On Thursday, July 9, the Partnership for Public Service celebrated Martha Kumar’s new book, "Before the Oath: How George W. Bush and Barack Obama Managed a Transfer of Power," an outstanding contribution to our understanding of presidential transitions. "Before the Oath" examines the events of the historic 2008-2009 transition between George W. Bush and Barack Obama through the eyes of its participants, and highlights best practices for future transitions.
The panel explored the Bush-Obama transition, which is widely considered one of the smoothest in history. The next president faces significant challenges, and while not perfect, the 2008-2009 transition provides a starting point for lessons learned and understanding challenges and opportunities future transition teams will encounter.
This conversation, hosted by the Partnership as part of its Ready to Govern program, was a meaningful reminder of what the next election is really about: the readiness of our next president to govern on day one.
Ready to Govern is an initiative that seeks to ensure a smooth and safe transfer of presidential power by assisting 2016 presidential candidates and their transition teams, preparing incoming presidential appointees to succeed, developing a management roadmap for the next administration, and engaging Congress in promoting reforms to the presidential transition process.
Learn more at ourpublicservice.org/readytogovern
