{"podcast":{"title":"Book Club with Michael Smerconish","slug":"book-club-with-michael-smerconish-4372437","podcast_index_feed_id":4372437,"rss_url":"https://feeds.simplecast.com/Xjj1yH0V","website_url":"https://www.siriusxm.com","image_url":"https://image.simplecastcdn.com/images/8436e3c1-2479-4466-ac48-fa58259960bb/9ed196e7-928b-4e34-8cad-cd044ed64d43/3000x3000/podcast-20on-20dark-6.jpg?aid=rss_feed","author":"SiriusXM","episode_count":543,"summary":"Reading for Independent Minds. Unlike many author interviews, if Michael didn't actually read the book, you won't hear about it. If he read it, you'll hear it and you'll love it. Insights into a wide range of topics, including many titles you've probably never heard of. The perfect book is just one listen away.","last_synced_at":null,"page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/book-club-with-michael-smerconish-4372437"},"episode":{"title":"Jean Becker & Tom Collamore: \"Don't Tell The President\"","slug":"jean-becker-tom-collamore-don-t-tell-the-president","published_at":"2026-02-13T17:39:54+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/book-club-with-michael-smerconish-4372437/jean-becker-tom-collamore-don-t-tell-the-president","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/book-club-with-michael-smerconish-4372437","url":"https://www.siriusxm.com","audio_url":"https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/sxm.simplecastaudio.com/e3dd7ada-28ed-4fb2-9a98-2aa2a4696c24/episodes/ae27a10b-b68d-492a-8d0c-7b0e51ad3fe9/audio/128/default.mp3?aid=rss_feed&awCollectionId=e3dd7ada-28ed-4fb2-9a98-2aa2a4696c24&awEpisodeId=ae27a10b-b68d-492a-8d0c-7b0e51ad3fe9&feed=Xjj1yH0V","summary":"What really goes into a presidential visit? In this episode of Book Club, Michael sits down with Jean Becker and Tom Collamore to discuss their new book, \"Don’t Tell the President: The Best, Worst, and Mostly Untold Stories from Presidential Advance.\" From George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan to Barack Obama, Becker and Collamore pull back the curtain on the high-stakes world of “advance” work — the behind-the-scenes operatives who plan every detail of a president’s public appearances. The conversation features unforgettable stories, including the controversy over a papal backdrop, the infamous Dukakis tank photo, assassination attempts on President Ford, a royal riser mishap with Queen Elizabeth II, and even Smerconish’s own unexpected detour into a Brussels brothel while advancing Vice President Bush. It’s a candid, entertaining, and revealing look at the moments that shaped presidential history — and the unsung professionals who made (and sometimes nearly broke) them. Original air date 11 February 2026. The book was published on 3 February 2026. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.","meta_description":"What really goes into a presidential visit? In this episode of Book Club, Michael sits down with Jean Becker and Tom Collamore to discuss their new book,…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2272,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/book-club-with-michael-smerconish-4372437/episodes/jean-becker-tom-collamore-don-t-tell-the-president/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/book-club-with-michael-smerconish-4372437/jean-becker-tom-collamore-don-t-tell-the-president.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}