The Presidents and the Constitution
A Living History
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Narrated by:
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Sean Runnette
About this listen
In this sweepingly ambitious volume, the nation's foremost experts on the American presidency and the US Constitution join together to tell the intertwined stories of how each American president has confronted and shaped the Constitution. Each occupant of the office - the first president to the 44th - has contributed to the story of the Constitution through the decisions he made and the actions he took as the nation's chief executive.
By examining presidential history through the lens of constitutional conflicts and challenges, The Presidents and the Constitution offers a fresh perspective on how the Constitution has evolved in the hands of individual presidents. It delves into key moments in American history, from Washington's early battles with Congress to the advent of the national security presidency under George W. Bush and Barack Obama, to reveal the dramatic historical forces that drove these presidents to action. Historians and legal experts, including Richard Ellis, Gary Hart, Stanley Kutler, and Kenneth Starr, bring the Constitution to life, and show how the awesome powers of the American presidency have been shaped by the men who were granted them. The book brings to the fore the overarching constitutional themes that span this country's history, and ties together presidencies in a way never before accomplished.
Exhaustively researched and compellingly presented, The Presidents and the Constitution shines new light on America's brilliant constitutional and presidential history.
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A Magnificent Catastrophe tells the story of the most perverse, bizarre, nail-biting, and influential election battle ever in U.S. history: America's first true presidential campaign, and a contest so important to the future of the country that Jefferson referred to it as "the second American Revolution" because the outcome resolved so much unfinished business about just what kind of government we would have. This election in many ways determined just how democratic a country we would be.
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Get this if you have to use it for a class!!!
- By Gabriel on 03-03-17
By: Edward J. Larson
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James Madison and the Making of America
- By: Kevin R. C. Gutzman
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 15 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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In James Madison and the Making of America, historian Kevin Gutzman looks beyond the way James Madison is traditionally seen - as "The Father of the Constitution” - to find a more complex and sometimes contradictory portrait of this influential Founding Father and the ways in which he influenced the spirit of today's United States.
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Not a traditional biography
- By David on 12-14-12
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The Embattled Vote in America
- From the Founding to the Present
- By: Allan J. Lichtman
- Narrated by: Dennis Holland
- Length: 9 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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America's political leaders have considered suffrage not a natural right but a privilege restricted by wealth, sex, race, residence, literacy, criminal conviction, and citizenship. Today, voter identification laws, political gerrymandering, registration requirements, felon disenfranchisement, and voter purges deny many millions of citizens the opportunity to express their views at the ballot box. We cannot blame the founders alone for America's embattled vote. Best-selling author Allan Lichtman notes that subsequent generations have failed to establish suffrage as a universal right.
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Old Hat ...
- By Richard D. Parker on 01-17-19
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The Birth of Modern Politics
- Andrew Jackson, John Quincy Adams, and the Election of 1828
- By: Lynn Hudson Parson
- Narrated by: Milton Bagby
- Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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The 1828 presidential election, which pitted Major General Andrew Jackson against incumbent John Quincy Adams, has long been hailed as a watershed moment in American political history. It was the contest in which an unlettered, hot-tempered southwestern frontiersman, trumpeted by his supporters as a genuine man of the people, soundly defeated a New England "aristocrat" whose education and political resume were as impressive as any ever seen in American public life.
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a very good popular history book
- By D. Littman on 01-29-10
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Don't Know Much About the American Presidents
- By: Kenneth C. Davis
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey, Kirby Heyborne, Mark Bramhall, and others
- Length: 23 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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For more than 20 years since his New York Times best seller Don't Know Much About History first appeared, Davis has shown that Americans don't hate history, just the dull version dished out in school. Now Davis turns his attention to what is arguably the most important and most fascinating subject in American history: our presidents. From the heated debates over executive powers through the curious election of George Washington in 1789 and, for more than 200 years, up through the meteoric rise of Barack Obama, the presidency has been at the heart of American history.
