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New Book Cites 'Bitter Disputes' Among Obama's Economic Advisers

Journalist Ron Suskind had already said that his new book about the Obama administration's response to the 2008-2009 financial crisis would reveal "bitter disputes" among the president's economic advisers.

/ RonSuskind.com
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RonSuskind.com

And now The Associated Press writes that in the book Suskind reports there were several incidents in that period when "Obama struggled with a divided group of advisers, some of whom he didn't initially consider for their high-profile roles."

The incidents include Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner's decision to ignore "an order from President Barack Obama calling for reconstruction of major banks," AP says. According to the AP, "in the book, Obama does not deny Suskind's account."

Confidence Men: Wall Street, Washington and the Education of a President, officially goes on sale Tuesday.

The New York Times, which has also gotten a copy of Suskind's book, says that it:

"Offers a portrait of a White House operating under intense pressure as it dealt with a cascade of crises, from insolvent banks to collapsing carmakers. And it details the rivalries among figures around the president, including [Lawrence] Summers; Mr. Geithner; the former chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel; and the budget director, Peter R. Orszag."

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Mark Memmott
Mark Memmott is NPR's supervising senior editor for Standards & Practices. In that role, he's a resource for NPR's journalists – helping them raise the right questions as they do their work and uphold the organization's standards.