The President As Statesman

Daniel D. Stid is the Program Director of U.S. Democracy at the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. He began his career as a political scientist teaching at Wabash College and subsequently served as a Congressional Fellow on the staff of the House Majority Leader and a consultant for various non-profit and private-public sector groups. Trygve Throntveit is Director of Strategic Partnership, Minnesota Humanities Center, and Global Fellow for History and Public Policy, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. He is the author of Power without Victory: Woodrow Wilson and the American Internationalist Experiment and William James and the Quest for an Ethical Republic.

"A very original and well-done account of Woodrow Wilson's failure to accomplish his goal of reshaping the national polity. This is an instructive, well-researched, and refreshing essay in the enduring character of American government."--Choice "A detailed study, rich in nuance, that should interest students of American history, political theory, constitutional development, the presidency, and the American party system. Its contributions to current discussions of the wisdom of separated powers and the place of Woodrow Wilson in the evolving American political tradition are considerable."--Perspectives on Political Science "A thoughtful and detailed intellectual biography that provides a convincing account of how Wilson shifted between idealism and pragmatism as moved from scholarship to political practice."--Journal of Southern History "Stid shows convincingly how Wilson both attacked and adapted the American system of separation of powers. An original, intelligent book."--Harvey C. Mansfield, author of Taming the Prince "A valuable contribution to our understanding of the continuing importance of Wilson's political thought to explaining and improving our government."--Kendrick A. Clements, author of The Presidency of Woodrow Wilson "This book helps us think intelligently about the most pressing political challenges the country faces at the twilight of another century."--Sidney M. Milkis, author of The President and the Parties "This exceptionally fine study of statesmanship and the constitutional order will interest students of Wilson, of the presidency, and of American political development more generally."--Jeffrey Tulis, author of The Rhetorical Presidency "A book of genuine distinction. The most faithful rendering we have of the ambivalence, contradictions, and above all moderation of Wilson's conception of political leadership."--Richard J. Ellis, author of Presidential Lightning Rods and The Dark Side of the Left: Illiberal Egalitarianism in America "A fascinating study of Wilson's lifelong, unresolved tensions."--Louis Fisher, author of Presidential War Power and Constitutional Conflicts Between Congress and the President