The Cult of Executive Power by George Leef July 1, 2008 The Cult of the Presidency: America’s Dangerous Devotion to Executive Power by Gene Healy (Cato Institute, 2008); 356 pages. Just in time for the 2008 presidential campaign comes the book we need to get Americans to think sensibly about the office that the candidates are so furiously seeking. In The Cult of the Presidency, Cato Institute scholar Gene Healy looks at the powers of the presidency today in comparison with the office in the past and concludes that we are immeasurably worse off because the presidency has taken on powers never imagined by the nation’s Founders. Most Americans expect the president to be a Superman, doing everything from consoling them after tragedies to smashing terrorism, from guaranteeing that every child is well educated to managing the economy. Healy shows us that Americans have made a mistake of monumental proportions in creating these absurd expectations and investing ...
The Cult of Executive Power by Jacob G. Hornberger March 30, 2010 The Cult of the Presidency: America’s Dangerous Devotion to Executive Power by Gene Healy (Cato Institute, 2008); 356 pages. Just in time for the 2008 presidential campaign comes the book we need to get Americans to think sensibly about the office that the candidates are so furiously seeking. In The Cult of the Presidency, Cato Institute scholar Gene Healy looks at the powers of the presidency today in comparison with the office in the past and concludes that we are immeasurably worse off because the presidency has taken on powers never imagined by the nation’s Founders. Most Americans expect the president to be a Superman, doing everything from consoling them after tragedies to smashing terrorism, from guaranteeing that every child is well educated ...
America’s Anti-Militarist Heritage by George Leef January 1, 2009 Ain’t My America: The Long, Noble History of Antiwar Conservatism and Middle-American Anti-Imperialism by Bill Kauffman (Metropolitan Books, 2008); 284 pages, $25. Americans don’t have much historical memory anymore. That isn’t just because of the dumbing down of the educational system and the fact that most young people read very little on their own. It’s because most of what little they do hear about our history is colored by statist theology. But if you talk to some older Americans — people in their 70s and 80s — you will encounter a few who know some important things. First, they know that there was widespread opposition to the wars the United States fought in the 20th century; and second, they know that most of the opposition to war came from the “Right.” That is, “liberals” were the ones champing at the bit to send American forces into ...
Book Review: A Time for War by Richard M. Ebeling July 1, 1992 A Time for War: Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Path to Pearl Harbor by Robert Smith Thompson (New York: Prentice Hall Press, 1991); 449 pages; $24.95. As the 1940 presidential campaign was approaching its conclusion, President Franklin Roosevelt — running for an unprecedented third term of office — delivered an address in Boston on October 30. He stated unequivocally his position ...
Book Review: A Time for War by Jacob G. Hornberger March 30, 2010 A Time for War: Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Path to Pearl Harbor by Robert Smith Thompson (New York: Prentice Hall Press, 1991); 449 pages; $24.95. As the 1940 presidential campaign was approaching its conclusion, President Franklin Roosevelt — running for an unprecedented third term of office ...
Book Review: Scapegoats by Richard M. Ebeling October 1, 1995 Scapegoats: A Defense of Kimmel and Short at Pearl Harbor by Edward L. Beach (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1995); 212 pages; $24.95. At 7:48 on the morning of December 7, 1941, the first Japanese planes reached the northern shore of Oahu. This first wave of attack planes had taken off from their carriers almost two hours earlier, from their positions ...
Book Review: Power Kills by Richard M. Ebeling November 1, 1997 Power Kills: Democracy as a Method of Nonviolence by R.J. Rummel (New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction Books, 1997); 246 pages; $32.95. In 1994, political scientist R.J. Rummel summarized the consequences of tyrannical government in the 20th century in his book Death by Government. (See the review in Freedom Daily, October 1994.) His research showed that governments around the world had killed ...
Book Review: Power Kills by Jacob G. Hornberger March 30, 2010 Power Kills: Democracy as a Method of Nonviolence by R.J. Rummel (New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction Books, 1997); 246 pages; $32.95. In 1994, political scientist R.J. Rummel summarized the consequences of tyrannical government in the 20th century in his book ...
Book Review: Power Kills by Jacob G. Hornberger March 30, 2010 Power Kills: Democracy as a Method of Nonviolence by R.J. Rummel (New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction Books, 1997); 246 pages; $32.95. In 1994, political scientist R.J. Rummel summarized the consequences of tyrannical government in the 20th century in his book ...
Book Review: War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning by Richard M. Ebeling March 1, 2003 War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning by Chris Hedges (New York: Public Affairs, 2002); 211 pages; $23. During the Second World War, my mother worked for the Department of the Navy in Washington, D.C. When I was growing up, she would sometimes look back at those war years with a great degree of nostalgia. She would say that in ...
Book Review: War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning by Jacob G. Hornberger March 30, 2010 War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning by Chris Hedges (New York: Public Affairs, 2002); 211 pages; $23. During the Second World War, my mother worked for the Department of the Navy in Washington, D.C. When I was growing up, she would sometimes look back at those war years with a great ...
Book Review: War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning by Jacob G. Hornberger March 30, 2010 War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning by Chris Hedges (New York: Public Affairs, 2002); 211 pages; $23. During the Second World War, my mother worked for the Department of the Navy in Washington, D.C. When I was growing up, she would sometimes look back at those war years with a great degree of nostalgia. She would say ...
