Ron Suskind

Wall Street, Washington, and the Education of a President

The hidden history of Wall Street and the White House comes down to a single, powerful, quintessential American concept: confidence. In this gripping and brilliant speech, based on research from his latest book, Confidence Men, Ron Suskind tells the story of what happened after that confidence began to crumble in 2007.  He gives a sweeping look as Wall Street struggled to save itself, while a man with little experience and soaring rhetoric emerged from obscurity to usher in "a new era of responsibility." It is a story that follows the journey of Barack Obama, who rose as the country fell, and offers the first portrait of his tumultuous presidency.

A Secret War Revealed

Drawing from his book, The One Percent Doctrine, Suskind delves into the secret world of post-9/11 government, mapping out for his audience the strategies behind the war on terror. With his unparalleled access to senior officials, past and present and from all sides of the political spectrum, Suskind provides unbiased answers to the questions that keep Americans awake at night.

Discovering the "Unseen"

Mr. Suskind helps audiences rethink their notions of merit, to unlock a deeper understanding of education, opportunity and lasting success in both the public and private arenas. In this presentation, mixing stories from the transforming A Hope in the Unseen and his own life, Mr. Suskind transforms conventional notions of what's possible in American life. People leave the room having wept and cheered, with memorable lines jotted on the backs of envelopes and business cards. There are so many lessons to be learned from A Hope in the Unseen that in 2004 Appalachian State University adopted the book as its required summer reading for incoming freshmen.

The Price of Loyalty

In the Corporate Office or the White House, deftly handling internal politics is the key to success. Finding agreed upon facts, dealing with disputes before they deepen, carefully placing "honest brokers" throughout an organization to break log-jams and get good information rising to the top are crucial. The key, on balance, is creating an environment that rests on two basic ideas: 1) Right answers exist 2) Best ideas win, no matter what their source. This presentation will offer fascinating tales of what has worked, or not, inside the world's most visible and vivid management drama- the White House- and how those lessons can change life in the workplace.

Ron Suskind’s vivid prose won him the Pulitzer Prize for Feature Writing in 1995 and he continues to captivate audiences through his writing and his lectures by engaging them in a detailed exploration of human experiences.

In his latest gripping book, Confidence Men: Wall Street, Washington, and the Education of a President (published 9/2011), Suskind highlights the hidden history of Wall Street and the White House which comes down to a single, powerful, quintessentially American concept: confidence. Both centers of power, tapping brazen innovations over the past three decades, learned how to manufacture it. Until August 2007, when that confidence finally began to crumble. In this brilliantly reported book, Ron Suskind tells the story of what happened next, as Wall Street struggled to save itself while a man with little experience and soaring rhetoric emerged from obscurity to usher in "a new era of responsibility." It is a story that follows the journey of Barack Obama, who rose as the country fell, and offers the first full portrait of his tumultuous presidency.

In 2009, relying on unique access to former and current government officials, Suskind penned, The Way of the World, a multi-layered narrative about the forces at home and abroad fighting today's battles for hope and security. The book breaks major stories about prewar intelligence on Iraq, deception by the U.S. government, and the last months of Benazir Bhutto's life.

In 2006, Mr. Suskind published The One Percent Doctrine, a revealing journey deep inside America's battles with violent, unrelenting terrorists -- a game of kill-or-be-killed, from the Oval Office to the streets of Karachi. It is a real life spy thriller with the world's future at stake.

His 2004 book, The Price of Loyalty: George W. Bush, the White House and the Education of Paul O'Neill, was a singular, sweeping tour of the inner workings of the Bush Presidency. The New York Times called it “an invaluable contribution both to the historical record and to the fierce public debate over the nature of the Bush administration’s true views and motivations on issues of war and peace.” Forbes selected Price as the “Business Book of the Year,” Fortune cited it as one of the 75 “smartest” books ever written, and it was awarded first prize as Best Book of 2004 by the Investigative Reporters and Editors.

Mr. Suskind is also the author of A Hope in the Unseen: An American Odyssey from the Inner City to the Ivy League. The book has redefined national debates on race, class and achievement– it is a favorite on U.S. campuses and in book clubs. Mr. Suskind currently writes for The New York Times Magazine, Esquire Magazine and the Wall Street Journal.