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William Howard Taft
- The American Presidents Series: The 27th President, 1909-1913
- Narrated by: David Colacci
- Length: 5 hrs and 26 mins
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Publisher's summary
William Howard Taft never wanted to be president and yearned instead to serve as chief justice of the United States. But despite his ambivalence about politics, the former federal judge found success in the executive branch as governor of the Philippines and secretary of war, and he won a resounding victory in the presidential election of 1908 as Theodore Roosevelt's handpicked successor.
In this provocative assessment, Jeffrey Rosen reveals Taft's crucial role in shaping how America balances populism against the rule of law. Taft approached each decision as president by asking whether it comported with the Constitution, seeking to put Roosevelt's activist executive orders on firm legal grounds. But unlike Roosevelt, who thought the president could do anything the Constitution didn't forbid, Taft insisted he could do only what the Constitution explicitly allowed. This led to a dramatic breach with Roosevelt in the historic election of 1912.
Nine years later, Taft achieved his lifelong dream when President Warren Harding appointed him chief justice, and during his years on the Court he promoted consensus among the justices and transformed the judiciary into a modern, fully equal branch. Though he had chafed in the White House as a judicial president, he thrived as a presidential chief justice.
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- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 35 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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The first full-scale biography in 25 years of one of the most important and distinguished justices to sit on the Supreme Court - an audiobook that reveals Louis D. Brandeis the reformer, lawyer, and jurist, and Brandeis the man, in all of his complexity, passion, and wit. As a lawyer in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, he pioneered how modern law is practiced.
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a Listen to Louis D. Brandeis
- By J on 07-11-10
By: Melvin I Urofsky
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John Marshall
- The Man Who Made the Supreme Court
- By: Richard Brookhiser
- Narrated by: Robert Fass
- Length: 9 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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The life of John Marshall, founding father and America's premier chief justice. In 1801, a genial and brilliant Revolutionary War veteran and politician became the fourth chief justice of the US. He would hold the post for 34 years (still a record), expounding the Constitution he loved. Before he joined the Court, it was the weakling of the federal government, lacking in dignity and clout. After he died, it could never be ignored again.
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Excellent Biography
- By Jean on 12-14-18
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Woodrow Wilson
- A Biography
- By: John Milton Cooper
- Narrated by: John McDonough
- Length: 35 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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John Milton Cooper, Jr., is widely acknowledged as one of the world’s preeminent Woodrow Wilson biographers. This thoroughly researched profile of America’s 28th president is universally hailed for its scholarship and insight into the life and career ofone of the nation’s most polarizing leaders.
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On the outside looking in
- By Doris on 09-02-13
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A People's History of the Supreme Court
- The Men and Women Whose Cases and Decisions Have Shaped Our Constitution
- By: Peter Irons, Howard Zinn - foreword
- Narrated by: David Drummond
- Length: 28 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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A comprehensive history of the people and cases that have changed history, this is the definitive account of the nation's highest court.
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Really enjoyed this book
- By Paul on 02-19-20
By: Peter Irons, and others
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Coolidge: An American Enigma
- By: Robert Sobel
- Narrated by: Charles Bice
- Length: 16 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Sobel instead exposes the real Coolidge, whose legacy as the most Jeffersonian of all twentieth-century presidents still reverberates today. Sobel delves into the record to show how Coolidge cut taxes four times, had a budget surplus every year in office, and cut the national debt by a third in a period of unprecedented economic growth.
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A Book Exciting As It's Subject!!!
- By Ted on 08-28-12
By: Robert Sobel
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The Lost Founding Father
- John Quincy Adams and the Transformation of American Politics
- By: William J. Cooper
- Narrated by: Richard Poe
- Length: 16 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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Why has John Quincy Adams been largely written out of American history when he is, in fact, our lost Founding Father? Overshadowed by both his brilliant father and the brash and bold Andrew Jackson, John Quincy Adams has long been dismissed as hyper-intellectual. Viciously assailed by Jackson and his populist mobs for being both slippery and effete, Adams nevertheless recovered from the malodorous 1828 presidential election to lead the nation as a lonely Massachusetts congressman in the fight against slavery.
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Edifying
- By Jean on 01-15-18
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James Madison and the Struggle for the Bill of Rights
- By: Richard Labunski
- Narrated by: Richard Poe
- Length: 11 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Richard Labunski offers a dramatic account of a time when the entire American experiment hung in the balance, only to be saved by the most unlikely of heroes, the diminutive and exceedingly shy James Madison. Here is a vividly written account of not one, but several major political struggles that changed the course of American history.
