Power - The Education of an Idealist: A Memoir

I am profoundly grateful to my colleagues, students, friends, and family members.

My incomparable agent Sarah Chalfant has been with me from the beginning, and her unflagging enthusiasm for this memoir gave me the fuel I needed to endure. The Wylie Agencys Rebecca Nagel also provided essential support throughout. Julia Cheiffetz and Lynn Grady, both then at Dey Street Books, were spirited early champions who offered editorial advice that changed my understanding of what the book could be. Kendra Newton, Andrea Molitor, Paula Russell Szafranski, Heidi Richter, Eliza Rosenberry, Ploy Siripant, Liate Stehlik, Ben Steinberg, Carrie Thornton, and my unflappable and deeply humane editor Jessica Sindler each put up with down-to-the-wire edits and brought much-appreciated ambition to publishing this book.

Special thanks to Noelle Campbell Sharp and the Cill Rialaig Retreat for the unforgettable stay in a restored pre-famine village on Bolus Head in Kerry, Ireland, where the majestic views and epic storms spurred great productivity.

At Harvard, Kennedy School Dean Doug Elmendorf, Law School Dean John Manning, and former Law School Dean (and close friend) Martha Minow welcomed me back to campus with open arms after my government service. The Radcliffe Institutes 20172018 Perrin Moorhead Grayson and Bruns Grayson Fellowship afforded me with a year to launch this project before returning to full-time teaching. Special thanks to Lizabeth Cohen, then-dean of Radcliffe Institute, fellowship program director (and insatiable omnivore) Judith Vichniac, and writer Zia Haider Rahman.

Since returning, the Kennedy Schools Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs has been an ideal home. I am grateful to Graham Allison; Belfer Center Director and former Defense Secretary Ash Carter; and the dynamic duo of Eric Rosenbach and Aditi Kumar. For support with research and fact-checking, I thank Kennedy School scholar Natasha Yefimova-Trilling for her Russian language research; Sinead ODonovan and Yan Bourke for their inquiries in Ireland; Kennedy School graduate Vafa Ghazavi; Brown University student Erin Brennan-Burke; Harvard College students Amanda Chen, Sunaina Danziger, Hank Sparks, and Matt Keating; Harvard Law School student Elise Baranouski; and joint Harvard Law School and Harvard Kennedy School student Parker White. I am indebted to Marin Stein, a superb manager who became a trusted adviser, and Ellie Hitt, who has been truly indispensable in bringing the book into the world.

I have been extraordinarily fortunate in the last decade to be able to call upon the wisdom of distinguished senior statesmen and -women, many of them accomplished authors and memoirists in their own right. I thank them for offering such candid, farsighted counsel.

Many people helped inform or inspire specific parts of the book, while others read particular sections and shared their own memories. I am grateful to Mort Abramowitz, Wael Alzayat, Brooke Anderson, Mary-Kate Barry Percival, Rob Berschinski, Josh Black, Tony Blinken, Steven Bourke, John Brennan, Sally Brooks, Adrian Brown, Torrance Brown, Scott Busby, Kurt Campbell, Ben Cohen, Chuck Cohen, Lenore Cohen, Roger Cohen, Kurtis Cooper, Mary DeRosa, Tom Donilon, Jon Favreau, Abe Foxman, Maggie Goodlander, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Sam Kass, John Kerry, Ron Klain, Chris Klein, Harold Koh, Melissa Kroeger, Molly Levinson, Tom Malinowski, Gideon Maltz, Kati Marton, Denis McDonough, Charlie Moore, Katie Moore, Charlotte Morgan, Tom Nides, Toria Nuland, Steve Pomper, Preston Price, Mike Rauhut, Susan Rice, David Rohde, Elizabeth Rubin, Evan Ryan, Michal Safdie, Moshe Safdie, Sia Sanneh, Roberta Seiler, Sarah Sewall, Liz Sherwood-Randall, Anne-Marie Slaughter, Mark Simonoff, Gayle Smith, Halie Soifer, Gene Sperling, Scott Stossel, Colin Thomas-Jensen, Stina Trainor, Tommy Vietor, Miro Weinberger, Jeff Zients, and Frederick Zollo.

