Friends of the LBJ Library | Apr, 9 2025 6:30PM - 7:30PM
On Wednesday, April 9th, Friends of the LBJ Library heard from LBJ Foundation President and CEO Mark K. Updegrove on his new book, Make Your Mark: Lessons in Character from Seven Presidents (Harper Collins, released April 15, 2025). Updegrove discussed seven presidents he had interviewed and written about — from Gerald Ford to Barack Obama — and the character traits that infused their legacies.
The program was held in the Lady Bird Johnson Auditorium at the LBJ Presidential Library. Friends of the LBJ Library members at the Individual level and above were invited to attend and had to register in advance.
About the Book:
Mark Updegrove draws on interviews and conversations with seven presidents to identify the essence of character, leadership, and legacy that has defined each of them and the modern American presidency.
Throughout his career as an author, journalist, television commentator, and head of a presidential library and foundation, Mark Updegrove has had the privilege of getting to know seven U.S. Presidents, from Gerald Ford to Barack Obama.
In Make Your Mark, he offers incisive, compelling sketches of these modern presidents and the character trait that made each suited to his moment in the Oval Office and underlies his most significant accomplishments.
- Gerald Ford’s instinct to do the right thing in the wake of Watergate;
- Jimmy Carter’s mission to do good in the areas of peace and human rights during his presidency and throughout his post-presidency;
- Ronald Reagan’s optimism, restoring the nation’s confidence and pride after a sustained period of demoralizing national setbacks; George H.W. Bush’s humility, helping to ensure a peaceful end to the Cold War that had seethed between the superpowers for over forty years;
- Bill Clinton’s resilience and determination to keep working for the good of the American people in the face of political and personal obstacles;
- George W. Bush’s charge to give back as the deadly AIDS epidemic spread unchecked throughout much of the developing world;
- and Barack Obama’s grace as the first African American to hold the country’s highest office.