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Tedious
- By Adam Smith on 04-19-10
By: Richard Labunski
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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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A hundred years after his inauguration, Woodrow Wilson still stands as one of the most influential figures of the 20th century, and one of the most enigmatic. And now, after more than a decade of research and writing, Pulitzer Prize-winning author A. Scott Berg has completed Wilson - the most personal and penetrating biography ever written about the 28th President. This is not just Wilson the icon - but Wilson the man.
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Grover Cleveland’s political career—a dizzying journey that saw him rise from obscure lawyer to president of the United States in just three years—was marked by contradictions. A politician of uncharacteristic honesty and principle, he was nevertheless dogged by secrets from his personal life. A believer in limited government, he pushed presidential power to its limits to combat a crippling depression, suppress labor unrest, and resist the forces of American imperialism.
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Polk: One of our most important Preidents
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On the outside looking in
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Terrible book :( Incredibly TEDIOUS.
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When James K. Polk was elected president in 1844, the United States was locked in a bitter diplomatic struggle with Britain over the rich lands of the Oregon Territory, which included what is now Washington, Oregon, and Idaho. Texas, not yet part of the Union, was threatened by a more powerful Mexico. And the territories north and west of Texas---what would become California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and part of Colorado---belonged to Mexico.
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Today Americans of all backgrounds are on the hunt for a different political model. In fact, such a model awaits them, if only they turn their eyes to their own past...to America’s 30th president, Calvin Coolidge. Coolidge’s masterful autobiography offers urgent lessons for our age of exploding debt, increasingly centralized power, and fierce partisan division. This expanded and annotated volume, edited by Coolidge biographer Amity Shlaes and authorized by the Coolidge family, is the definitive edition of the text....
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boring
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Unexceptional Book about unexceptional President
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In 1868 Congress impeached President Andrew Johnson of Tennessee, the man who had succeeded the murdered Lincoln, bringing the nation to the brink of a second civil war. Enraged to see the freed slaves abandoned to brutal violence at the hands of their former owners, distraught that former rebels threatened to regain control of Southern state governments, and disgusted by Johnson's brawling political style, congressional Republicans seized on a legal technicality as the basis for impeachment - whether Johnson had the legal right to fire his own secretary of war, Edwin Stanton.
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Highly recommended
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James Monroe
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The extraordinary life of James Monroe: Soldier, senator, diplomat, and the last Founding Father to hold the presidency, a man who helped transform 13 colonies into a vibrant and mighty republic.
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Large and inconsistent, much like Monroe himself.
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By: Tim McGrath
What listeners say about William Howard Taft
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Eric
- 09-11-19
A great brief history of Taft
I thought it was a great brief summary of Taft. It was definitely brief and was not as detailed as some of the other biographies I have read, but it covered a wide range of issues. My opinion is, they spent too much time talking about the quarrel between him and Roosevelt.
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- Stephen M. Johnson
- 04-29-19
The Reluctant President
This balanced portrayal of Taft also offers important insights into TR, Wilson, and the danger of demagoguery from both ends of the political spectrum.
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- James
- 06-01-18
Instructive For Our Times
I greatly enjoyed the author’s ability to explore the two Tafts. One is the judicial Chief Executive. The other is the Presidential Chief Justice. Outstanding!
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1 person found this helpful
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- jason leclerc
- 02-15-19
Great short book
well read and a short but sweet book on our only president to go on to become one of our greatest chief justices
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- Jean
- 09-06-18
Excellent Concise Biography
I watched the interview on CSPAN of Jeffrey Rosen discussing his new book “William Howard Taft: The 27th President 1909-1913”. It is the newest title in The American President Series. Rosen discussed the challenge he faced in staying within the Series’ guidelines of a concise short book.
I have read a number of the biographies of Taft as well as his wife, Helen (Nellie). Taft is one of the forgotten presidents. In all the books about Taft, it was clear Taft did not want to be president but his wife did. Taft wanted to be Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. President Harding appointed Taft to the Supreme Court as its Chief. Rosen approached this biography from a different viewpoint than other biographers of Taft. He emphasized the fact that Taft looked and did everything from the viewpoint of constitutional law during his presidency. This viewpoint made for a most interesting discussion of Taft. Rosen is a legal scholar and law professor. If you want to learn about Taft but have little time, this is an excellent book to read.
The book is five and a half hours. David Colacci does an excellent job narrating the book. Colacci is an actor and audiobook narrator. Colacci has won numerous Earphone Awards as well as a nomination for the Audie. Colacci is one of my favorite narrators.
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6 people found this helpful
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- alaina davis
- 07-21-24
Taft was a good judge
Taft was a good judge but a mediocre president. He didnt want to be president, his wife wanted to be the 1st Lady. His biggest accomplishments in my eyes were what he did for the Philippines before he was President.
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