation and consensus does not shed light on "the art of power". Gus, Australia

Not for everybody.