"Considered by some a Renaissance man and by others a lightweight gadfly, Leo Cherne's life brimmed with paradox and improbability. Born in the Bronx to a poor, immigrant, Jewish family, Cherne rose to the heights of economic and political power in WASP America. While trained as a lawyer, he made his greatest impact on history in other endeavors. Although not an economist, he annually lectured America's business elite and successfully prognosticated future economic trends for fifty years.

He devoted the majority of his time to humanitarian causes, particularly rescuing political refugees, and served as an unofficial advisor to nine presidents. Without formal training, Cherne also became a successful sculptor and his works have graced the Cabinet Room in the White House, the Smithsonian Institution, and numerous museums.".

"A consummate networker, Cherne had the uncanny ability to attract and cultivate talented people before they became prominent, including such figures as John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, Patrick Moynihan, Claiborne Pell, Tom Dooley, William Casey, John Whitehead, and Henry A. Kissinger. Although he was a successful entrepreneur, Cherne's real love was humanitarian work, particularly with the International Rescue Committee (IRC), which he chaired for forty years.

From Hungary to Cuba to Cambodia, Cherne traveled across the globe on behalf of political refugees. He was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1984 by Ronald Reagan, who proclaimed that although never elected to governmental office, Leo Cherne had more influence on American foreign policy than most elected officials.

The underlying theme of his life was that one person, without family contacts or wealthy connections, could make a difference worldwide in political and humanitarian affairs."--BOOK JACKET.