Thomas Friedman had an excellent column on the lessons for presidents from Bill Clinton's pollster, Stan Greenberg. Here's the most important insight:
The über-lesson for presidents? You can’t be too honest in describing big problems, too bold in offering big solutions, too humble in dealing with big missteps, too forward in re-telling your story, or too gutsy in speaking the previously unspeakable.
In today's environment, we should all cut this quote out and keep it in plain site.