The President as Statesman : Woodrow Wilson and the Constitution / Daniel D. Stid.

ch. 1. Toward "power and strict accountability for its use" -- ch. 2. Political development, interpretive leadership, and the presidency -- ch. 3. Constitutional government and presidential power -- ch. 4. Progressivism and politics in New Jersey and the nation -- ch. 5. Wilson's program and the new freedom -- ch. 6. Toward party reform and realignment -- ch. 7. Diplomacy, war, and executive power -- ch. 8. Party and national leadership in World War I -- ch. 9. Wilson, Lodge, and the treaty controversy.

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A political scientist who went on to become president, Woodrow Wilson envisioned responsible government, in which a strong leader and principled party would integrate the separate executive and legislative powers - but this ideal was constantly challenged by political reality. Daniel Stid explores Wilson's evolving views on the notion of responsible government and his endeavors as a statesman to establish it in the United States. Stid graphically describes how Wilson grappled, with the constitutional separation of powers, first as an academic and then as president, and he demonstrates the importance of Wilson's effort for American political thought and history.

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