Religion and the American Presidency

Religion and the American Presidency
Author: Gastón Espinosa
Publisher:
Total Pages: 566
Release: 2009
Genre: History
ISBN:

This book challenges the idea that the mixing of religion and presidential politics is a new phenomenon. It explores how presidents have drawn on their religious upbringing, rhetoric, ideas, and beliefs to promote their domestic and foreign policies to the nation. This influence is evident in Washington's decision to add "so help me God" to the presidential oath, accusations by Adam's supporters that Jefferson was an infidel, Lincoln's biblical metaphors during the Civil War, and FDR's call to fight against Nazi totalitarianism on behalf of Judeo-Christian civilization. It is also apparent in Truman's support for Israel, Eisenhower's Cold War decision to add "In God We Trust" on American currency, the debate over JFK's Catholicism, Jimmy Carter's born-again Christianity, Reagan's "Evil Empire" speech, Clinton's public repentance, and George W. Bush's "crusade" against Islamic terrorists. This volume explores these issues of religion and power in the presidencies of Washington, Jefferson, Madison, Lincoln, FDR, Truman, Eisenhower, JFK, Carter, Reagan, George H. W. Bush, Clinton, and George W. Bush through scholarly interpretations, primary sources, and illustrations.

The Secrets of the Kingdom

The Secrets of the Kingdom
Author: Hugh B. Urban
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 248
Release: 2007
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 9780742552470

The Secrets of the Kingdom is the first book to critically examine the complex relationship between faith and concealment in the Bush White House.

God and George W. Bush

God and George W. Bush
Author: Paul Kengor
Publisher: Harper Collins
Total Pages: 404
Release: 2005-09-20
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 006077956X

George W. Bush has brought the question of religion back into American political life in a way that it has not been for decades. From the 2000 election through the challenges America has faced in the wake of September 11, Bush's personal faith -- and his conviction about the importance of religion in our national life -- have won him lasting admiration from the right, while attracting fury and scorn from the left. Now presidential scholar Paul Kengor, the author of the acclaimed God and Ronald Reagan, reconstructs the spiritual journey that carried George W. Bush to the White House -- from the death of his sister, which helped to shape his character, to the conversion experience that changed his life. Matching detailed new research with thoughtful analysis, God and George W. Bush is the definitive look at the spiritual life of this American president.

Faith-based Initiatives and the Bush Administration

Faith-based Initiatives and the Bush Administration
Author: Jo Renee Formicola
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2003
Genre: Church and state
ISBN: 9780742523043

In this textbook noted scholars Jo Renee Formicola and Mary C. Segers analyze the administration's initiative from three distinct dimensions.

Religion in the Oval Office

Religion in the Oval Office
Author: Gary Scott Smith
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Total Pages: 665
Release: 2015
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0199391394

Continuing the work of Faith and the Presidency (OUP 2006), Gary Scott Smith takes on eleven more US presidents and examines the role religion played in their policies, personal lives, and decisions.

High Risk And Big Ambition

High Risk And Big Ambition
Author: Steven E. Schier
Publisher: University of Pittsburgh Pre
Total Pages: 305
Release: 2004-05-30
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 082297262X

Elected with no clear public mandate, George W. Bush achieved surprising legislative successes in his early months in the White House. Following September 11, 2001, his public support rose to unprecedented heights. Actions taken in the following months and years have revealed the exceptionally ambitious nature of the Bush presidency.High Risk and Big Ambition brings together leading presidency scholars and journalists to assess the trajectory and character of Bush's time in office. The common theme running through their contributions is that this presidency is best characterized by a series of bold political and policy risks in the service of two primary goals: the transformation of American foreign policy and the creation of a lasting Republican dominance of domestic politics.Included are discussions of foreign policy, national security, the war in Iraq, Bush's leadership style, religious politics, and economic policy. George W. Bush emerges as an "orthodox innovator" who skillfully deploys both personal politics and the power of his office in an effort to complete the conservative governmental agenda initiated by Ronald Reagan. Yet because of the size of his ambitions, each success sets up a greater risk of failure. That alone makes his presidency one of the most interesting and consequential in decades.

A Man of Faith

A Man of Faith
Author: David Aikman
Publisher: HarperChristian + ORM
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2004-02-18
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 1418516392

“Offers some Bush family history, examines his wayward years and details Bush’s transformation from churchgoer to a Christian who internalized his faith.” —Publishers Weekly More than any other world leader in recent times, George W. Bush is a man of faith . . . a conservative Christian who has brought the power of prayer and the search for God’s will into the Oval Office. His faith has proven to be a bedrock of strength and resolve during two of the most tumultuous years in our nation’s history. According to Newsweek magazine, “This presidency is the most resolutely faith based in modern times. An enterprise founded, supported and guided by trust in the temporal and spiritual power of God.” David Aikman, skilled journalist and former senior correspondent for TIME magazine, pens this dramatic and gripping account of Bush’s journey to faith. Based on interviews and behind-the-scenes stories, you’ll learn how . . . His life changed after a conversation with Billy Graham on the beach at Kennebunkport He walked away from alcoholism toward a new destiny The events following 9/11 caused many to view him as God’s chosen man for this critical time in history His decision to go to war with Iraq became the ultimate test of his faith A Man of Faith . . . an intimate look at how Bush’s spiritual life has impacted his presidency, the nation, and the world.

The Man in the Middle

The Man in the Middle
Author: Timothy S. Goeglein
Publisher: B&H Publishing Group
Total Pages: 270
Release: 2011-09-15
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1433673924

Timothy Goeglein spent nearly eight years in the White House as President George W. Bush's key point of contact to American conservatives and the faith-based world and was frequently profiled in the national news media. But when a plagiarism scandal prompted his resignation, Goeglein chose not to dodge it but confront it, and was shown remarkable grace by the president. In fact, Bush showed more concern for Goeglein and his family than any personal political standing. So begins The Man in the Middle, Goeglein's unique insider account of why he believes most of the 43rd president's in-office decisions were made for the greater good, and how many of those decisions could serve as a blueprint for the emergence of a thoughtful, confident conservatism. From a fresh perspective, Goeglein gives behind-the-scenes accounts of key events during that historic two-term administration, reflecting on what was right and best about the Bush years. He was in Florida for the 2000 election recount, at the White House on 9/11, and watched Bush become a reluctant but effective wartime president. Goeglein, now the vice president with Focus on the Family, also looks back at how Bush handled matters like stem cell research, faith-based initiatives, the emergence of the Values Voters, the nominations of both Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justice Samuel Alito-in which Goeglein had a direct role-and debates over the definition of marriage. In all, The Man in the Middle backs historians who view the legacy of President George W. Bush in a favorable light, recognizing his conservative ideas worth upholding in order to better shape our nation and change the world.

The Price of Loyalty

The Price of Loyalty
Author: Ron Suskind
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Total Pages: 428
Release: 2013-03-28
Genre: Social Science
ISBN: 1471128253

A devestating account of the inner workings of the George W. Bush administration, written with the extensive cooperation of former U.S. Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill. As readers are taken to the very epicentre of government, this news-making book offers a definitive view of Bush and his closest advisers as they manage crucial domestic policies and global strategies within the most secretive White House of modern times.