ABSTRACT
In the past four decades, the role of the presidential pollster has grown exponentially. As a group, these advisers have been some of the most interesting characters to ever work in government. And in some cases, they established a mystique as experts in the art of assessing public opinion, which, combined with their self-promotional skills, made them seem indispensable to their bosses. The history of the pollster is an important, if little-understood, part of presidential history.
