The Scarlet Thread of Scandal: Morality and the American Presidency
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Book Overview
Never before have Americans been more concerned about the moral dimensions of presidential leadership. What role should morality play in the decision making of our most powerful elected official? What did the Founders think about the significance of morality in this cherished political institution? Does the private behavior of a president influence his or her ability to lead our nation? In The Scarlet Thread of Scandal, eminent scholar Charles W. Dunn turns a penetrating eye to the history of presidential scandals to answer these and other pressing questions. Scandals are surely nothing new in the White House ever since the creation of the republic, presidents have made morally questionable judgments, whether constitutional, ethical, legal, or personal. In eloquent and judicious prose, Dunn chronicles the numerous controversies in presidential history, paying particular attention to their impact on the American people and public memory. The Scarlet Thread of Scandal will make all Americans think differently about past, present, and future presidents."
Format:Hardcover
Language:English
ISBN:0847696065
ISBN13:9780847696062
Release Date:December 1999
Publisher:Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Length:224 Pages
Weight:1.05 lbs.
Dimensions:0.8" x 6.2" x 9.3"
Customer Reviews
1 rating
Thought provoking history
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 24 years ago
Dunn's invaluable book offers an impartial examination of historical basis of the conduct of our past presidents. Rather than taking the standard polemical swipe at one political party, this book succintly and usefully explores how the moral integrity and failings of previous presidents have much to tell us. By force of a clear, readable writing style, Dunn offers strikingly lively vignettes of each president to have served, and through this to deliver an authoritative narrative regarding the moral underpinnings of our culture and what should be expected of our leaders. Cutting through both the inanity and ideological preconceptions associated with most, if not all, of the writing that address the political scene, Dunn's detached, scholarly and firmly objective treatment of what he terms, "the seamless garment of personal and public morality" that underlies our nation's highest elective office, promises to enliven the commentary on this timeless topic. This book offers a history lesson that civic-minded individuals should assuredly encounter.
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