The Presidency and Rhetorical Leadership

The Presidency and Rhetorical Leadership PDF Author: Leroy G. Dorsey
Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
ISBN: 9781603440561
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 284

Get Book Here

Book Description
Successful presidential leadership depends upon words as well as deeds. In this multifaceted look at rhetorical leadership, twelve leading scholars in three different disciplines provide in-depth studies of how words have served or disserved American presidents. At the heart of rhetorical leadership lies the classical concept of prudence, practical wisdom that combines good sense with good character. From their disparate treatments of a range of presidencies, an underlying agreement emerges among the historians, political scientists, and communication scholars included in the volume. To be effective, they find, presidents must be able to articulate the common good in a particular situation and they must be credible on the basis of their own character. Who they are and what they can do are thus twin pillars of successful rhetorical leadership. Leroy G. Dorsey introduces these themes, and David Zarefsky picks them up in looking at the historical development of rhetorical leadership within the office of the presidency. Each succeeding chapter then examines the rhetorical leadership of a particular president, often within the context of a specific incident or challenge that marked his term in office. Chapters dealing with George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton offer the specifics for a clearer understanding of how rhetoric serves leadership in the American presidency. This book provides an indispensable addition to the literature on the presidency and in leadership studies.

The Presidency and Rhetorical Leadership

The Presidency and Rhetorical Leadership PDF Author: Leroy G. Dorsey
Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
ISBN: 9781603440561
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 284

Get Book Here

Book Description
Successful presidential leadership depends upon words as well as deeds. In this multifaceted look at rhetorical leadership, twelve leading scholars in three different disciplines provide in-depth studies of how words have served or disserved American presidents. At the heart of rhetorical leadership lies the classical concept of prudence, practical wisdom that combines good sense with good character. From their disparate treatments of a range of presidencies, an underlying agreement emerges among the historians, political scientists, and communication scholars included in the volume. To be effective, they find, presidents must be able to articulate the common good in a particular situation and they must be credible on the basis of their own character. Who they are and what they can do are thus twin pillars of successful rhetorical leadership. Leroy G. Dorsey introduces these themes, and David Zarefsky picks them up in looking at the historical development of rhetorical leadership within the office of the presidency. Each succeeding chapter then examines the rhetorical leadership of a particular president, often within the context of a specific incident or challenge that marked his term in office. Chapters dealing with George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton offer the specifics for a clearer understanding of how rhetoric serves leadership in the American presidency. This book provides an indispensable addition to the literature on the presidency and in leadership studies.

The End of the Rhetorical Presidency?

The End of the Rhetorical Presidency? PDF Author: Diane J. Heith
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000098184
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 240

Get Book Here

Book Description
The End of the Rhetorical Presidency? Public Leadership in the Trump Era explores one of the most disruptive aspects of the Trump presidency. Since the FDR administration, presidents developed the capacity and skill to use the public to influence the legislative arena, gain reelection, survive scandal and secure their legacy. Consequently, presidential rhetorical leadership has its own norms and expectations. Comparing President Trump’s communications apparatus as well as rhetoric (including Twitter) to previous presidents, Diane Heith demonstrates how Trump exercises leadership by adhering to some of these norms and expectations, but rejects, abandons and undermines most. Heith argues that his individual, rather than institutional, approach to leadership represents a change in tone, language and style. She concludes that the loss of skill and capacity represents a devolution of the White House institution dedicated to public leadership, especially in the legislative arena. More significantly, the individual approach emphasizes weakening the ability of the press and other political elites to hold the president accountable. This book will appeal to students and scholars of the presidency as well as general readers who quest for a deeper understanding of the Trump White House.

