Tom DeFrank

In a presentation rife with analysis, historical context and amusing anecdotes, Tom DeFrank provides audiences a penetrating look at current events and the 2012 elections.

Long-time, award-winning journalist, Tom DeFrank, is one of the most respected members of the political press corps. His depth of experience in covering Presidents, Congress and elections gives him a unique vantage point to give audiences not only the backstory of today’s events but the historical context and perspective needed for a complete understanding of the 2012 elections— the issues, the candidates and the players. DeFrank has covered the White House since 1970 beginning his career at Newsweek serving as White House Correspondent and Deputy Bureau Chief of the magazine’s Washington bureau before becoming Washington Bureau Chief for The New York Daily News in 1996. He has reported on the activities of Presidents Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush and Obama. He is the co-author of Bare Knuckles and Back Rooms: My Life in American Politics, the memoir of political consultant Ed Rollins, and The Politics of Diplomacy, the memoir of former Secretary of State James A. Baker, III. His 2007 New York Times best seller Write it When I’m Gone, was based on his 16 years of private interviews with President Ford. In addition to discussing today’s events and the 2012 elections, DeFrank provides audiences a glimpse of the executive office very few get to see, with a highly anecdotal and conversational look at presidential personalities revealing the human—and humorous—side of the office.

Publications

Write it When I`m Gone:
Remarkable off-the-record Conversations with Gerald R. Ford

Tom covered Gerald R. Ford for a third of a century and conducted dozens of interviews with the 38th President. In 1991 Ford agreed to be interviewed every year with the understanding that nothing he said could be disclosed until his death.

The resulting bestseller, “Write it When I`m Gone: Remarkable off-the-record Conversations with Gerald R. Ford,” documents Ford`s feelings about Richard Nixon, Bill Clinton, Ronald Reagan and others with a remarkable candor not seen in Ford`s official memoir.

Titles

A Washington View: Obama`s Troubles, Republican Resurgence and Implications for 2012

Tom draws on 42 years as a White House and national political correspondent to analyze the current political scene in Washington. His conversational style, peppered with anecdotes drawn from his institutional memory and current reporting, creates a presentation both informative and entertaining.

A Tale of Nine Presidents: Covering history at the White House from LBJ to Obama

A Ford, Not a Lincoln: Remarkable Off The Record Conversations with the 38th President

The Media: Myths and Realities about the Institution Everyone Loves to Hate

Backstairs at the White House: Stories that Never Made it into Print