War and the American Presidency : Arthur Schlesinger

Extraits de la fiche de lecture

[...] One can immediately tell that Democracy A Future?? or to Democratize American Democracy? are not appropriate in a book titled War and the American Presidency. Maybe the problem comes from the choice of the book title. Schlesinger's language is clear and simple, but his rhetoric is clumsy. Arthur Schlesinger's historical purpose provides a new perspective on the conflict in Iraq. Approaching a burning issue through an analysis of the past American history, and especially the past foreign policy, is original and useful. [...]

[...] Critical Book Review: War and the American Presidency, Arthur Schlesinger, Norton & Company, Inc. (New York, 2004) War And The American Presidency was written by Arthur Schlesinger Jr., who used to be an adviser for Adlai Stevenson's campaign and a special assistant to President Kennedy[1]. He participated in the founding of Americans for Democratic Action, ?America's oldest independent liberal lobbying organization?[2]. Schlesinger wrote many famous books about the American politics, including the much heralded work The Imperial Presidency (1973). War And The American Presidency was published in September 2004, two months before the presidential elections. [...]

[...] War and the American Presidency also uses articles and excerpts of books he wrote in the past. He asked other historians to read his new book so as not to be wrong. Nonetheless, the main targeted audience is the voters instead of the scholars. Schlesinger supported Democrat John Kerry, and obviously hoped that his book could play a role on changing voters' minds. Therefore, his language is familiar. He refers to the Pentagon officials as ?loonies? (p. and to the Supreme Court justices as gang of five? (about the Bush v. [...]

[...] Nevertheless, he misses the big picture because of inconsistency and biased comments. Contrary to The Imperial Presidency, this book will never be a reference. "Schlesinger, Arthur Jr." Encyclopædia Britannica Encyclopædia Britannica Premium Service Nov ADA Robert J. McMahon, The Republic as Empire in Perspectives on Modern America, Oxford University Press (New York, 2001). Robert A. Divine, The American Story Volume Pearson Longman (New York, 2005). [...]

[...] Besides, there has been a strong dissent about the War in Iraq during the past three years. Even scandals such as Guantanamo have precedents: during World War II, it was the internment of Japanese Americans. Schlesinger keeps on contradicting himself, making thus this chapter quite vague and inconclusive. A. Schlesinger then comments on the malfunctioning of the Electoral College: ?four times in the history of the American Republic the people's choice has been denied the presidency?. Indeed, the Electoral College did not follow the popular vote in 1824 (Adams v. Jackson) (Hayes v. [...]