Rose Rosetree’s Reviews > Washington: A Life > Status Update

As I read about the controversies manufactured to take down America's first president, sigh!

It seems to me, it's not just that America was a young nation. The citizens were immature--impulsive and often vicious. Tht goes for some of our Founding Fathers, too.

In Washington's second term, the criticism is perpetual and includes many of his fellow politicians.

Meanwhile, privately, he faces such health struggles as -- at one time, only having 1 tooth of his own in his head. The false teeth of the era sound grotesque.

Yet George persevered, doing his honorable best.

Sadly, both George and Martha Washington lied --and flouted the law--in order to proect their slave-holding interests.

It's a very sad part of his biography, to be sure.

Many American "leaders" did everything they could to sabotage centralized government. They reminded me of teenagers who rebelled against parental authority (in this case, England and King George).

Yet, aside from rebelling, they had few ideas about how they could make their independence actually work.

After the first State of the Union Address, President Washington made wise choices and relied upon his very able ally, Alexander Hamilton, to help him.

Early in his first term, President Washington has tasked himself with visiting all 13 of the states. How did he endure all the performance art required?

For the first time since starting this magnificent biography by Ron Chernow, even I am bored. All the posturing by Gov. John Hancock, especially! President George's sense of duty kept him going but (as it seems to me) just barely.

How did Martha Washington respond to being the wife of the first president?

I'll put bluntly what biographer Chernow worked very hard to sanitize:

She never stopped resenting her life. Hated politics. Stayed at home a lot. And clamped a cheerful expression onto her face.

Okay, she did what she had to do to survive. But, really?

While planning for the Inauguration was underway, back in England, King George had a spell of insanity.

During which he imagined that HE was George Washington, being inaugurated as president.

(I figure this detail is not a "spoiler")

The description of America's first Presidential Inauguration was so touching.

George W. assumed the Constitution would be amended in the future. Frequently.

I wish we had done!