Guest: Jeremi Suri, Professor of History and Mack Brown Distinguished Chair for Leadership in Global Affairs, University of Texas at Austin
Studying the past to make his case, Jeremi Suri suggests it might be time to rethink the Presidency itself in his recently-released book, THE IMPOSSIBLE PRESIDENCY: THE RISE AND FALL OF AMERICA’S HIGHEST OFFICE.
On this program, Jeremi Suri takes us on an historical journey through the personalities, accomplishments and failures of ten former Presidents, beginning with George Washington through the present day. He describes how each of them framed and expanded the role of the Presidency to the point where the massive responsibilities and challenges of conducting the office today may require an expansive model of leadership. “While Presidents were heroes in the past, they became targets of derision by the second half of the twentieth century,” states Suri.
Jeremi Suri, a former history professor at the University of Wisconsin/Madison, will be in Madison to discuss his book on Wednesday, November 1, at 7 pm at Mystery to Me Bookstore on Monroe Street and Thursday, November 2 at 5:30 pm at the Madison Central Library as part of the Wisconsin Book Festival.
