In this unusual and provocative volume, historians examine the presidencies of Jefferson, Jackson, Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, F. D. R., and Truman, while political scientists assess the contemporary presidency and suggest a range of reforms, from modest to radical, including fundamental alterations to the balance of power between the presidency and the Congress.

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The #1 New York Times bestseller and New York Times Book Review 10 Best Books of 2017 “Eminently readable but thick with import . . . Grant hits like a Mack truck of knowledge.” —Ta-Nehisi Coates, The Atlantic Pulitzer Prize winner Ron Chernow returns with a sweeping and dramatic portrait of one of our most compelling generals and presidents, Ulysses S. Grant. Ulysses S. Grant's life has typically been misunderstood. All too often he is caricatured as a chronic loser and an inept businessman, or as the triumphant but brutal Union general of the Civil War. But these stereotypes don't come close to capturing him, as Chernow shows in his masterful biography, the first to provide a complete understanding of the general and president whose fortunes rose and fell with dizzying speed and frequency. Before the Civil War, Grant was flailing. His business ventures had ended dismally, and despite distinguished service in the Mexican War he ended up resigning from the army in disgrace amid recurring accusations of drunkenness. But in war, Grant began to realize his remarkable potential, soaring through the ranks of the Union army, prevailing at the battle of Shiloh and in the Vicksburg campaign, and ultimately defeating the legendary Confederate general Robert E. Lee. Along the way, Grant endeared himself to President Lincoln and became his most trusted general and the strategic genius of the war effort. Grant’s military fame translated into a two-term presidency, but one plagued by corruption scandals involving his closest staff members. More important, he sought freedom and justice for black Americans, working to crush the Ku Klux Klan and earning the admiration of Frederick Douglass, who called him “the vigilant, firm, impartial, and wise protector of my race.” After his presidency, he was again brought low by a dashing young swindler on Wall Street, only to resuscitate his image by working with Mark Twain to publish his memoirs, which are recognized as a masterpiece of the genre. With lucidity, breadth, and meticulousness, Chernow finds the threads that bind these disparate stories together, shedding new light on the man whom Walt Whitman described as “nothing heroic... and yet the greatest hero.” Chernow’s probing portrait of Grant's lifelong struggle with alcoholism transforms our understanding of the man at the deepest level. This is America's greatest biographer, bringing movingly to life one of our finest but most underappreciated presidents. The definitive biography, Grant is a grand synthesis of painstaking research and literary brilliance that makes sense of all sides of Grant's life, explaining how this simple Midwesterner could at once be so ordinary and so extraordinary. Named one of the best books of the year by Goodreads • Amazon • The New York Times • Newsday • BookPage • Barnes and Noble • Wall Street Journal

A Pulitzer Prize winner's “magisterial” biography of the Civil War–era Massachusetts senator, a Radical Republican who fought for slavery’s abolition (The New York Times). In his follow-up to Charles Sumner and the Coming of the Civil War, acclaimed historian David Herbert Donald examines the life of the Massachusetts legislator from 1860 to his death in 1874. As a leader of the Radical Republicans, Sumner made the abolition of slavery his primary legislative focus—yet opposed the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments to the US Constitution for not going far enough to guarantee full equality. His struggle to balance power and principle defined his career during the Civil War and Reconstruction, and Donald masterfully charts the senator’s wavering path from fiery sectarian leader to responsible party member. In a richly detailed portrait of Sumner’s role as chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Donald analyzes how the legislator brought his influence and political acumen to bear on an issue as dear to his heart as equal rights: international peace. Authoritative and engrossing, Charles Sumner and the Rights of Man captures a fascinating political figure at the height of his powers and brings a tumultuous period in American history to vivid life.

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From the ashes of the most terrible war in American history began the agonizing process of restoring the Union that became known as Reconstruction. Like the War Between the States itself, Reconstruction lasted longer and produced more tragedy than ever anticipated. This work explores the era's important events in a year-by-year digest. These events reflect the unintended and tragic consequences of excessive government intervention in the liberties of the people. They also illustrate how such intervention has helped transform America from a constitutional republic to the centralized empire that it is today. Key events that shaped both Reconstruction and subsequent American history include: The subjugation of former Confederates through the military and corrupt state governments, followed by the subjugation of former slaves through Jim Crow laws The new alliance between business and government, which introduced the crony capitalist economic system that flourishes today The rise of organized labor, women's suffrage, and other special interest groups seeking recognition The political intrigues and unprecedented scandals that undermined the people's trust in government The westward expansion that encroached on the land of Native Americans and virtually annihilated their way of life The complex Reconstruction era laid the groundwork that would establish America as a world power by the beginning of the 20th century. The fundamental and permanent changes that both the Civil War and Reconstruction brought to America are explored, as well as how such changes have posed a threat to individual freedom ever since. As a resource guide to a vital yet often misunderstood era in American history, this is essential reading.