Editing Richard Neustadt

{{Short description|American political scientist (1919–2003)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2021}}
{{Infobox person
| name          = Richard Neustadt
| image         = Richard Neustadt.jpg
| caption       = Neustadt in 2003
| birth_name    = Richard Elliott Neustadt
| birth_date    = {{birth date|1919|6|26}}
| birth_place   = [[Philadelphia]], [[Pennsylvania]], U.S.
| death_date    = {{death date and age|2003|10|31|1919|6|26}}
| death_place   = [[London]], United Kingdom
| other_names   = 
| education     = {{ubl|[[University of California, Berkeley]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])|[[Harvard University]] ([[Master of Arts|MA]], [[Doctor of Philosophy|PhD]])}}
| occupation    = Political scientist, adviser, and professor
| spouse        = {{ubl|{{marriage|Bertha Cummings||1984|reason=died}}|{{marriage|[[Shirley Williams]]|1987}}}}
| children      = 2
}}
'''Richard Elliott Neustadt''' (June 26, 1919 – October 31, 2003) was an American [[politics|political]] [[scientist]] specializing in the [[President of the United States|United States presidency]]. He served as adviser to several presidents. His book ''Presidential Power'' has been described as "one of the most influential books ever written about political leadership."<ref name="Jones"/> ''Thinking In Time: The Uses Of History For Decision Makers'' won the [[Grawemeyer Award]].<ref name="Grawemeyer"/> His other books include ''Alliance Politics'', ''Preparing to be President'', and, with Harvey V. Fineberg, ''The Swine Flu Affair: Decision-Making on a Slippery Disease''.

==Early life==
Neustadt was born in [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]], the son of Elizabeth (Neufeld) and Richard Mitchells Neustadt, who was a progressive activist and social worker.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/neustadt-richard-elliott-0|title=Neustadt, Richard Elliott &#124; Encyclopedia.com|website=www.encyclopedia.com}}</ref> His family were Jews whose ancestors were from Central Europe.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Edwards |first1=George C. |title=Richard E. Neustadt |journal=PS |date=January 2004 |volume=37 |issue=1 |pages=125–127 |doi=10.1017/S1049096504003889 |s2cid=154291153 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Richard Neustadt: US political scientist and expert on the power of the presidency|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/nov/03/guardianobituaries.obituaries|work=The Guardian|access-date=May 6, 2012|author-first=Godfrey |author-last=Hodgson|date=November 3, 2003}}</ref> Neustadt received a [[Bachelor of Arts|BA]] in History from the [[University of California, Berkeley]] in 1939,<ref name="Jones"/> followed by an [[master's degree|M.A.]] degree from [[Harvard University]] in 1941.<ref name="HG2005">{{cite news |title=Richard Elliott Neustadt |url=https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2005/10/richard-elliott-neustadt/ |access-date=23 March 2023 |work=Harvard Gazette |date=13 October 2005}}</ref> After a short stint as an economist in the [[Office of Price Administration]], he joined the [[US Navy]] in 1942, where he was a supply officer in the [[Aleutian Islands]]; [[Oakland, California]]; and Washington.<ref name="Jones"/> He then went into the Bureau of the Budget (now known as the [[Office of Management and Budget]])<ref name="HG2005"/> while he was working on his Harvard Ph.D., which he received in 1951.<ref>{{cite web |title=Richard E. Neustadt Personal Papers |url=https://www.jfklibrary.org/asset-viewer/archives/RENPP |website=JFK Library |access-date=23 March 2023}}</ref>

==Political career==
[[File:Photograph of Charles Murphy, Special Counsel to the President, shaking hands with White House aide Richard Neustadt... - NARA - 200544.jpg|thumb|Richard Neustadt (right) on March 10, 1951]]
Neustadt was the special assistant of the [[White House]] Office from 1950 to 1953 under President [[Harry S. Truman]]. During the following year, he was a [[professor]] of [[public administration]] at [[Cornell University|Cornell]] and, from 1954 to 1964, taught government at [[Columbia University]], where he received a Woodrow Wilson Foundation Award in 1961.<ref name="Jones">{{cite journal |last1=Jones |first1=Charles O. |title=Richard E. Neustadt : Public Servant as Scholar |journal=Annual Review of Political Science |date=June 2003 |volume=6 |issue=1 |pages=1–22 |doi=10.1146/annurev.polisci.6.121901.085848 |language=en |issn=1094-2939|doi-access=free }}</ref>

