Presidential Machismo

The US presidency is the most powerful office in the world, claiming a prerogative to exercise force in foreign affairs that, according to Harry S. Truman, would have made Caesar or Genghis Khan envious. This book offers a historical account of how presidents from George Washington to Bill Clinton have asserted their privilege as commander-in-chief, examining their penchant for using military might unilaterally and their reasons for doing so. It asks why a democracy allows presidents to exercise such immense power vitually as a personal right.