James Barber Chapter Summary

The president’s accumulation of personal power can make up for his lack of institutional powers. The president must act as the “lubricant” for the other sectors of government in order to preserve order and accomplish business. Neustadt emphasizes the president’s ability to forge strong personal relationships and his or her

The government holds a crucial status to its citizens, executive branch specifically, is overlooked to symbolize leadership. Nowadays, the president’s office is believed to exemplify the values of the American people. There are certain powers allocated to the president by the United States Constitution, however; the responsibility and vacancy of the President tend to evolve from one president to the next. Characteristics of presidents and their effect on political decisions has beneficial aspects

Over the centuries, America has welcomed presidents from different backgrounds and political viewpoints. Most men who became presidents didn’t win their way in by mentioning what they wanted to accomplish but by displaying empathy and kindness to the citizens. Franklin Roosevelt and Lyndon B. Johnson are two great examples of how they earned the citizens heart and support. However, their support and popularity didn’t assure their presidency would be a success which wasn’t as successful as their presidential vote victories.

Many would agree that being the President of the United States of America is not only one of the toughest positions one can hold; it is also the most nerve-wracking position one can have. Simultaneously, the president has many responsibilities, and often receive the blame for anything that occurs during their term. History always offer insights into a president’s second term. If there is one thing we know, we know that second presidential terms habitually do not turn out pleasant. The reason being is that most second-term presidents suffer from a lethal infection known as the “second-term curse” which is the result of scandals, financial declines, ostracized wars, and many other supplementary hitches. Presidents Harry Truman, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, and George W. Bush are examples of some presidents who faced that curse.

The United States has had several presidents each with their own set of beliefs and policies. Along with having different personalities, many are known for different things that happened during their administration whether it be a good thing or a bad thing. Two presidents who can arguably be most memorable because of bad things that went on in their administrations are Bill Clinton and Richard Nixon. These two men has many different ways of thinking as well as being similar in some aspects. In this paper, these characteristics will be looked at.

One of the president’s main goals during their term is to leave a positive and lasting impression on the country. No man wants to be known for the way that they ruined the economy or lost the trust of the citizens because of their poor law making skills or their lack of leadership skills. The president that I chose to analyze was President William Jefferson Clinton. He may not have left the office as a saint, but he did leave an impression on the nation that makes him a well-respected president in America’s history.

In chapter 22 when James Mcbride meets Aubrey Rubenstein he learns more about his family and the way things were for them back in the day. James had been looking for bits of his family’s past and where they came from in order to understand a bit more of who he was. For instance,”I wanted to see it, then tell my black wife and my two children about it because some of my blood runs through there, because my family has history there, because there’s a part of me in there whether I, or those that run the synagogue, like it or not”. James finally says that he has found that for which he has been looking at this point in the story because he has finally visited the places his family grew up in, got to speak to the people that knew his family well

Presidential Leadership: Rating the Best and the Worst in the White House, rates and describes the presidents by their leadership and personal traits while serving as President. This book also examines and gives light to the lives of the presidents before taking office. This book is comprised of the opinions of several different authors, and gives readers understanding in regards to what makes each president excellent, terrible, or in-between according to their rating system.

Some leaders can help their nation thrive while others cause the downfall. Most leaders fall somewhere in between these two extremes. In The Odyssey by Homer, Odysseus is the king of Ithaca and is Trojan War hero. In the United States of America, Donald Trump is the President and is also a leader in business. Trump’s personality is analyzed in “Trump as Communicator” by Heather Higgins and “Is Trump Like Hitler?” by Bjorn Krondorfer.

Have you ever wondered how difficult it is to be a president? Well it is not as simple as it may seem, being a president means constantly being watched, judged and put into a lot of pressure to take on the responsibility for the country. In this paper I will discuss about the president, a widowed leader of the free world, father, and card carrying member of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Andrew Shepherd, who is a competent communicator because of self monitoring, empathy and cognitive complex.

“Presidents may be active or passive in terms of the effort invested in their jobs; they also may be positive or negative about their positions (Maltese, 164). In regards with President Bill Clinton and President Franklin D. Roosevelt, James Barber identifies them as an “Active-positive”. Active-positives display personal growth and stability, which they take pleasure in their job and the challenges they face with power productivity to pursue their objectives. Also, they pragmatic political figures that possess flexibility in their pursuit of achieving their goals and are willing to alter or abolishing their goals rather than experience severe consequences (Maltese, 164).

The presidency, even though loose in definition, upholds high standards for this country and are often the face of emotion and strength for America. The presidency is much more than just an institution or title, it is the focus for the most intense and persistent emotions in the American polity. The president is a symbolic leader, the one figure who draws together the people’s hopes and fears for the political future. He or she strives to help people make sense of politics. The support he or she has from the public and interest groups, the party balance in COngress, the thrust of the Supreme COurt opinion together set the basic power situation he must deal with. The president should be a “master politician” who is above all politics. Each President defines a unique leadership role that is strategic choice to enhance political

The most important trait to have as a president is being sympathetic. Being sympathetic means feeling, showing, or expressing sympathy. Johnson (LBJ) exemplified this trait when he was making decisions and by making a lot of acts and programs and things to help people who need it. Being sympathetic as a president is very important because if the president is not sympathetic than when the president makes a decision or does something it will not be based on what they think will be good, and will be based on the people thing is good, and or need. If the president does not consider any one then the people will not be happy LBJ exemplified this trait a lot but a few times were when he fought a lot for African-American’s, when he decided not to

The modern presidency has in a sense become a double-edged sword in that presidents have become beneficiaries of anything positive that can be attributed to government, but also can be blamed for anything bad occurring in society. Quite simply, the modern president has become the center of our political system (The Modern Presidency, 2004). The men who have dealt with this double-edged sword known as the modern presidency have often walked a very fine line between effectiveness and ineffectiveness, but all have attempted to use their power in one way or another.

There is much debate among political scientists over how indicative a president’s first 100 days are to the relative success of a president’s remaining term. Regardless of an evident correlation or not, the first 100 days of a president continue to be much examined topic. President Franklin D. Roosevelt had an unprecedented first 100 days and every president since then has been measured against the effectiveness of FDR. For the purpose of this analytical essay Presidents Harry Truman and Lyndon B. Johnson will be examined in comparison with FDR. Truman and Johnson were not initially elected as president, but stepped in the finish the term of the elected presidents who had died in office, FDR and John F. Kennedy, respectively. The successes of Presidents Truman and Johnson in their first 100 days stem from catering to Congress, having had experience in Congress, leadership skills and additionally by having public support or high approval ratings.