It was at Columbia that Neustadt wrote the book ''[[Presidential Power: The Politics of Leadership]]''<ref>{{cite news|title=Richard Neustadt, adviser to presidents, died on October 31st, aged 84|url=https://www.economist.com/node/2208298|newspaper=The Economist|access-date=May 6, 2012|agency=Associated Press|date=November 13, 2003}}</ref> (1960) in which he examined the decision-making process at the highest levels of government. He argued that the President is actually rather weak in the US government; is unable to effect significant change without the approval of the Congress; and in practice must rely on a combination of personal persuasion, professional reputation "[[inside the Beltway (terminology)|inside the Beltway]]," and public prestige to get things done.<ref name="Bailey">{{cite journal |last1=Bailey |first1=Harry A. |title=Neustadt's Thesis Revisited: Toward the Two Faces of Presidential Power |journal=Presidential Studies Quarterly |date=1981 |volume=11 |issue=3 |pages=351–357 |jstor=27547714 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/27547714 |access-date=23 March 2023 |issn=0360-4918}}</ref><ref name="Hargrove">{{cite journal |last1=Hargrove |first1=Erwin C. |title=Presidential Power and Political Science |journal=Presidential Studies Quarterly |date=2001 |volume=31 |issue=2 |pages=245–261 |doi=10.1111/j.0360-4918.2001.00169.x |jstor=27552187 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/27552187 |issn=0360-4918|url-access=subscription }}</ref> A revised edition titled ''Presidential Power and the Modern Presidents: The Politics of Leadership from Roosevelt to Reagan'' appeared in 1990.<ref name="Godfrey Hodgson">{{cite web|title=Richard Neustadt US political scientist and expert on the power of the presidency|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/nov/03/guardianobituaries.obituaries|work=The Guardian|access-date=May 6, 2012|author-first=Godfrey |author-last=Hodgson|date=November 3, 2003}}</ref>

With his book appearing just before the election of [[John F. Kennedy]], Neustadt soon found himself in demand by the president-elect, and began his advisory role with a 20-page memo suggesting things the President should and should not try to do at the beginning of his term. Neustadt was an official advisor to Harry S. Truman, John F. Kennedy and [[Lyndon B. Johnson]], and an unofficial advisor to [[Bill Clinton]].<ref name="Godfrey Hodgson"/><ref>{{cite web|title=Richard E. Neustadt, Historian, Dies at 84; Studied Power and Advised Three Presidents|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/11/03/us/richard-e-neustadt-historian-dies-84-studied-power-advised-three-presidents.html|work=The New York Times|access-date=May 6, 2012|author-first=Thomas J. |author-last=Lueck |date=November 3, 2003}}</ref>
A class that Neustadt taught on the presidency influenced [[Al Gore]] to change his major from English to politics and study with Neustadt.<ref name="Sullivan">{{cite news |last1=Sullivan |first1=Patricia |title=Presidential Scholar, White House Adviser Richard Neustadt Dies |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/2003/11/03/presidential-scholar-white-house-adviser-richard-neustadt-dies/7f1502bd-7052-4fa7-8bb3-b9068c796b4e/ |access-date=23 March 2023 |newspaper=Washington Post |date=3 November 2003}}</ref>

Neustadt was a professor at [[Harvard Kennedy School]] at Harvard, where he taught as a popular professor for more than two decades and officially retired in 1989 but continued to teach there for years thereafter. Neustadt also served as the first director of the [[Harvard Institute of Politics]] (IOP),<ref>{{cite news |title=Richard Neustadt remembered as guiding force at KSG |url=https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2003/11/richard-neustadt-remembered-as-guiding-force-at-ksg/ |access-date=23 March 2023 |work=Harvard Gazette |date=November 6, 2003}}</ref> which was founded as "a living memorial to President John F. Kennedy that engages young people in politics and public service".<ref>{{cite book |title=Guardian of the presidency : the legacy of Richard E. Neustadt |date=2007 |publisher=Brookings Institution Press |location=Washington, D.C. |isbn=978-0815718420 |first=Ernest R. |last=May |chapter=Placing Richard E. Neustadt |editor-first1= Matthew J. |editor-last1= Dickinson |editor-first2= Elizabeth A. |editor-last2= Neustadt |pages = 1–13}}</ref> After his retirement, he served as chairman of the [[Presidential Debates Commission]].<ref>{{cite web |title=CPD: Overview |url=https://www.debates.org/about-cpd/overview/ |website=www.debates.org |access-date=23 March 2023}}</ref>

Neustadt was elected to the [[American Academy of Arts and Sciences]] in 1964 and the [[American Philosophical Society]] in 1967.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Richard Elliott Neustadt |url=https://www.amacad.org/person/richard-elliott-neustadt |access-date=2022-09-23 |website=American Academy of Arts & Sciences |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=APS Member History |url=https://search.amphilsoc.org/memhist/search?creator=Richard+Neustadt&title=&subject=&subdiv=&mem=&year=&year-max=&dead=&keyword=&smode=advanced |access-date=2022-09-23 |website=search.amphilsoc.org}}</ref>

Neustadt was a recipient of the 1988 [[University of Louisville]] [[Grawemeyer Award]] for ''Thinking In Time : The Uses Of History For Decision Makers'' and its ideas for improving world order, co-authored with [[Ernest R. May]].<ref name="Grawemeyer">{{cite news |title=2 Harvard Professors Get World Order Prize |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/06/29/us/2-harvard-professors-get-world-order-prize.html |access-date=23 March 2023 |work=The New York Times |date=29 June 1988}}</ref>

