Reilly of the White House

“To date we Americans have shot and killed one out of every ten men we have elected president ... From 1865 to 1901 the United States took over the world leadership in a great and varied number of things, including killing our elected leaders.”

Protecting Franklin Delanon Roosevelt was no easy job.

This thankless task fell to head of White House Secret Service, Mike Reilly in the years between 1935 and 1945, some of the most difficult in American diplomatic history.

Reilly’s fascinating memoir chronicles the everyday challenges he faced protecting his Commander-in-Chief: the problems posed by transit; the dangers faced from large crowds and groups of strangers; the difficulties rising from FDR’s disability; the meticulous examining of every bit of food that entered the White House; and the rigorous attention paid to every detail of the president’ numerous foreign visits.

Reilly’s job was undoubtedly made even more difficult by the onset of World War Two and America’s declaration of war in 1941.

In addition to FDR being a highly-prized target for both the Germans and the Japanese, this period involved many trips abroad to meet Winston Churchill and Joseph Stalin to discuss the Allied effort. Wrought with diplomatic challenges and communication problems with their British and Russian counterparts, the relationships between the Allied countries were not straightforward.

Present at some of the most historic meetings in the twentieth century, Reilly’s account is an important historical record of FDR’s time as U.S. president.

In addition to this, Reilly of the White House is the touching story of a deep friendship between two men. The respect that Reilly held for ‘the Boss’ is evident throughout the book and he gives many examples of the president’s famous wit and good-humor.

"The warm, personal memoirs of the man who followed President Roosevelt wherever he went and who was completely responsible for the safety of the wartime leader." Kirkus Reviews

Michael F. Reilly was born in 1910 and joined the White House Secret Service in 1935. He was given the position of responsibility for the president’s safety in 1941 and remained in this role until Roosevelt’s death in 1945. Reilly published this work in 1947 and died in 1973.