In 1940, for the first time since America’s founding, a sitting president sought a third term in office. But this was only one remarkable aspect of that year’s election, which was, as John Jeffries makes clear in his new book, one of the most interesting and important elections in American history. Franklin Roosevelt’s plan to pack the Supreme Court had failed; in the wake of a recent recession, his New Deal had hardened support and opposition among both parties; and the German advance across Europe, along with Japanese aggression in Asia, was stirring fierce debate over America’s role in the world. Adding to the moment of profound uncertainty was FDR’s procrastination over whether to run again. Jeffries explores how these tensions played out and what they meant, not just for the presidential election but also for domestic politics and policy generally, and for state and local contests. In the context of the Roosevelt Coalition and the New Deal party system, he parses the debates and struggles within both the Democratic and Republican parties as Roosevelt deliberated over running and Wendell Wilkie, a businessman from Indiana and New York City, got the nod from Republicans over a field including the rising moderate Thomas E. Dewey, the conservative Michigan senator Arthur Vandenburg, and the isolationist Ohio senator Robert Taft. A Third Term for FDR reveals how domestic policy more than international events influenced Roosevelt’s decision to run and his victory in November. A detailed analysis of the results offers insights into the impact of the year’s events on voting, and into the election’s long-term implications and ramifications—many of which continue to this day.

An innovative historical study of the longstanding debate over executive term limits in American politics . . . By successfully seeking a third term in 1940, Franklin D. Roosevelt shattered a tradition that was as old as the American republic. The longstanding yet controversial two-term tradition reflected serious tensions in American political values. In Presidential Term Limits in American History, Michael J. Korzi recounts the history of the two-term tradition as well as the “perfect storm” that enabled Roosevelt to break with that tradition. He also shows that Roosevelt and his close supporters made critical errors of judgment in 1943-44, particularly in seeking a fourth term against long odds that the ill president would survive it. Korzi’s analysis offers a strong challenge to Roosevelt biographers who have generally whitewashed this aspect of his presidency and decision making. The case of Roosevelt points to both the drawbacks and the benefits of presidential term limits. Furthermore, Korzi’s extended consideration of the seldom-studied Twenty-second Amendment and its passage reveals not only vindictive and political motivations (it was unanimously supported by Republicans), but also a sincere distrust of executive power that dates back to America’s colonial and constitutional periods.

What would Reagan do? In Reagan's Third Term, author Gib Kearney presents an exciting story of how one of America's most beloved presidents might have significantly altered history if elected to serve four more years. The book opens on Valentine's Day 1988 with news that a military coup has deposed Mikhail Gorbachev as leader of the USSR. After a series of missteps by candidate George HW Bush, congress revokes the 22nd Amendment, and Ronald Reagan wins reelection (beating Senator Ted Kennedy) by a landslide. But the world Reagan inherits is a dangerous place: on the verge of war with an expansionist Soviet Union and teetering on economic collapse. At home, the President struggles to advance a conservative agenda, confront a domestic coup d'etat, and choose a successor true to the Reagan Revolution. North Korea. New appointments to the Supreme Court. Abortion. School prayer. Israel, Iraq, Libya. Welfare. The Culture War. The demise of the Democratic Party. It's all there--and more. As a work of alternate history, Kearney's novel blends actual events and figures from the period with others that would have challenged and defined the Reagan presidency in fascinating new ways. Well-researched, and with an authoritative tone, Reagan's Third Term, is both comprehensive, and convincing, in its depiction of what might have been. Throughout, Ronald Reagan is presented as a heroic figure who stands tall and resolute in doing what is right, whether it concerns Saddam Hussein's invasion of Iraq, making changes to the US Constitution, overhauling welfare, or confronting a nuclear North Korea. The book also presents a very human side of Reagan, whether threatened by assassination, allegations of racial insensitivity, or struggling with dissent from within his own party. Above all, Reagan's Third Term is a fun and engaging read, full of twists and surprises. At the center of it all is a portrayal of Reagan guaranteed to delight his admirers; a man whose character provides him with the strength to take on the world, and transform it into something very different from the fractured and dangerous one we now inhabit. Learn more and preview additional excerpts at ReagansThirdTerm.com

Classic Books Library presents this brand new edition of “The Federalist Papers”, a collection of separate essays and articles compiled in 1788 by Alexander Hamilton. Following the United States Declaration of Independence in 1776, the governing doctrines and policies of the States lacked cohesion. “The Federalist”, as it was previously known, was constructed by American statesman Alexander Hamilton, and was intended to catalyse the ratification of the United States Constitution. Hamilton recruited fellow statesmen James Madison Jr., and John Jay to write papers for the compendium, and the three are known as some of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Alexander Hamilton (c. 1755–1804) was an American lawyer, journalist and highly influential government official. He also served as a Senior Officer in the Army between 1799-1800 and founded the Federalist Party, the system that governed the nation’s finances. His contributions to the Constitution and leadership made a significant and lasting impact on the early development of the nation of the United States.