Michael Beschloss (Photo: Stephen Voss)
From James Madison and the War of 1812 to recent times, a procession of American presidents took the nation into conflict and mobilized the country for victory. They struggled with Congress, the courts, the press, their own advisors, and antiwar protesters, and sought comfort from their spouses, families and friends, and prayer. We have come to understand how these presidents were able to withstand the pressures of war—both physically and emotionally—or were broken by them.
Join Michael Beschloss as he draws on his new book, Presidents of War to examine the chief executives who made the most difficult decisions that face any leader. He discusses how his interviews and his findings in original letters, diaries, once-classified national security documents, and other sources gave him insights into how presidential decisions were made over the course of two centuries of wars. Beschloss traces how far we have traveled from the time of our founders, who tried to constrain presidential power, to the modern day when a single leader has the potential to launch nuclear weapons that can destroy much of the world.
Beschloss is the author of nine books on presidential history, the NBC News presidential historian, and a PBS NewsHour contributor.
Copies of Presidents of War (Crown) are available for purchase and signing.
