Presidential Documents: The Speeches, Proclamations, and Policies that Have Shaped the Nation from Washington to Clinton

Front Cover
Jim F. Watts, Fred L. Israel
Psychology Press, 2000 - 396 pages

In this lively, authoritative collection, Thomas J. McInerney presents famous and lesser-known speeches, letters, and other important documents from every U.S. president from George Washington to Barack Obama.

Whether printed in full or excerpted, these history-making documents are an invaluable resource as well as a fascinating browse. Including familiar documents such as the Emancipation Proclamation, to personal correspondence such as a letter from George H.W. Bush to his children, this collection brings together the famous statements that came to represent each administration with intimate glimpses into the thought processes of various presidential leaders.

Now in its second edition, Presidential Documents has been re-designed to increase its usefulness in the classroom. Part openers introduce each era of the American presidency with a concise political and historical overview, highlighting the challenges each leader faced, and placing the documents in context. Whether used as a complement to an American history survey text or as a collection of primary documents for courses on the American Presidency, Presidential Documentsprovides an engrossing look at the work of the leaders of the United States, in all their complexity.

From inside the book

Contents

Preface
1
President George Washington to Secretary of the Treasury Alexander
8
Washington on the Role of the Army President George Washington
17
President John Adams Report to Congress on the XYZ Affair
25
President Thomas Jeffersons First Annual Message to Congress
31
President Thomas Jeffersons Recommendation to End the African
38
President James Madisons Proclamation Resuming Trade with France
43
President James Monroe Comments on the Missouri Compromise
50
President Theodore Roosevelts Decision to Invoke Federal Legal
200
President William Howard Tafts Denunciation of Fellow Republican
213
President Woodrow Wilsons Message of War against Germany
228
President Warren G Hardings First Annual Message 6 December 1921
242
President Herbert Hoovers Comments on the Veterans Bonus Army
255
President Franklin D Roosevelt Supports the Principle of Collective
270
President Franklin D Roosevelt Advocates Social Security
271
President Franklin D Roosevelt Announces the LendLease Plan
279

President John Quincy Adams Broad Plan of Internal Improvements
56
President Andrew Jacksons Veto of the Maysville Road Bill 27 May 1830
62
President Andrew Jacksons Proclamation to the People
70
President Andrew Jackson Orders Federal Troops to Suppress
76
President Martin Van Burens Independent Treasury Message
87
President John Tylers Response to Governor Samuel W King
93
President James K Polks Comments on Texas and Oregon in
99
President Franklin Pierces Request for Ratification of the Treaty
113
President Abraham Lincolns Message to Congress 4 July 1861
127
President Andrew Johnson Informs Congress that the Union Is Restored
140
President Ulysses S Grants Decision Not to Dispatch Federal Troops
154
President Rutherford B Hayes Decision to Remove Federal Troops
157
President Benjamin Harrison Retraces George Washingtons Inaugural
170
President William McKinleys Decision to Wage War on
184
President Harry S Truman Announces the Truman Doctrine
285
President Harry S Truman Announces Diplomatic Recognition of
291
President Dwight D Eisenhower Calls for the Interstate Highway System
297
President Dwight D Eisenhowers Decision to Send Federal Troops
303
President John F Kennedys Inaugural Address 20 January 1961
311
President John F Kennedy Confronts the Cuban Missile Crisis
318
President John F Kennedy Speaks at the Berlin Wall 26 June 1963
325
President Lyndon B Johnsons Early Foreboding about the War
333
President Richard M Nixon Resigns from Office 9 August 1974
346
President Jimmy Carter Presides over the Peace Treaty between Egypt
360
President Ronald Reagan Announces Arms Control Agreement with
373
President Bill Clintons Comments at the End of the Attempt
386
47
391
Copyright

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About the author (2000)

Fred L. Israel's previous works include the five-volume History of Presidential Elections 1789-1988(1988), which he co-edited with Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., and Runningfor President(1995). He is professor of History at City College at the City University of New York. J. F. Wattsis the editor of Seven Cultural Traditions: readings inWorld Civilizations from Prehistory to the 15th Century. He is professor of history at City College at the City University of New York.

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