The American Presidency:
Origins and Development, 1776–2021
SIDNEY M. MILKIS and MICHAEL NELSON
Ultimately, it takes us gently to that place of showing where the lines should and must be drawn, according to the actual words of the founders. It also reveals how a President's belief system concerning race, tolerance, and compassion, could either shape or run afoul of original Constitutional design and purpose. With each passing President, the lines of power between the three branches of government become more clear, and the intent of the founders becomes more clear. The interrelationship between Presidential power (Executive branch) and the power of the people, through its elected leaders (Congress; the Legislative branch) is particularly fascinating. It shows how the President’s role functions within the larger political system and in the end, through the great and the not-so-great leaders we’ve had. It shows just how resilient our system is. The Constitution has stood the test of time. While it will always be dependent on people’s ability to work things out together - most of our leaders in the past have worked out the issues through thick and thin. The stories in this book show how far things bend, without breaking. Sara Miller McCune founded SAGE Publishing nearly 60 years ago in 1965, “to support the dissemination of usable knowledge and educate a global community.” Her library includes a vast amount of “archives, data, case studies, and video.” SAGE remains majority-owned by a charitable trust that secures the company’s “continued independence forever.” We are only as good as those people we trust. In over two years of flipping through resources for credible and objective sources of historical truth, this is the top book I’ve found concerning our government and its history.
This book was the “first comprehensive one-volume history of the presidency to be written by political scientists” in more than fifty years that was three decades ago! The Eighth edition published in 2020 brings us right up until 2018, the second term of Donald Trump. Today, many adults are having heated discussions about what literary works should be taught and learned in our classrooms, about America, our government, and our history; which is so important to shaping our shared value system. Most of us trying very hard to find the right resources that would speak the truth to us while uniting society around that truth. This debate is healthy and necessary. We should embrace, rather than fear, the fact that people have differing views of what should be taught in our classrooms. As a part of this debate, I offer you this book as a most credible source of objective, healthy, and accurate account of American history. It is a scientific account, beginning with the intent of the early founders, mostly given to us in their own words. From there, it provides a chronological review of each presidency. The book never misses the opportunity to showcase how the parts of the government are interrelated. It uses each President's interpretation of the Constitution's definition of the Executive office to impact the other branches. Through actual events, it shows how far a President can push the role. It shows the inner workings of the branches, the competing interests, and the design and purpose of the checks and balances.
The American Presidency: Origins and Development, 1776–2021
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