Book
The hardest job in the world : the American presidency / John Dickerson.
"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? 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 draws on history and contemporary times to show 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"? And what lessons can we draw from past successes and failures? 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."-- Provided by publisher.
Record details
- ISBN: 9781984854513 (hardcover)
- Physical Description: xxxi, 615 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm
- Edition: First edition.
- Publisher: New York : Random House, [2020]
- Copyright: ©2020
Content descriptions
| Bibliography, etc. Note: | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| Formatted Contents Note: | Executive in Chief -- Commander in Chief -- Welcome to the NFL -- First responder -- Consoler in Chief -- Acting presidential -- Action hero president -- Confidence man: the economy -- A historic partisan gap -- A new era of partisan warfare -- On the separation of powers -- Just be like LBJ! -- The end depends on the beginning -- Lost in transition -- Hard at the start -- How a president decides -- Impulse presidency -- The expectation -- The impossible presidency -- Candidate of the people -- No hiring manual for the presidency -- What got you here won't get you there -- Restraint -- The church of perpetual disappointment -- Amping up the awful -- Winning above all -- Resolve to be honest -- Character counts -- It's my party -- The uncertain never Trumper -- Donald Trump's America. |
Search for related items by subject
| Subject: | Trump, Donald, 1946- Presidents > United States. Executive power > United States. United States > Politics and government > 2017- |
Available copies
- 1 of 1 copy available at Tsuga Consortium.
Holds
- 0 current holds with 1 total copy.
Show Only Available Copies
| Location | Call Number / Copy Notes | Barcode | Shelving Location | Status | Due Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lakeshore Branch | 352.230973 Dic | 31681010198547 | NONFIC | Available | - |
- Baker & Taylor
The author writes about presidents in historyâsuch as Washington, Lincoln, FDR and Eisenhowerâand in contemporary timesâfrom LBJ and Reagan to Bush, Obama, and Trumpâto 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. Illustrations. - Baker & Taylor
"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? 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 draws on history and contemporary times to show 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"? And what lessons can we draw from past successes and failures? 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."-- - Random House, Inc.
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 presidencyâand how we can make the job less impossible and more productive.
âThis is a great gift to our sense of the actual presidency, a primer on leadership.ââKen 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. Youâre expected to fulfill your campaign promises, but youâre also expected to solve the urgent crises of the day. Whatâs on your to-do list? Where would you even start? What shocks arenât you thinking about?
The American presidency is in trouble. It has become overburdened, misunderstood, almost impossible to do. âThe problems in the job unfolded before Donald Trump was elected, and the challenges of governing today will confront his successors,â 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 âthe little brother who canât keep up.â
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 âthe crown jewel in the American penal systemâ? 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, âAmericans need their president to succeed, but the presidency is set up for failure. It doesnât have to be.â