The Rhetorical Presidency

The Rhetorical Presidency PDF Author: Jeffrey K. Tulis
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400888360
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 264

Get Book Here

Book Description
Modern presidents regularly appeal over the heads of Congress to the people at large to generate support for public policies. The Rhetorical Presidency makes the case that this development, born at the outset of the twentieth century, is the product of conscious political choices that fundamentally transformed the presidency and the meaning of American governance. Now with a new foreword by Russell Muirhead and a new afterword by the author, this landmark work probes political pathologies and analyzes the dilemmas of presidential statecraft. Extending a tradition of American political writing that begins with The Federalist and continues with Woodrow Wilson’s Congressional Government, The Rhetorical Presidency remains a pivotal work in its field.

The Prospect of Presidential Rhetoric

The Prospect of Presidential Rhetoric PDF Author: Martin J. Medhurst
Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
ISBN: 9781585446278
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 402

Get Book Here

Book Description
Culminating a decade of conferences that have explored presidential speech, The Prospect of Presidential Rhetoric assesses progress and suggests directions for both the practice of presidential speech and its study. In Part One, following an analytic review of the field by Martin Medhurst, contributors address the state of the art in their own areas of expertise. Roderick P. Hart then summarizes their work in the course of his rebuttal of an argument made by political scientist George Edwards: that presidential rhetoric lacks political impact. Part Two of the volume consists of the forward-looking reports of six task forces, comprising more than forty scholars, charged with outlining the likely future course of presidential rhetoric, as well as the major questions scholars should ask about it and the tools at their disposal. The Prospect of Presidential Rhetoric will serve as a pivotal work for students and scholars of public discourse and the presidency who seek to understand the shifting landscape of American political leadership.

The Moral Rhetoric of American Presidents

The Moral Rhetoric of American Presidents PDF Author: Colleen J. Shogan
Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
ISBN: 9781585446391
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 252

Get Book Here

Book Description
Although sometimes decried by pundits, George W. Bush’s use of moral and religious rhetoric is far from unique in the American presidency. Throughout history and across party boundaries, presidents have used such appeals, with varying degrees of political success. The Moral Rhetoric of American Presidents astutely analyzes the president’s role as the nation’s moral spokesman. Armed with quantitative methods from political science and the qualitative case study approach prevalent in rhetorical studies, Colleen J. Shogan demonstrates that moral and religious rhetoric is not simply a reflection of individual character or an expression of American “civil religion” but a strategic tool presidents can use to enhance their constitutional authority. To determine how the use of moral rhetoric has changed over time, Shogan employs content analysis of the inaugural and annual addresses of all the presidents from George Washington through George W. Bush. This quantitative evidence shows that while presidents of both parties have used moral and religious arguments, the frequency has fluctuated considerably and the language has become increasingly detached from relevant policy arguments. Shogan explores the political effects of the rhetorical choices presidents make through nine historical cases (Presidents Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Buchanan, Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and Carter). She shows that presidents who adapt their rhetoric to the political conditions at hand enhance their constitutional authority, while presidents who ignore political constraints suffer adverse political consequences. The case studies allow Shogan to highlight the specific political circumstances that encourage or discourage the use of moral rhetoric. Shogan concludes with an analysis of several dilemmas of governance instigated by George W. Bush’s persistent devotion to moral and religious argumentation.

Beyond the Rhetorical Presidency

Beyond the Rhetorical Presidency PDF Author: Martin J. Medhurst
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 304

