The Evolution of the US Presidency

About this episode

America's founders were so afraid of concentrated power that they spent three months designing Congress, but only three days on the presidency. They thought that was enough. It wasn't. Today, one office controls 4 million federal employees, the world's most powerful military, and the ability to reshape the lives of every American ... all while the founders are, presumably, spinning in their graves. So what happened? How does a job description that fits on half a page become the most powerful office on earth? And is there any way back? Guest: HW Brands, historian and author of "American Patriarch: The Life of George Washington," professor at the University of Texas at Austin, and two-time Pulitzer Prize finalist Join the knowledge collective: https://www.join1440.com Check out 1440's video deep-dives: https://youtube.com/@1440explores https://youtube.com/@1440originals More resources: https://join1440.com/t/the-american-presidency Credits: A production of Rhyme Media for 1440 Media Host: Sony Kassam Producer: Nicolo Majnoni Editor: Dan Bobkoff Fact Checker: Alice Jones Sound Designer: Jay Cowit Executive Producers (1440): Sony Kassam and Drew Steigerwald Execut