I was daunted by the prospect of a government pre-publication review, but Anne Withers and Tom Lutte at the National Security Council, and Behar Godani, Dan Sanborn, and Anne Barbaro at the State Department managed the process with great efficiency and thoroughness.

My Irish friends and family members made themselves available to answer questions I should have asked years ago. Particular thanks to Geraldine Barniville, Susan Doody, Colm Gibson, Derry Gibson, Patricia Gibson, Gary Horgan, Karen Chance of a Lifetime Horgan, Marie Kirwan, Suzanne OReilly, Clare Pippet, and Michele Pippet.

During my time in the Obama administration, I would often marvel at the privilege of my circumstances, hearing a voice that said, This. Is. Not. Normal. I had this same experience every time I heard back from a friend or colleague who made the time to provide detailed comments on entire drafts of this book. Heartfelt thanks to Greg Barker, Daniel Bluestein, Oskar Eustis, Jon Finer, Philip Gordon, Avril Haines, Dina Kawar, Megan Koilparampil, Cullen Murphy, Laura Pitter, John Prendergast, David Pressman, Kelly Razzouk, Ben Rhodes, John Schumann, Jake Sullivan, Stacy Sullivan, Larry Summers, Elliot Thomson, Mary Valente, Johnny Walsh, Jeremy Weinstein, and Becca Wexler.

I must also single out several friends who took what must have been weeks away from their lives to provide exhaustive, page-by-page comments and edits. Amy Bach worked late at night to help me avoid minefields I hadnt even noticed I was approaching. Sharon Dolovich gave the draft a meticulous read, offering granular suggestions while also urging me to address several key contradictions. Lukas Haynes, part of the Mort Abramowitzs former interns family, came like a burst of sunlight back into my life, helping me improve the telling of this story. Anna Husarska made the book one of her missions, marking up each chapter with care. Hillary Schrenell drew on her laser memory and deep empathy to offer vital suggestions. The incomparable Lee Siegel made me aspire to write a memoir that dug far deeper than I was initially prepared to go. Nik Steinberg brought his compassionate heart and exacting disposition to his painstaking review. Michael Rothschild saw a higher purpose when I doubted it, and, from beneath the snow drifts, treated every sentence as if it held the key to world peace. And if Michaels own deep involvement was not enough, he introduced me to Ida Rothschild, a brilliant line editor, who offered extensive, astute feedback when it mattered most.

Special thanks to President Barack Obama for taking the time to read and comment on the manuscript, but obviouslywell beyond thatfor entrusting me with the responsibility of being part of his team. Serving in his administration was the most meaningful professional experience of my life. I am grateful for his leadershipand his friendship.

Writing a memoir introduces an inevitable selection bias. The events I chose to describe dictate whoamong the countless incredible people I worked with in governmentmakes an appearance in these pages. I hope I have made clear that those I depict embody the talent, patriotism, and dedication of all those who serve a cause larger than themselves. I learned from my colleagues every day, and I only hope I have done some justice to the spirit and integrity of the enterprise.

My partner in this project has been Adam Siegel, whose title, Research Associate, does not come close to capturing his contribution. Adam has been a ruthless editor, a world-class researcher and literary critic, a fair-minded political analyst, and, in the difficult times, a confidant and an inspiration. He has read every last sentence of every last draft of this book, and he has helped improve it immeasurably. My gratitude is boundless. Any errors of judgment or fact are of course my own.

Finally, my family. Ellyn Kail, my stepdaughter, and Stephen Power, my brother, offer me daily lessons in what one can achieve through perseverance. Mara Castros arrival in our life was a miracle, and she will forever mean the world to us. Now Ana Reyes, who exudes kindness and joy, brightens our lives beyond words.