Includes index.

Retired Secret Service agent Clint Hill brings history to life with this rare and fascinating portrait of the American presidency. Hill delivers a stunning perspective from the eyes of an everyman who saw some of the most historic moments of the 20th century during his seventeen years protecting the most powerful office in the nation. Hill walked alongside Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, and Ford, seeing them through a long, tumultuous era: the Cold War; the Cuban Missile Crisis; the assassinations of John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King Jr., and Robert F. Kennedy; the Vietnam War; Watergate and the resignations of Spiro Agnew and Richard Nixon. With a unique insider's perspective and a moving touch, Hill sheds new light on the character and personality of these five presidents, revealing their humanity in the face of grave decisions.