Mr. President: How and Why the Founders Created a Chief Executive

by Ray Raphael

The dramatic and penetrating story of the political maneuverings and personalities behind the creation of the office of the president, with ramifications that continue to this day.

For the first time, by focusing closely on the dynamic give-and-take at the Constitutional Convention, Ray Raphael reveals how politics and personalities cobbled together a lasting, but flawed, executive office. Remarkably, the hero of this saga is Gouverneur Morris, a flamboyant, peg-legged delegate who pushed through his agenda with amazing political savvy, and not a little deceit. Without Morris’s perseverance, a much weaker American president would be appointed by Congress, serve for seven years, could not be reelected, and have his powers tightly constrained.

Charting the presidency as it evolved during the administrations of Washington, Adams, and Jefferson, Raphael shows how, given the Constitution’s broad outlines, the president’s powers could easily be augmented but rarely diminished. Today we see the result—an office that has become more sweeping, more powerful, and more inherently partisan than the framers ever intended. And the issues of 1787—whether the Electoral College, the president’s war powers, or the extent of executive authority—continue to stir our political debates.

Genres: History, Politics, Nonfiction, American History

336 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

Reviews

[David N. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anyone interested in how we came to have a President must read this book. The author draws extensively from the Madison notes on the Constitutional Convention, and from the diaries of Gouverneur Morris, who was central to the creation of the office. Quite illuminating, especially since he argues persuasively that the office was created not through some overarching political theory but through a complex give and take between those who feared a strong central authority and those who believed that the US would not survive without one. It also traces the first three Presidents to show how and why the office became as powerful as it is today - indeed, those who think of Jefferson as a states' rights kind of guy will be surprised at the way he usurped Presidential authority during his administration.

[Jimyanni · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gives a detailed account of the evolution of the office of the president over the course of the Federal Convention that created the post, along with all of the rest of the Constitution, of the give and take in the debates and the ebb and flow of the arguments for and against giving the president significant power. It gives a very clear picture of a very murky process, as first one delegate and then another would argue against making the office an unofficial Royalty, only to have it pointed out that it was unwise to leave Congress with too much unchecked power, and that there were situations that required strong leadership and forming committees and debating issues in those circumstances could prove fatal. Most readers of history are aware of the bare bones of the arguments for and against a strong executive, but this book fleshes out those bones quite effectively.

[Travis · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great look at the founders' divergent views on what our chief executive(s) should look like, how our current setup was implemented, and all of the discussion, rancor, and maneuvering it took to accomplish all of it. (Includes some explanatory material concerning the Electoral College and the Hamiltonian aversion to popular rule.)

Also a decent look into how the minds and personalities of Washington & Jefferson shaped many of the Presidential trappings we recognize today. Highly recommended for those interested in American and/or constitutional history, and *especially* recommended for anyone who likes to invoke the "founding fathers" as a monolithic group.

[LaShana Claude · Rating 5 out of 5]

rentless revolution

[Larry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Insightful book on the Constitutional Convention. The Articles of Confederation are discarded and the Constitution created during the long hot Philadelphia summer of 1787. NY's Gouvernor Morris is shown as a decisive player in creating the strong executive post. A lot of happenstance in the genesis of the post and its powers. Some random choices changed it all. A very interesting read.

[Ihsaan · Rating 4 out of 5]

An incredibly interesting history of why there is a chief executive, what the framers intended, and the actualities of what the office of the president became in the first 20 yrs after. The differences in opinion and expectations between the congressional delegates shows the reason that the power of the president is what it is today even if it was always intended to be that way.

[Wrdwrrior · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting. We have been fighting about state/versus national since the first breath out of the mouths of the Continental Congress. I always wondered why Alexander Hamilton was never president, but given his penchant for monarchy-type rule, now I know.

[Sarah Mellington-Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

People need to read this and 'educate' themselves!

[Brian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked the narrative parts of this book that take readers inside the action of the framers' development of executive power in the U.S.A. The author lets us see where the lofty ideals of independent governance intersect the economic and political realities of the day. This book is a must-read to understand how we got the kind of executive branch that we did.