The Power of the American Presidency 1789-2000

by Genovese, Michael A.

• ISBN13: 9780195125443
• ISBN10: 0195125444
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2000-07-20
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

In its more than 200-year history, the office of the President of the United States has undergone a variety of dramatic changes. Because our founding fathers left the privileges and responsibilities of the job constitutionally vague and ill-defined, each occupant of the office-from George Washington to Bill Clinton-has tried to set the limits of presidential power as he has seen fit based on the domestic and international circumstances of the day as well as on his own ambition and abilities. In The Power of the American Presidency, Michael A. Genovese, one of the best known and respected scholars on the presidency, takes students on a journey through the personalities and politics of some of the most fascinating and at times powerful men in American history. Organized chronologically, the text offers an overview of the evolution and elasticity of presidential power by providing case studies of each president's personal characteristics and the defining historical events of each administration. From Abraham Lincoln, who stretched the boundaries of presidential power during the Civil War, to nearly forgotten presidents like Van Buren, Garfield, and Fillmore, who led weak administrations with limited power, Genovese presents the history of our country's highest office with insight, balanced judgment, and humor. The Power of the American Presidency will be widely used in undergraduate courses on the American Presidency as well as in courses on American history, American studies, and political science. It will also be of interest to anyone who wishes to gain a keener insight into the workings of the presidency.

Author Biography

Michael A. Genovese is Professor of Political Science and Director of the Institute for Leadership Studies at Loyola Marymount University.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
``A Republic, if you can keep it''	1	(27)
The Foundational Presidency	28	(30)
George Washington
John Quincy Adams
Democratization to Decline/Crisis to Enlargement	58	(32)
Andrew Jackson
Abraham Lincoln
Reaction and Shrinking/The World Stage	90	(32)
Andrew Johnson
Woodrow Wilson
Republicanization and Retreat/Birth of the Modern	122	(18)
Warren Harding
The Cold War/Heroic Presidency	140	(15)
Harry S Truman
John F. Kennedy
Great Society to Demonization/Imperial to Imperiled	155	(25)
Lyndon B. Johnson
Ronald Reagan
The Post Cold War Presidency	180	(10)
George Bush
Bill Clinton
Conclusion The Presidency in the New Millennium	190	(9)
Appendix A The Presidents of the United States	199	(3)
Appendix B Presidential Elections	202	(3)
Appendix C Political Control of Congress: 1789--1997	205	(5)
Appendix D First Ladies and Wives of the Presidents	210	(2)
Appendix E Vice Presidents	212	(2)
Appendix F Letter to Thomas Jefferson	214	(2)
Appendix G Federalist Nos. 69 and 70	216	(6)
Appendix H To the Citizens of the State of New York	222	(4)
Appendix I The Presidency and the Constitution	226	(6)
Notes	232	(11)
Selected Bibliography	243	(12)
Index	255