The presidency of Ronald Reagan has become a Rorschach Test for politicians and citizens alike. While many conservatives see the Reagan era of the 1980s as the high-water mark for their movement and a time of national recovery from the difficulties of the 1970s, many liberals maintain that the rosy Reagan legacy is based largely on myth, and that in fact his eight years as president caused serious harm to the country. John Ehrman and Michael W. Flamm give due attention to the lasting controversies surrounding the Reagan record and provide a balanced view of the fortieth president's foreign and domestic policies. Students are encouraged to draw their own conclusions by reading key primary documents.
The most important speeches of America's "Great Communicator": Here, in his own words, is the record of Ronald Reagan's remarkable political career and historic eight-year presidency.
"From the bestselling author of Nixonland and The Invisible Bridge comes the dramatic conclusion of how conservatism took control of American political power"--
Reagan’s Legacy in a World Transformed offers a timely retrospective on the fortieth president’s policies and impact on today’s world, from the influence of free market ideas on economic globalization, to the role of an assertive military in U.S. foreign policy, to reduction of nuclear arsenals in the interest of stability.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the veteran political journalist and 60 Minutes correspondent, a deep dive into the history, evolution, and current state of the American presidency, and how we can make the job less impossible and more productive—featuring a new post-2020–election epilogue “This is a great gift to our sense of the actual presidency, a primer on leadership.”—Ken Burns Imagine you have just been elected president. You are now commander-in-chief, chief executive, chief diplomat, chief legislator, chief of party, chief voice of the people, first responder, chief priest, and world leader. You’re expected to fulfill your campaign promises, but you’re also expected to solve the urgent crises of the day. What’s on your to-do list? Where would you even start? What shocks aren’t you thinking about? The American presidency is in trouble. It has become overburdened, misunderstood, almost impossible to do. “The problems in the job unfolded before Donald Trump was elected, and the challenges of governing today will confront his successors,” writes John Dickerson. After all, the founders never intended for our system of checks and balances to have one superior Chief Magistrate, with Congress demoted to “the little brother who can’t keep up.” In this eye-opening book, John Dickerson writes about presidents in history such a Washington, Lincoln, FDR, and Eisenhower, and and in contemporary times, from LBJ and Reagan and Bush, Obama, and Trump, to show how a complex job has been done, and why we need to reevaluate how we view the presidency, how we choose our presidents, and what we expect from them once they are in office. Think of the presidential campaign as a job interview. Are we asking the right questions? Are we looking for good campaigners, or good presidents? Once a candidate gets the job, what can they do to thrive? Drawing on research and interviews with current and former White House staffers, Dickerson defines what the job of president actually entails, identifies the things that only the president can do, and analyzes how presidents in history have managed the burden. What qualities make for a good president? Who did it well? Why did Bill Clinton call the White House “the crown jewel in the American penal system”? The presidency is a job of surprises with high stakes, requiring vision, management skill, and an even temperament. Ultimately, in order to evaluate candidates properly for the job, we need to adjust our expectations, and be more realistic about the goals, the requirements, and the limitations of the office. As Dickerson writes, “Americans need their president to succeed, but the presidency is set up for failure. It doesn’t have to be.”
Challenges popular conceptions about the 40th president's administration and legacy, arguing that subsequent presidents and conservative policymakers have exploited the country's misunderstandings of Reagan's achievements to promote risky agendas. Reprint.
The best-selling author of Nixonland presents a portrait of the United States during the turbulent political and economic upheavals of the 1970s, covering events ranging from the Arab oil embargo and the era of Patty Hearst to the collapse of the South Vietnamese government and the rise of Ronald Reagan--Publisher's description.
DEBATING OUR DESTINY: PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE MOMENTS THAT SHAPED HISTORY provides a unique and in-depth look at the history of the presidential debates and their importance to the U.S. election process. This book from MacNeil-Lehrer Productions, producer of the PBS Newshour, features excerpts of Jim Lehrer's exclusive interviews with nearly every presidential and vice-presidential candidate between 1976 and 2004. It is filled with fascinating information for all readers, including students of political science, government, history, civics, journalism and communications. Interviews include: President George H.W. BushPresident George W. BushPresident Jimmy CarterVice President Dick CheneyPresident Bill ClintonSenator Bob DoleGovernor Michael DukakisSenator John EdwardsPresident Gerald FordSenator John KerrySenator Joe LiebermanVice President Walter MondaleVice President Dan QuaylePresident Ronald Reagan The book also includes original interviews with noted historians, debate moderators, and the executive director of the Commission on Presidential Debates: Michael BeschlossJanet BrownGwen IfillJim LehrerRichard Norton SmithMargaret WarnerJudy WoodruffContent:Foreword by Jim Lehrer Chapter 1 - Do Debates Matter?Chapter 2 - Style vs. SubstanceChapter 3 - Debates in the Television AgeChapter 4 - Do Debates Change Elections?Chapter 5 - Do Vice-Presidential Debates Matter?Chapter 6 - ModeratorsChapter 7 - Presidential Primary DebatesChapter 8 - The Future of Debates Questions to Consider (by chapter)
