Recent Presidents

• Carter wore a sweater.
• Reagan was a stronger communicator.
• Clinton, alas, will go down for an unfortunate phrase.

Ike Through Carter

Just before Eisenhower became president, his son John went to Korea to serve in an infantry unit. In the New York Times, the younger Eisenhower recalls a conversation that you probably never had with your dad.

As the time for my deployment approached, I discussed my intentions with my father. We met at the Blackstone Hotel in Chicago, just after the Republican convention, and I explained my position. My father, as a professional officer himself, understood and accepted it. However, he had a firm condition: under no circumstances must I ever be captured. He would accept the risk of my being killed or wounded, but if the Chinese Communists or North Koreans ever took me prisoner, and threatened blackmail, he could be forced to resign the presidency. I agreed to that condition wholeheartedly. I would take my life before being captured.

Ponder that last line. A president needs a pint or two of very cold blood.

In early 1961, Ike gave his Farewell Address, famously warning of the military-industrial complex. Days later, the torch passed to JFK, who took a distinctly militant tone in the Cold War. Kennedy took full advantage of new technology, starting the practice of holding press conferences on live TV. His successor, Lyndon Johnson, had an earthy way of expressing himself.

In future weeks, we shall discuss Nixon in greater detail. But this brief clip gives a glimpse of what he termed a "cold-blooded" view of international politics. President Nixon sought to rally the "silent majority" for his Vietnam policies.

• Ford was a healer.
• Carter wore a sweater.

Can you tell I'm anticipating the JFK lecture

(click for bigger, readable version)

From what is possibly my favorite website, Hark! A Vagrant by Kate Beaton

FDR through DDE

Presidents in the Early 20th Century

Text and short video on Woodrow Wilson's stroke.

Political scientist Wilson reflects on the presidency.

The underrated Calvin Coolidge made the first presidential speech on sound film:



Do you think Hoover was a great media president?

On Today's Media Blitz

So, the President's "full Ginsburg" coincides with our readings of the Roosevelt and Wilson Presidencies.

The book emphasizes Roosevelt's relationship with the Press and his ability to utilize newspapers and magazines to pass his agenda (The Hepburn Act in particular). Milkis and Nelson state "The rise of the rhetorical presidency that began during the Roosevelt administration went hand in hand with an expansion of the executive's responsibility to guide the formation of public policy." They further emphasize Wilson's rhetorical capabilities, concluding "Henceforth presidents would be expected to articulate a vision of the future and guide the nation toward fulfilling it."

And so the President's media blitz today - hitting 4 of the 5 major Sunday morning talk shows (skipping FOX for Univision) - is as good an example as any of how Roosevelt's relationship with the Press and Wilson's use of oratory have shaped the Modern President.

But I doubt the President's efforts will have much effect. As we discussed the other day, few tune into the talk shows or Congressional addresses. If you're singing to the choir, you're not getting anyone else to stand up.

And so the question those Presidents answered - How do I reach the people with my policy message? - must have a much different answer now. Perhaps it's impossible for the President to reach the majority of Americans. While New Media campaigns work for GOTV, I question their merits in political persuasion.

Furthermore, some see the "full Ginsburg" (doesn't that sound like a potentially amazing tie knot?) as demeaning of the President. Peggy Noonan described Obama's media saturation as "boorish." And just glancing over Politico's home-page, where there are about 10 different headlines pertaining to the President ("Obama 'skeptical' about more troops," "Obama: Health Plan 'not radical'," "Job numbers bleak, says Obama," "Obama hedges on immigration timeline," "Obama Punts on ACORN Funding," "Obama: Calming 'paranoid' Russians," etc.), perhaps she's right. Perhaps the President is diluting his message by saturating the market.

But at the same time we can at least recognize his pursuit of a TR/Wilson media bump in his attempt to pass health care. And while I would bet large sums of money the President's numbers don't change in any meaningful way, I would argue it is his prerogative to see how he can preach beyond the choir. But with 100-channel cable and NFL Sunday, I doubt anything got through.