The President as Leader: Appealing to the Better Angels of Our Nature

This book is enormously interesting. The study of the presidency has evolved from biographical insights, to cumulative insight, to quantitative and formal modeling. Hargrove provides an interesting middle ground by constructing a foundation for analysis which harkens back to the big questions of politics (from Aristotelian rhetoric onward) and applies them to the study of the American presidency. Some insights are profound, others the stuff of common sense. Regardless, he provides a novel way to think about the presidency and does a great service to all who want to truly further their understanding of the institution.

While the book looks like a good deal of other theory books, it differs in that it is quite easy to read. Even though Hargrove's ideas sometimes seem like common sense, I've refered back to them on many occasions when reading about presidents and their actions. I recommend it to anyone who wants to further understand motives in the presidency.