The Evolving Presidency

by Nelson, Michael

• ISBN13: 9781568023694
• ISBN10: 1568023693
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1998-11-01
• Publisher: Cq Pr

Summary

The Evolving Presidency is not a collection of essays, but a treasury of the most important documents about the highest office in the land. It is also an affordable alternative to the usual high-priced collections of primary documents. Arranged in chronological order, these 43 documents tell a rich and fascinating story of how much about the presidency has changed across more than two centuries -- and about how much has remained the same since the office was first established. For students and scholars, The Evolving Presidency is the perfect volume for research and directed reading. For interested citizens everywhere, the book is a fascinating collection of priceless documents that reveal the origins and development of our highest office. Headnotes explain the history and significance of each document. And the convenient subject guide sorts documents by topic and helps readers trace their specific issues and topics of interest.

Table of Contents

Preface: A User's Guide to The Evolving Presidency	xi
The Constitution: Provisions Concerning the Presidency (1787)	1	(9)
The presidency, the main innovation of the Constitutional Convention, is created and its structure and powers outlined
Letters of Cato, Nos. 4 and 5 (1787)	10	(6)
An Anti-Federalist opponent of the proposed Constitution warns against the dangers of presidential power
The Federalist Papers, Nos. 69 and 70 (1788)	16	(14)
A Federalist supporter of the proposed Constitution defends the republican character of the presidency
George Washington's First Inaugural Address (1789)	30	(4)
Washington establishes the model for inaugural addresses
James Madison's Defense of the President's Removal Power (1789)	34	(5)
Madison persuades Congress that the president should be chief executive of the bureaucracy
The Pacificus-Helvidius Letters (1793)	39	(5)
Alexander Hamilton and James Madison debate the extent of the president's constitutional power in foreign affairs
Thomas Jefferson's First Inaugural Address (1801)	44	(6)
The first peaceful transfer of power from one party to another
Thomas Jefferson's Letter to the Vermont Legislature (1807)	50	(2)
Jefferson establishes the two-term tradition for presidents
The Monroe Doctrine (1823)	52	(4)
An early assertion of presidential power in foreign policy-making at a time when the presidency was otherwise weak
The Tennessee General Assembly's Protest against the Caucus System (1823)	56	(5)
The stage is set for the demise of the congressional caucus-centered presidential nominating process
Andrew Jackson's First Message to Congress (1829)	61	(5)
The first outsider president grounds his authority in ``the will of the majority''
Andrew Jackson's Veto of the Bank Bill (1832)	66	(4)
Jackson activates the veto as a strong and effective power of the presidency
Abraham Lincoln's Letter to Albert G. Hodges (1864)	70	(5)
Lincoln defends his use of prerogative power during the Civil War
The Gettysburg Address (1863)	75	(2)
Lincoln, in an effort to give meaning to the war, invokes the Declaration of Independence's promise of equality and self-government
Ex Parte Milligan (1866)	77	(5)
The Supreme Court proves more willing to curb presidential power after a war than during one
Articles of Impeachment against Andrew Johnson (1868)	82	(11)
The only president to be impeached is charged with abusing the removal power and defaming Congress through intemperate rhetoric
Theodore Roosevelt's and William Howard Taft's Theories of Presidential Power (1913, 1916)	93	(6)
The classic debate on the proper scope of presidential power and leadership
Woodrow Wilson's First State of the Union Address (1913)	99	(4)
Wilson ushers in the ``rhetorical presidency''
The Teapot Dome Resolution (1924)	103	(3)
The nexus between congressional investigation and presidential scandal is forged
Franklin D. Roosevelt's First Inaugural Address (1933)	106	(6)
FDR reassures a desperate nation and asks Congress for ``broad executive power to wage war against the emergency'' of economic depression
Humphrey's Executor v. United States (1935)	112	(6)
The Supreme Court restricts the president's removal power
United States v. Curtiss-Wright Export Corp. (1936)	118	(5)
The Supreme Court declares that the president is the nation's ``sole organ in the field of international relations''
Franklin D. Roosevelt's Court-packing Address (1937)	123	(7)
FDR overreaches by attacking the Supreme Court and, in the process, sparks the creation of the ``conservative coalition'' in Congress
Report of the Brownlow Committee (1937)	130	(6)
The origins of the modern White House staff
Youngstown Sheet and Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952)	136	(9)
Justice Black's opinion of the Court and Justice Jackson's concurring opinion take different approaches to restraining presidential power
Dwight D. Eisenhower's Little Rock Executive Order (1957)	145	(4)
Eisenhower uses the president's ``executive'' and ``take Care'' powers to enforce the integration of an Arkansas high school
The First Kennedy-Nixon Debate (1960)	149	(10)
The first presidential debates take place during an important democratizing election
John F. Kennedy's Inaugural Address (1961)	159	(4)
The young president calls on the nation to ``support any friend, oppose any foe'' in the cold war
The Cuban Missile Crisis: John F. Kennedy's Letter to Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev (1962)	163	(3)
Crisis decision-making resolves the most dangerous international confrontation in history
Lyndon B. Johnson's ``Great Society'' Speech (1964)	166	(3)
Johnson rouses public support for his ambitious domestic agenda
Lyndon B. Johnson's Gulf of Tonkin Message (1964)	169	(5)
Congress writes a blank check to the president to wage war in Vietnam
Richard Nixon's China Trip Announcement (1971)	174	(3)
The ultimate anticommunist uses secret diplomacy to open a relationship with the People's Republic of China
The McGovern-Fraser Commission Report (1971)	177	(7)
The modern presidential nominating process takes shape
The War Powers Resolution (1973)	184	(6)
Congress tries to reclaim the war power from the president
Proposed Articles of Impeachment against Richard Nixon (1974)	190	(6)
The Watergate crisis brings down the president and his closest advisers
United States v. Nixon (1974)	196	(5)
The Supreme Court acknowledges but limits executive privilege
The ``Smoking Gun'' Watergate Tapes (1974)	201	(6)
Incriminating White House tapes, released by order of the Supreme Court, spur Nixon's resignation
Gerald R. Ford's Pardon of Richard Nixon (1974)	207	(4)
Ford jeopardizes his political standing by exercising the president's only unchecked constitutional power on behalf of his predecessor
Jimmy Carter's ``Crisis of Confidence'' Speech (1979)	211	(7)
A president elected by praising the people blames them for the problems of his administration
Ronald Reagan's First Inaugural Address (1981)	218	(7)
In a new-style inaugural address, Reagan ushers in an era by declaring that ``government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem''
Immigration and Naturalization Service v. Chadha (1983)	225	(10)
The Supreme Court strikes down the legislative veto
George Bush's Persian Gulf War Address (1991)	235	(5)
Bush's greatest triumph foreshadows his worst defeat
Bill Clinton's State of the Union Address (1998)	240	(7)
A strong economy helps the president's political standing at a time of crisis
Clinton v. City of New York (1998)	247	(5)
The Supreme Court declares the line item veto unconstitutional
Bill Clinton's ``Apology'' Address (1998)	252	(3)
Clinton combines an admission of ``wrong'' personal behavior with an attack on the independent counsel
Topical Guide to the Documents	255