Three Days in January - Dwight Eisenhower's Final Mission

“THE BEST BOOK ON EISENHOWER TO APPEAR IN A VERY LONG TIME”*: BRET BAIER’S “RIVETING ACCOUNT”† OF IKE’S FINAL MISSION IS “A LANDMARK ACHIEVEMENT”‡ THAT IS “DESTINED TO TAKE ITS PLACE AS ONE OF THE CLASSICS OF PRESIDENTIAL HISTORY”§

January 1961: President Eisenhower has three days to secure the nation's future before his young successor, John F. Kennedy, takes power a final mission by the legendary leader who planned D-Day and guided America through the darkening Cold War

Bret Baier, the Chief Political Anchor for Fox News Channel and the Anchor and Executive Editor of Special Report with Bret Baier, illuminates the extraordinary yet underappreciated presidency of Dwight Eisenhower by taking readers into Ike's last days in power. Baier masterfully casts the period between Eisenhower's now-prophetic farewell address on the evening of January 17, 1961, and Kennedy's inauguration on the afternoon of January 20 as the closing act of one of modern America's greatest leaders during which Eisenhower urgently sought to prepare both the country and the next president for the challenges ahead.

Those three days in January 1961, Baier shows, were the culmination of a lifetime of service that took Ike from rural Kansas to West Point, to the battlefields of World War II, and finally to the Oval Office. When he left the White House, Dwight Eisenhower had done more than perhaps any other modern American to set the nation, in his words, "on our charted course toward permanent peace and human betterment."

On January 17, Eisenhower spoke to the nation in one of the most remarkable farewell speeches in U.S. history. Ike looked to the future, warning Americans against the dangers of elevating partisanship above national interest, excessive government budgets (particularly deficit spending), the expansion of the military-industrial complex, and the creeping political power of special interests. Seeking to ready a new generation for power, Eisenhower intensely advised the forty-three-year-old Kennedy before the inauguration.

Baier also reveals how Eisenhower's two terms changed America forever for the better perhaps even saved the world from destruction and demonstrates how today Ike offers us the model of principled leadership that polls say is so missing in politics. The Supreme Commander of Allied Forces during World War II, Eisenhower only reluctantly stepped into politics. As president, Ike successfully guided the country out of a dangerous war in Korea, peacefully through the apocalyptic threat of nuclear war with the Soviets, and into one of the greatest economic booms in world history.

Five decades later, Baier's Three Days in January forever makes clear that Eisenhower, an often forgotten giant of U.S. history, still offers vital lessons for our own time and stands as a lasting example of political leadership at its most effective and honorable.

* David Eisenhower
Tom Brokaw

Douglas Brinkley

Jay Winik

Published on: 2017-01-10

Released on: 2017-01-10

Original language: English

Dimensions: 9.00" h x 1.17" w x 6.00" l, .0 pounds

Binding: Hardcover

368 pages

Review 

“Magnificently rendered, Bret Baier’s Three Days in January is destined to take its place as not only one of the masterworks on Eisenhower, but as one of the classics of presidential history. Impeccably researched, the book is nothing short of extraordinary. What a triumph!” (JAY WINIK, New York Times best-selling author of April 1865 and 1944)

“Bret Baier has given history a great gift: a riveting account of Dwight Eisenhower’s determination to call on his vast experience to prepare America for the perils of the new war--the cold war.” (TOM BROKAW, author of The Greatest Generation)

“Brilliantly captures the drama of January 1961. ... Three Days in January is the BEST book on Eisenhower to appear in a very long time.” (DAVID EISENHOWER, Director, the University of Pennsylvania's Institute for Public Service, and author of Eisenhower: At War, a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in History)

“A valuable contribution to our appreciation of Ike, describing some of his most important qualities of character, wisdom, and leadership, which are so needed in the public figures of our own era.” (MICHAEL BESCHLOSS, author of Presidential Courage)

“Bret Baier’s Three Days in January brilliantly illuminates the genius and intrigue behind Eisenhower’s historic Farewell Address. Written with verve and deeply researched, Baier ably dissects fact from myth. A landmark achievement in U.S. presidential history.” (DOUGLAS BRINKLEY, author of Cronkite)

“Bret Baier has written a great book about a great president ... and the lessons in leadership that ‘Ike’ offers to today’s era of polarization and gridlock.” (CLARENCE PAGE, Pulitzer Prize-winning syndicated Chicago Tribune columnist)

“Captures the essence of Ike’s leadership style. Through stories and the keen observations at the time, Baier makes Ike’s world view and philosophy come to life. Three Days in January is a great read.” (SUSAN EISENHOWER, CEO and Chairman of The Eisenhower Group, Inc. and Chairman Emeritus at the Eisenhower Institute of Gettysburg College)

“Brings new relevance to Eisenhower’s parting message. ... A focused and timely study of Eisenhower’s significant speech and the sticky transition to JFK’s inherited new world.” (Kirkus Reviews)

“Vital lessons for our time. ... Powerful and enlightening, Three Days in January sheds light on a little-known Eisenhower.” (The Costco Connection)

From the Back Cover 

Bret Baier, the Chief Political Anchor for Fox News Channel and the Anchor and Executive Editor of Special Report with Bret Baier, illuminates the extraordinary yet underappreciated presidency of Dwight Eisenhower by taking readers into Ike’s last days in power. Baier masterfully casts the period between Eisenhower’s now-prophetic farewell address on the evening of January 17, 1961, and Kennedy’s inauguration on the afternoon of January 20 as the closing act of one of modern America’s greatest leaders during which Eisenhower urgently sought to prepare both the country and the next president for the challenges ahead.

Those three days in January 1961, Baier shows, were the culmination of a lifetime of service that took Ike from rural Kansas to West Point, to the battlefields of World War II, and finally to the Oval Office. When he left the White House, Dwight Eisenhower had done more than perhaps any other modern American to set the nation, in his words, “on our charted course toward permanent peace and human betterment.”

About the Author

Bret Baier is the Chief Political Anchor for Fox News Channel and the Anchor and Executive Editor of Special Report with Bret Baier, seen five days a week on Fox News Channel. Before assuming the anchor role, Bret served as Chief White House Correspondent for Fox News Channel between 2006 and 2009. Prior to being named Chief White House Correspondent for Fox News Channel, Bret served as National Security Correspondent based at the Pentagon, reporting on military and national security affairs, as well as on defense, military policy and the intelligence community from 2001 to 2006. He reported from Iraq twelve times and Afghanistan thirteen times. In his career Bret has traveled the world with various administration dignitaries and military officials, reporting from seventy-four countries. His first book, Special Heart: A Journey of Faith, Hope, Courage and Love, became a top-ten New York Times bestseller upon its release in 2014.