Get Book Here

Book Description
With the administrations of Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson, the American presidency underwent many profound changes. Chief among those was a radical evolution in the interaction of the president with the general public. Divided into three sections, the ten essays of this volume focus on that evolution and offer thought-provoking analyses concerning the role of presidential rhetoric in passing policy, generating support, and promoting public discourse. In Part I, Jeffrey Tulis, who introduced the concept of the rhetorical presidency more than a decade ago, considers how the dilemmas he envisioned as part of that concept change just as the political arena changes. Glen E. Thurow reflects on private virtue and public duty as aspects of presidential character. Bruce E. Gronbeck argues that the electronic age has fundamentally changed the nature and impact of presidential rhetoric and, indeed, the presidency itself, while Thomas W. Benson contemplates whether politics is even possible in the environment of current computer-mediated communications. Part II turns from theoretical and metatheoretical explorations to practical criticism in a series of case studies. Roderick P. Hart and Kathleen Kendall evaluate the significance of a single telephone conversation about civil rights between Vice President Lyndon Johnson and Theodore Sorenson in June, 1963. Using Richard Nixon's rhetoric as the example from which to draw general themes and issues, Edwin Black considers the complex moral economy that supports presidential self-invention. G. Thomas Goodnight uses the debate over Ronald Reagan's policy toward Central America to study "rhetorical history . . . contested memory and the uses of time in the service of power." Robert L. Ivie examines Graubard's critique of presidential war rhetoric in the context of the Persian Gulf action. Karlyn Kohrs Campbell presents a framework for understanding the public views of the First Lady, focusing on Hillary Rodham Clinton but drawing historical parallels. Finally, Part III of this volume offers a social scientific assessment of the theoretical and interpretive research on presidential rhetoric from one of the nation's leading scholars of the presidency, George Edwards. An introduction and afterword by series editor Martin J. Medhurst seek to clarify the nature and status of the debate about the rhetorical presidency. Beyond the Rhetorical Presidency offers scholars with an interest in speech communication and political science a volume that reexamines the place and significance of presidential rhetoric.

The End of the Rhetorical Presidency?

The End of the Rhetorical Presidency? PDF Author: DIANE J. HEITH
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 9780367522544
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 176

Get Book Here

Book Description
The End of the Rhetorical Presidency? Public Leadership in the Trump Era explores one of the most disruptive aspects of the Trump presidency. Since the FDR administration, presidents developed the capacity and skill to use the public to influence the legislative arena, gain re-election, survive scandal and secure their legacy. Consequently, presidential rhetorical leadership has its own norms and expectations. Comparing President Trump's communications apparatus as well as rhetoric (including Twitter) to previous presidents, Diane Heith demonstrates how Trump exercises leadership by adhering to some of these norms and expectations, but rejects, abandons and undermines most. Heith argues that his individual, rather than institutional, approach to leadership represents a change in tone, language and style. She concludes that the loss of skill and capacity represents a devolution of the White House institution dedicated to public leadership, especially in the legislative arena. More significantly, the individual approach emphasizes weakening the ability of the press and other political elites to hold the president accountable. This book will appeal to students and scholars of the presidency as well as general readers who quest for a deeper understanding of the Trump White House in particular.

Rethinking the Rhetorical Presidency

Rethinking the Rhetorical Presidency PDF Author: Jeffrey Friedman
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135755914
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 311

Get Book Here

Book Description
In The Rhetorical Presidency, Jeffrey Tulis argues that the president’s relationship to the public has changed dramatically since the Constitution was enacted: while previously the president avoided any discussions of public policy so as to avoid demagoguery, the president is now expected to go directly to the public, using all the tools of rhetoric to influence public policy. This has effectively created a "second" Constitution that has been layered over, and in part contradicts, the original one. In our volume, scholars from different subfields of political science extend Tulis’s perspective to the judiciary and Congress; locate the origins of the constitutional change in the Progressive Era; highlight the role of Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, and the mass media in transforming the presidency; discuss the nature of demagoguery and whether, in fact, rhetoric is undesirable; and relate the rhetorical presidency to the public’s ignorance of the workings of a government more complex than the Founders imagined. This book was originally published as a special issue of Critical Review: A Journal of Politics and Society.

Speaking to the People

Speaking to the People PDF Author: Richard J. Ellis
Publisher: Political Development of the A
ISBN: 9781558491588
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 294

Get Book Here

Book Description
Evaluates the changing role of popular leadership and presidential rhetoric in American politics

The Values of Presidential Leadership

The Values of Presidential Leadership PDF Author: J. Wren
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 0230609333
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 239

Get Book Here

Book Description
Contributors address aspects of presidential leadership in essays on how presidential values are determined or constructed, how they are condoned and criticized, how they are packaged and conveyed, and how they are interpreted and acted upon. Includes scholars from communication, history, law, philosophy, political science, and psychology