Presidential Courage: Brave Leaders and How They Changed America 1789-1989 (Hardcover)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: south grounds, one senator, ajewish state, White House, Jay's Treaty, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Don't be afraid!" was George Washington's near-to-last utterance, to the worried doctor at his bedside. The essential founding father's counsel is understood by well-known historian Beschloss (The Conquerors: Roosevelt, Truman and the Destruction of Hitler's Germany) to set an example for future presidents. Beschloss outlines how several occupants of the Oval Office—including Jackson, Lincoln, Roosevelt, FDR, Truman, Kennedy and Reagan—combined courage with wisdom to change the future of the country, notwithstanding the slings and arrows they earned. Despite its unpopularity at the time, for instance, Reagan's "strong beliefs combined with his optimism" led him to pursue the policy to abolish nuclear weapons, which helped bring down the Soviet empire peacefully. None of the author's heroes were saints, but rather flawed men sustained by friends, families, conviction and religious faith. With contenders for 2008 already lining up, this well-timed book might, the author hopes, persuade some to take the kinds of "wise political risks that Presidents once did."Perhaps. But knowledgeable readers should look elsewhere for genuine historical insight. The author's broad brushstrokes necessarily restrict him to painting nuanced individuals and complex times in only basic primary colors, and there is little that has not been said before—in some cases, many times. (May)
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From The Washington Post

Reviewed by Alan Wolfe

It has become a cliché to point out that while academic historians write dense, imponderable tomes to get tenure, popular historians satisfy the public hunger with powerfully written and engaging narratives. This cliché could be disproved in two ways: Academics could write terrific histories, and popular historians could write dreadful ones.

Michael Beschloss picks the second option. Presidential Courage is boring, repetitive and badly written. It tells us nothing we did not know before. And it substitutes melodrama for the actualities of history.

The thesis of Beschloss's book is that presidents sometimes act courageously. Like one of his heroes, John F. Kennedy, Beschloss defines courage as the willingness to do the right thing rather than the popular thing. The rest of the book is devoted to offering examples of this not very stunning insight. Included are George Washington's support of the unpopular Jay Treaty, John Adams's willingness to break with extreme Federalists, Andrew Jackson's successful struggle with Nicholas Biddle and the Second National Bank, Lincoln's issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation, Teddy Roosevelt's trust busting, FDR's leadership during America's entry into World War II, Harry Truman's support for a Jewish state, John F. Kennedy's fight for civil rights, and Ronald Reagan's decision to ignore the hard-line anti-communists in his party to find common ground with Mikhail Gorbachev.

To tell his tale, Beschloss writes chapters that rarely exceed 10 pages. He is fond of paragraphs that contain only one sentence. With the possible exception of John Adams, none of the presidents he chooses is controversial or surprising. And what he says about each has been said many times before: Andrew Jackson was a man to whom honor was important, Teddy Roosevelt overcame his poor physical health, and Ronald Reagan liked to talk about his movie roles. It is as if Beschloss never wants to tax the minds of his readers. He taxes their attention span instead, for it is easier to read longer narratives filled with fascinating twists and turns than to work one's way through Beschloss's choppy, disconnected stories.

Once one of these stories has been told, moreover, one gets the point of them all. Where does courage come from? Let's try God. So despite the fact that America's presidents vary greatly in their faith commitments, Beschloss's presidents invariably turn to religion for reassurance. Jackson "drew strength from his religious belief and Bible reading." Lincoln was able to face possible political defeat because he "drew in part on his religious faith." Harry Truman "tried to be a serious Christian." Ronald Reagan "was in fact a determined Christian." Life rarely follows a script. Beschloss's lives of the presidents always do.

One of America's greatest historians, academic and popular at the same time, was Richard Hofstadter, and he turned to historical figures to teach his readers about the ironic and the unexpected. But Beschloss is not only predictable in the presidents he chooses, he is also completely conventional in choosing the acts of courage that define them.

Harry Truman offers one example. Truman defended the Jewish right to a homeland, even though he was warned by Secretary of State George Marshall about the potential strategic importance of the Arabs. As much as I am glad that Truman gave his support to Israel, how courageous was his action? It helped him raise money for his 1948 campaign, and he thought it might help him win New York, which in the event he did not. Given what we now know, it would have been more courageous if Truman had taken Marshall's advice more seriously. Greater balance in American foreign policy then might have led to greater security in the Middle East now.

