Gergen’s rehabilitation on “Nightline” wasn’t exactly a triumph from his perspective. He has come to dislike his image as spin doctor. In an October New York Times Magazine story, he talked about his “guilt” over helping to turn politics into a public-relations game and how he hoped to change that in the Clinton White House. But the author, Michael Kelly, questioned whether Gergen’s mea culpa was just another form of spin. Gergen was devastated by the portrait of himself and he became even more determined to become a substantive player. “He wants to be Jim Baker,” says a colleague. Baker, after all, rose from a White House staff position to become secretary of state.
It was impossible. Gergen wasn’t taken seriously as a policymakers Aides snicker over how hard he fought to be listed as a member of the official delegation-not a communications adviser-on the president’s recent trip to Europe. After the Somalia debacle, Gergen, at the president’s urging, sought a larger role in foreign affairs. National-security adviser Anthony Lake resisted, believing another voice would diminish his own; Gergen backed off. Lake jokingly rubbed his sweater sleeve against Gergen’s arm last week and declared, “This is the only friction between us.”
There was some tension after the arrival in December of New York lawyer Harold Ickes, a liberal Hillary ally. He and Gergen circled each other warily for weeks before they reached what Gergen calls “a level of understanding and collegiality.” But younger White House aides see Gergen’s journey of renewal as narcissistic “Davidism” and his West Wing office as a short stop on the way to a big job. Gergen says he’ll stay through this year’s legislative season and then reassess. He adds, partly in jest, “The best thing for me psychologically and physically would be to find a university with a good gym.”
When Whitewater boiled over last week, Gergen volunteered for TV duty. His ability to offer reassurance about the Clintons reminded everyone-including himself-why he was there.
