This thoroughly revised edition features thought-provoking original essays, written by some of the field's most prominent scholars, and reflects the best in presidential scholarship. The eighth edition combines new and time-tested essays to revisit the themes of presidential power and perceptions. With four new readings and significant updating by returning contributors, students learn how recent political developments influence the executive branch, and how these developments in turn shape the media, interest groups, political parties, bureaucrats, and others who move in the presidential orbit.

Michael Nelson has put together another winning combination of classic pieces—including chapters by Tulis, Skowronek, Quirk, Miroff, Burke, and Milkis—and new essays, from David Lewis on bureaucracy to Andrew Polsky on war powers to Andrew Rudalevige on the cabinet. Ever conscious that the office has been powerfully shaped by history, each author offers context and insight while ensuring that theoretical ideas and perspectives are explored, developed, and clearly explained. The eighth edition of this widely anticipated collection once again proves to be the most balanced and compelling look at our nation’s highest office.

Preface
Contributors

1. Evaluating the Presidency, Michael Nelson

Part I. Approaches to the Presidency
2. The American Presidency in Comparative Perspective: Systems, Situations, and Leaders, Bert A. Rockman
3. The Two Constitutional Presidencies, Jeffrey K. Tulis

Part II. Elements of Presidential Power
4. Presidential Leadership in Political Time, Stephen Skowronek
5. Presidential Competence, Paul J. Quirk
6. The Psychological Presidency, Michael Nelson

Part III. Presidential Selection
7. The Presidency and the Nominating Process: Politics and Power, Richard Pious
8. The Presidency and the Election Campaign: Altering Voters' Priorities in the 2004 Election, John H. Aldrich and John D. Griffin

Part IV. Presidents and Politics
9. The Presidency and Political Trust, Marc J. Hetherington and Suzanne Globetti
10. The Presidential Spectacle, Bruce Miroff
11. The Presidency and the Press, Lawrence R. Jacobs
12. The Presidency and Interest Groups: Programmatic Ambitions and Policy Leadership, Daniel J. Tichenor
13. The Presidency and Political Parties, Sidney M. Milkis

Part V. Presidents and Government
14. The Institutional Presidency, John P. Burke
15. NEW! The Presidency and Bureaucracy, David E. Lewis
16. NEW! Presidents, Prime Ministers, and the Career Bureaucracy, Colin Campbell
17. The President and Congress, Matthew Dickinson
18. The Presidency and the Judiciary, David A. Yalof
19. Divided Government and Policymaking: Negotiating the Laws, Paul J. Quirk and Bruce Nesmith
20. NEW! The Presidency and the Cabinet, Andrew Rudalevige
21. NEW! The Presidency at War, Andrew J. Polsky

Index

“Michael Nelson’s The Presidency and the Political System is essential reading for any presidency course. Students like this book because the contributions are interesting, timely, and accessible. Professors will appreciate it because the volume, throughout its many editions, continues to engage important topics in the study of the presidency.”

“I have used Michael Nelson’s The Presidency and the Political System in my undergraduate presidency class through several editions. I find the essays in the book to be accessible to all my students and challenging to my best students. The essays are continually updated to keep them relevant while offering an excellent theoretical basis for understanding the presidency in a number of contexts.”

“Nelson’s line-up of leading presidential scholars in The Presidency and the Political System remains a must-read for students. The topics in the text cover the range of concepts most any class on the presidency will address. The detail, scholarly expertise, and quality of writing in each chapter keeps students engaged and thoroughly informed.”

“I’ve used every edition of The Presidency and the Political System in my presidency courses over the years. The competition never matches the scope of its coverage nor the range of insights and the depth of knowledge that its authors bring to their analyses. My students find it both challenging and accessible–a perfect combination in a book for undergraduate courses.”

Michael Nelson teaches courses on U.S. politics, presidency, and the Constitutional Convention at Rhodes College. In addition, he participates in the college's humanities course: The Search for Values in the Light of Western History and Religion. Before coming to Rhodes in 1991, he taught at Vanderbilt University for thirteen years and was the editor of The Washington Monthly. His most recent books are The Presidency and the Political System, 8th ed. (2006), The Elections of 2004 (2005), The Evolving Presidency, 2nd ed. (2004), The American Presidency: Origins and Development, 1776-2002, 4th ed. (with Sidney M. Milkis, 2003), Governing Gambling: Politics and Policy in State, Tribe, and Nation (with John Lyman Mason, 2001), and Celebrating the Humanities: A Half Century of the Search Course at Rhodes College (1996).