Cult of the Presidency or Born Again

Cult of the Presidency: America's Dangerous Devotion to Executive Power

Author: Gene Healy

"The Cult of the Presidency cakes a step back from the ongoing red team/blue team combat and shows that, at bottom, conservatives and liberals agree on the boundless nature of presidential responsibility. For both camps, it is the president's job to grow the economy, teach our children well, provide seamless protection from terrorist threats, and rescue Americans from spiritual malaise, Very few Americans seem to think it odd, says Healy, "when presidential candidates talk as if they're running for a job that's a combination of guardian angel, shaman, and supreme warlord of the earth."" Interweaving historical scholarship, legal analysis, and trenchant cultural commentary, The Cult of the Presidency traces America's decades-long drift from the Framers' vision for the presidency: a constitutionally constrained chief magistrate charged with faithful execution of the laws. Restoring that vision will require a Congress and a Court willing to check executive power, but Healy emphasizes that there is no simple legislative or judicial "fix" to the problems of the presidency. Unless Americans change what we ask of the office - no longer demanding what we should not want and cannot have - we'll get what, in a sense, we deserve.

Table of Contents:

Introduction 1

1 Our Chief Magistrate and His Powers 15

2 "Progress" and the Presidency 49

3 The Age of the Heroic Presidency 79

4 Hero Takes a Fall 105

5 Superman Returns 137

6 War President 165

7 Omnipotence and Impotence 197

8 Why the Worst Get on Top ... and Get Worse 233

9 Toward Normalcy 267

Notes 299

Index 357

See also: Ultimate Little Frozen Drinks Book or The Boston Chefs Table

Born Again

Author: Charles W Colson

In 1974 Charles W. Colson pleaded guilty to Watergate-related offenses and, after a tumultuous investigation, served seven months in prison. In his search for meaning and purpose in the face of the Watergate scandal, Colson penned Born Again. This unforgettable memoir shows a man who, seeking fulfillment in success and power, found it, paradoxically, in national disgrace and prison.
In more than three decades since its initial publication, Born Again has brought hope and encouragement to millions. This remarkable story of new life continues to influence lives around the world. This expanded edition includes a brand-new introduction and a new epilogue by Colson, recounting the writing of his bestselling book and detailing some of the ways his background and ministry have brought hope and encouragement to so many.