June 2006. Presidential Leadership. Rating the Best and the Worst in the White House, edited by James Taranto (The Wall Street Journal) and Leonard Leo (The Federalist Society). I first heard about this book in 2004 listening to and interview with James Taranto on The Glenn Mitchell Show (a KERA , PBS affiliate in Dallas, production).  The editors compiled an impressive list of essayists from academia, government, and the legal world to rate the presidents by several criteria, and to write short essays (3-5 pages) on each.  This is a perfect book for a bookclub, or for someone looking for a good book to read for that train ride back and forth to work.  Each essay is self-contained and complete, but by reading all the presidential essays together, one gets a birds' eye view of American History that I don't remember getting in high school.  Most intersting to me was seeing the shift in leadership from the original colonies to the West as the nation expanded. In addition, the book gives some clear indication of the evolution of the interpreation of our Constitution as the roles of each branch of government evolved and changed over the last 230 years. The essays at the end on presidential leadership and the ecomnomy, the judiciary, in wartime, and following disputed elections each give a broad perspective on issues that face us as Americans in the 21st Century. This is a fun book that I would recommend to anyone who likes American History. Back to reading list
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