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Too Biased
- By Justin Swihart on 05-29-13
By: Kenneth C. Davis
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The Framers' Coup
- The Making of the United States Constitution
- By: Michael J. Klarman
- Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain
- Length: 31 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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Americans revere their Constitution. However, most of us are unaware how tumultuous and improbable the drafting and ratification processes were. As Benjamin Franklin keenly observed, any assembly of men bring with them "all their prejudices, their passions, their errors of opinion, their local interests and their selfish views." One need not deny that the Framers had good intentions in order to believe that they also had interests.
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Context Matters
- By Keith on 03-18-18
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What Kind of Nation
- Thomas Jefferson, John Marshall, and the Epic Struggle to Create a United States
- By: James F. Simon
- Narrated by: Patrick Cullen
- Length: 12 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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In this dramatic and fully accessible account of these titans of the early republic and their fiercely held ideas, James F. Simon brings to life the early history of the nation and sheds new light on the highly charged battle to balance the powers of the federal government and the rights of the states. A fascinating look at two of the nation's greatest statesmen and shrewdest politicians, What Kind of Nation presents a cogent, unbiased assessment of their lasting impact on American government.
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Interesting but a bit too biased for me
- By Diana Black Kennedy on 03-01-18
By: James F. Simon
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Eisenhower vs. Warren
- The Battle for Civil Rights and Liberties
- By: James F. Simon
- Narrated by: Jonathan Yen
- Length: 15 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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In Eisenhower vs. Warren, two-time New York Times Notable Book author James F. Simon examines the years of strife between them that led Eisenhower to say that his biggest mistake as president was appointing that "dumb son of a bitch Earl Warren." This momentous, poisonous relationship is presented here at last in one volume. Compellingly written, Eisenhower vs. Warren brings to vivid life the clash that continues to reverberate in political and constitutional debates today.
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A Great Review of the Fight for Civil Rights
- By Jean on 07-01-19
By: James F. Simon
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The Supreme Court
- The Personalities and Rivalries That Defined America
- By: Jeffrey Rosen
- Narrated by: Alan Sklar
- Length: 8 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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A leading Supreme Court expert recounts the personal and philosophical rivalries that forged our nation's highest court and continue to shape our daily lives. The Supreme Court is the most mysterious branch of government, and yet the Court is at root a human institution, made up of very bright people with very strong egos, for whom political and judicial conflicts often become personal.
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Overruled!
- By Stephen McLeod on 08-23-08
By: Jeffrey Rosen
What listeners say about The Presidents and the Constitution
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Rob
- 12-27-16
great book about the presidency & Constitution
very good explanation of how the presidency and the Constitution helped shape each other into what we see today. parts were a little dry but it kept me interested most of the time.
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- Philo
- 09-06-16
Oodles of historical perspective; moves along well
Dividing the number of presidents by the length of this book, the format is easily seen. Various fine scholars tell us the main story points, with an eye to the Constitution, without getting bogged down. The narrator has a sober, decent sort of voice.
Thinking of all my acquaintances who swear fealty to the Constitution as written, this book bracingly opens with a reminder that the Constitution is quite sketchy in its job descriptions for the president, with gaps aplenty. This, as with much of our government generally, has left individuals, in the cauldron of pressing exigencies of events, to improvise and model what the president's job and legal parameters are (of course, as interacting with the other governmental branches). I like the focus here, and the delivery, with its brevity, allowing me to survey this area front-to-back. This is especially helpful in a heated year of raucous political contests.
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- Philip
- 12-18-17
Great performance,
Very interesting, well preformed. A bit opinionated toward the end. The last four presidents aren't covered as well or without favor due to how little time has passed since their administrations.
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- L.D.
- 11-17-17
Intriguing, Interesting & In-Depth
A must-have for anybody interested in knowing more about presidential powers, the way this office has formed from its conception to present day, or anybody that likes American history.
A steady flow of chapters keep the reader engaged and interested as each story on how that President affected the oversell presidency makes this a delightful read. I just finished and am about to restart it and listen again!
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- Patrick Fortner
- 03-09-23
Flawed and biased
Accomplishments of Conservative Presidents are largely ignored or dismissed. Clinton's post-presidency volunteerism is highlighted without mentioning that he and GHW Bush worked together on many of those initiatives.
What a waste of time.
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