Page 231 - Leadership Lessons of the White House Fellows

THE LESSONS

McGeorge Bundy, the sterling credentials that had opened one prestigious
door after another for the young man suddenly meant nothing. He was
met with a stone wall: McGeorge Bundy did not want a White House Fellow
in his office.
Bundy’s attitude was understandable. It was a tumultuous period in
Washington. The United States was at war in Vietnam, and in addition,
Bundy and his staff at the National Security Council were dealing with a
host of other security issues with the Soviet Union, the People’s Republic
of China, and other potential antagonists. The last thing Bundy needed
was some kid hanging around the situation room. He had neither the time
nor the inclination to baby-sit John De Luca.
“Bundy had a very legitimate argument. He made the case that it was
one thing to have White House Fellows working in the budget or press
offices or writing speeches. But none of those positions were as sensitive in
terms of national security as this post they were trying to create for me,”
De Luca explained. “Bundy was an intellectual, a tough guy who had come
out of the Kennedy years. He had to deal with Secretary of State Dean
Rusk and Defense Secretary Robert McNamara, and they didn’t want a
guy like me underfoot. But Jack Valenti and Bill Moyers argued that if this
White House Fellows program was to succeed, then right off the bat there
should be no area off limits.”
So Bundy relented, but only to a point. He told the Fellows program
and its cheerleaders, Valenti and Moyers, that De Luca could work in his
office on a trial basis. However, he would be given assignments—complex,
demanding assignments—just like everybody else, and he would be allowed
to stay only if he could pull his own weight and do the work. De Luca
accepted the challenge without hesitation. He knew that he was being
watched at all times, but he kept his head down and completed his assign-
ments, which mostly dealt with the war in Vietnam. It wasn’t long before
De Luca’s coworkers began to send more work his way as word spread
around the office that the young White House Fellow could handle the
difficult tasks they were assigning him. Eventually De Luca realized that
he had passed muster, and he was included in practically everything at the
National Security Council. “But it was under the strictest confidentiality,”
said De Luca. “I couldn’t even tell the other Fellows what I was doing.”
Bundy impressed on De Luca the importance of recognizing the
unique and valuable roles of each member of the White House team. He

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