Neustadt was hired by the then-secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare [[Joseph A. Califano Jr.]] to write a book analyzing the decision making that led to the swine flu vaccine debacle in the mid-1970s. Neustadt's co-author, his graduate assistant [[Harvey V. Fineberg]], said later that the book was written as a private document for Califano, who later insisted on publishing it as ''The Swine Flu Affair: Decision-Making on a Slippery Disease''.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Neustadt |first1=Richard E. |last2=Fineberg |first2=Harvey V. |title=The Swine Flu Affair: Decision-Making on a Slippery Disease |date=1978 |publisher=National Academies Press |url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK219606/ |pmid=25032342 }}</ref> The book placed blame for the swine flu vaccine decision on the CDC Director [[David Sencer]], though Sencer's recommendations were appropriate, given the information available at the time.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lewis |first1=Michael |title=The Premonition: A Pandemic Story |date=2021 |publisher=W.W. Norton |isbn=978-0-393-88155-4 }}{{page needed|date=November 2021}}</ref>

==Personal life==
His first wife, Bertha Cummings "Bert" Neustadt, died in 1984. In 1987, he married the British politician [[Shirley Williams]], who also served on the faculty at the Kennedy School of Government as Professor of Electoral Politics.<ref name="Hodgson"/>

Neustadt died in [[London]] after complications from a fall. In addition to Shirley Williams, Neustadt left a daughter, Elizabeth, and a granddaughter. His son, Richard, predeceased him in 1995.<ref name="Hodgson">{{cite news|last=Hodgson|first=Godfrey|title=Obituary: Richard Neustadt|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2003/nov/03/guardianobituaries.obituaries|work=The Guardian|location=London|date=November 3, 2003}}</ref>

==Books==

*1960: ''Presidential Power: The Politics of Leadership''
*1990: ''[https://archive.org/details/presidentialpowe00neus Presidential Power and the Modern Presidents: The Politics of Leadership from Roosevelt to Reagan]'' ({{ISBN|0-02-922796-8}})
*1970: ''Alliance Politics'' ({{ISBN|0-231-03066-5}})
*1986: ''Thinking In Time : The Uses Of History For Decision Makers'', co-authored with [[Ernest R. May]] ({{ISBN|0-02-922791-7}})
*1999: ''Report to JFK: The Skybolt Crisis in Perspective'' ({{ISBN|0-8014-3622-2}})
*2000: ''Preparing to be President: The Memos of Richard E. Neustadt'', co-authored with [[Charles O. Jones]], ({{ISBN|0-8447-4139-6}})

==Media==
'''Appearances as moderator'''
* ''Cuban Missile Crisis Revisited''. Produced for The Idea Channel by the [[Free to Choose|Free to Choose Network]], 1983.
**[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E2WIoHNl8eI Phase I (U1015)] (January 22, 1983)
*** Featuring [[McGeorge Bundy]], [[Edwin M. Martin|Edwin Martin]], [[Dean Rusk]] & [[Donald Wilson (general)|Donald Wilson]] in [[Atlanta, Georgia]].
** [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eujqg4GDlog Phase II, Part I (U1016)] (June 27, 1983)
*** Featuring [[McGeorge Bundy]], [[Robert S. McNamara]], [[George W. Ball]] & [[U. Alexis Johnson]] in [[Washington D.C.]]
** [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVHe2GQIu7c Phase II, Part II (U1017)] (June 27, 1983)
*** Featuring [[McGeorge Bundy]], [[Robert S. McNamara]], [[George W. Ball]] & [[U. Alexis Johnson]] in [[Washington D.C.]]
* "The American President"
** Provided commentary for the 2000 PBS film series: "The American President" produced by Kunhardt Productions. Written, produced and directed by Philip B. Kunhardt, Jr., Philip B. Kunhardt III, Peter W. Kunhardt in association with Thirteen/WNET-TV New York. Based on the book: "The American President" published by Riverhead Books. The ten program series explores the presidencies from George Washington to Bill Clinton.

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
* {{C-SPAN|1938}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Neustadt, Richard}}
[[Category:1919 births]]
[[Category:2003 deaths]]
[[Category:20th-century American historians]]
[[Category:20th-century American male writers]]
[[Category:American male non-fiction writers]]
[[Category:American political writers]]
[[Category:Columbia University faculty]]
[[Category:Harvard University alumni]]
[[Category:Harvard University faculty]]
[[Category:Historians from Pennsylvania]]
[[Category:Historians of the United States]]
[[Category:Jewish American historians]]
[[Category:Public administration scholars]]
[[Category:Spouses of life peers]]
[[Category:Truman administration personnel]]
[[Category:United States Navy officers]]
[[Category:University of California, Berkeley alumni]]
[[Category:Urban Institute people]]
[[Category:Writers from Philadelphia]]
[[Category:Members of the American Philosophical Society]]