Then there is the Ronald Reagan question. Reagan was once dismissed as an ignoramus, but now a significant number of historians have come to accept his greatness. No challenge to that conventional wisdom can be found here. Beschloss puts Reagan in his pantheon because he showed the courage to deal with the Russians. But Reagan's insistence on America's innocence prepared the way for the wild-eyed neo-conservative fantasy that became America's humiliation in Iraq. A more courageous president might have tried to teach his people about the complexities of the world. Whatever else he did, Reagan never did that.

Beschloss concludes his book by saying that some of his courageous presidents learned the art of leadership by reading about the past. Let us hope that no future presidents turn to this book in search of insights about how to lead. For if they did, they would learn more about how presidents can be turned into myths than about the actual decisions they had to make.

Copyright 2007, The Washington Post. All Rights Reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 448 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster; 1St Edition edition (May 8, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684857057
• ISBN-13: 978-0684857053
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.4 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (65 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #173,870 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

118 of 127 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars sweeping vision, May 8, 2007

By	J. Johnson "Allman Brothers obsessive" (Manassas, VA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Michael Bescholss has become one of our most visible historians, in part through his willingness to appear on both public tv and venues like the late lamented Imus in the Morning. None of these appearances would matter if he didn't have anything of value to say. Of course the reason he is invited to appear is that he not only has something to say, but it is insightful and beautifully written.

In this book he deals with several crisis periods in presidential history. He tells the story clearly and then incisively draws meaning for the larger American Story. Whether it is Washington's struggle over the Jay Treaty, Adams balancing the place of England and France in American life or FDR supporting England when public opinionwas decidedly isolationist, Beschloss helps us understand our own story. He places a great deal of emphasis on courage, yet makes it clear that courage is different from stubbornness or going it alone. Courage involves wisdom, a moral compass and can only be differentiated for stubborness with the gift of time-perhaps a wise thing for people on both sides of our current political landscape to remember

I strongly recommend this book. It is an excellent addition to the study of the presidiency and an excellent discussion of leadership for both the public and private sector.

45 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining, quick read, June 8, 2007

By	Sunnybird "Sunnybird" (Philadelphia) - See all my reviews

I almost didn't buy this book based on the Publisher's Weekly review above, which essentially says that the book just repeats what has been said previously many times (sidenote: the author appeared locally, so I bought the book primarily to have it signed). While that may be true, after reading an online excerpt, I decided that while others may have written the same, I might not have read what others have said.

I found the book to be interesting, entertaining, and accessible (not bogged down in excessive complexities) and a quick read. The book is more focused on reporting historical incidents/anecdotes than on any in-depth analysis of specific events, but given that the book covers presidents from 1789 to 1989 in 330 pages, this should not be a surprise. If you are looking for in-depth analysis, look elsewhere. If you would like a nice overview of presidents and selected historical events, then I would recommend this book. The criticism of another that the book is "pop history" may be true, but that may not be a bad thing if it gets more people to read a history book.

As I currently live in Philadelphia, I found the section on Andrew Jackson and his fight with the Second Bank of Philadelphia particularly interesting. The Second Bank building still stands and is an attractive piece of the city's historical architecture. It's nice to know a little more of the history that goes along with the building, and I will look at the building differently as I pass it on the street.

47 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars They are Humans, too, May 29, 2007

By	Sivakumar Nadarajah "Author of America Misund... - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

An American president has a unique problem. He not only makes decisions for his own country, but he also decides on most of the global problems,too. On many occasions, American presidents have made decisions that have proven to have stronger impact than decision made by, say, even United Nations.

Mr. Bechloss tells us the stories of dramatic courage our past Presidents had when they made some of the very tough and important decisions that has not only changed America but also the rest of the world.

This is a fascinating book that enlightens the readers about what goes through a leaders mind when certain critical decisions are made. Although the book may serve as an "eye opener" and a "text book" for our future political leaders, it may also prove to be an excellent resource for "anyone" who is in a critical decision making role.

In my opinion, this book may be an invaluable reference for even our business leaders and CEOs. The inspiring stories are so well written that it makes you feel better and amaze at certain events that have changed the world. You will realize that those great leaders who made those tough decisions are after all human beings like you and me with
emotions, faith and families.

N.Sivakumar Author of:
America Misunderstood: What a Second Bush Victory Meant to the Rest of the World