Lara Brown - Amateur Hour: Presidential Character and the Question of Leadership

Character and leadership in todays changing world! One of the biggest changes in our world recently is the seeming total disconnect between character and leadership.

In Amateur Hour: Presidential Character and the Question of Leadership, Lara Brown provides fascinating insights into and profiles of the character of our nations presidents from George Washington to Donald Trump. It is a compelling reflection on the events that shaped their characters and how they handled some of the most significant challenges of their era.

Of course, our leaders werent always people of character. But at least they made a pretense of trying to look like they had character. They didnt intentionally revel in their bad behavior. Too often today, character is replaced by mere force of personality. Thats like replacing beautiful music with just loud noise. This book is a great addition to presidential history.

Donna Brazile, Former Chair of the Democratic National Committee

Brown adopts a leadership approach to the presidency that stresses character, competence, flexibility, and experience. She finds most recent presidents who rise to power attacking corruption in the systemoutsiders and amateursas both undermining public trust and failing to perform effectively in office. This work is sweeping in scope, bold in presentation, original in approach, and compelling in argument. It is a masterwork that will become an instant classic.

Michael A. Genovese, Loyola Marymount University

Lara Brown has created a new paradigm for predicting presidential leadership, based less on skill sets brought to the office than on the character of the office holder. Using the four themes of compassion, courage, curiosity, and character, Browns ground-breaking work in Amateur Hour: Presidential Character and the Question of Leadership examines nine presidents, including Donald Trump, to identify how character shaped the decisions they made in office. This is a book that every presidential scholar should include in the classroom and every citizen should read before casting a vote.

Shirley Anne Warshaw, Gettysburg College

Lara Browns masterful examination of the presidency and the presidents who inhabit the office is a must-read for anyone with any interest in the office itself or the office holders. Brown has done a complex and important multi-method study of the office, starting from the original conception of the presidency at the constitutional convention and Washingtons role as the first occupant of the office. The centerpiece of Amateur Hour: Presidential Character and the Question of Leadership is the focus on our understandingfrom the time of Washington, through Lincoln, to the contemporary periodof the role that character should play, but often has not, of late, in terms of persons elected to the White House and how they conduct themselves in the office and as a leader. Browns analysis interrogates the scholarship around the concept of presidential psychology and leadership and unpacks the connections between leadership in this complicated elected office and how we have, more recently, elected presidents who are often lacking in experience, and why this is problematic. This is a fascinating book, integrating historical analysis of American political development alongside contemporary analytical tools developed to assess leadership qualities. Brown brings her deep knowledge of the presidency to the evaluation of our contemporary presidents, those elected post-Watergate, and compels the reader to consider the interaction of character, leadership, and the demands of the office on each of the individuals who have been elected to the presidency since 1976. And this book is a joy to readthe writing is clear and engaging, taking the reader through multiple analytical frameworks with a propulsive narrative and discussion.

Lilly J. Goren, Carroll University

This book examines a critical and under-examined topic in presidency studies. It presents a carefully structured approach to evaluating presidential character, incorporating political environment and institutional context as well as individual leadership qualities. With detailed historical and recent case studies, this engaging analysis will be highly instructive for scholarly research as well as the classroom.

Meena Bose, Hofstra University

This book assesses the impact of presidential character on the popularity, productivity, and ethics of contemporary presidents. Through comparative analyses, author Lara Brown demonstrates that the character of a presidents leadership does not change in office and that the success of future presidents can be evaluated before they step into the White House. She traces the rise of amateur outsiders, like Donald Trump, and asserts the need for systemic reform and cultural reassessment of presidential character. Intended for students and scholars of the presidency, this book also holds appeal for general readers who seek understanding of past and future presidential elections.

Lara M. Brown, Ph.D., is an associate professor and director of the Graduate School of Political Management at The George Washington University. She is the author of Jockeying for the American Presidency: The Political Opportunism of Aspirants (2010), and co-editor of The Presidential Leadership Dilemma: Between the Constitution and a Political Party (2013) and Campaigning for President 2016: Strategy and Tactics (2017). She has published articles in Society, American Politics Research, Congress and the Presidency, Journal of Political Marketing, and Presidential Studies Quarterly.

Presidential Character and the Question of Leadership

Lara M. Brown

First published 2021

by Routledge

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and by Routledge

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Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

2021 Taylor & Francis

The right of Lara M. Brown to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

A catalog record for this title has been requested

ISBN: 978-0-367-46829-3 (hbk)

ISBN: 978-0-367-46828-6 (pbk)

ISBN: 978-1-003-03139-0 (ebk)

Typeset in Bembo

by Wearset Ltd, Boldon, Tyne and Wear

With love, to Major,

the grace of my life.

Mans character is his fate. Heraclitus

Late in the day, early in winter, this book was completed. Though writing is a lonely and, at times, agonizing undertaking, I was fortunate to never be alone. Throughout this process I have been bolstered and nurtured by family, friends, and colleagues. I am blessed to know them and am humbled by the sacrifices each has made to help me realize this work.