The American Presidency: Origins and Development, 1776–2014 Seventh Edition by Sidney M. Milkis and Michael C. Nelson (CQ Press)

Milkis and Nelson’s The American Presidency: Origins and Development, 1776-2014 is an outstanding introduction to the U.S. presidency. It is informative and crisply written. Students like it and it I find it very easy to teach from. It provides students the information they need on the history and development of the U.S. presidency in a format that is accessible without sacrificing intellectual rigor.

The Milkis and Nelson text is an excellent example of how to ground Political Science within an historical setting and create a narrative of institutional development. It strikes a good balance between the presidency as an institution occupied by a strong singular personality and the presidency as the executive power of an entire country, growing larger as the country does as well. The chapters, while focusing on the iconic presidents, also do an effective job of framing presidential challenges within themes, such as war powers, hurdles in dealing with the bureaucracy, fighting for (or losing) authority within the political system, etc. The choice to begin with creating the constitutional president and then working through a chronological succession is beneficial for students to grasp how the institution has changed over time and just as importantly, why it has.Weaving insightful treatments of major transformations of the presidency into a lively narrative that encompasses every chief executive, Milkis and Nelson have written an essential history of the office.  Still going strong after a quarter of a century, The American Presidency has been a favorite text for generations of my students."  

The American Presidency examines the constitutional foundation of the executive office and the social, economic, political, and international forces that have reshaped it along with the influence individual presidents have had. Authors Sidney Milkis and Michael Nelson look at each presidency broadly, focusing on how individual presidents have sought to navigate the complex and ever-changing terrain of the executive office and revealing the major developments that launched a modern presidency at the dawn of the twentieth century. By connecting presidential conduct to the defining eras of American history and the larger context of politics and government in the United States, this award-winning book offers perspective and insight on the limitations and possibilities of presidential power.

In this Seventh Edition, marking the 25th anniversary of The American Presidency’s publication, the authors add new scholarship to every chapter, reexamine the end of George W. Bush’s tenure, assess President Obama’s first term in office, and explore Obama’s second term.