This historian spent 10 years researching wartime presidents. Trump scares him the most.
This historian spent 10 years researching wartime presidents. Trump scares him the most.
Michael Beschloss says President Donald Trump is in a category of his own among Americas commanders in chief.
By Alex Ward@AlexWardVoxalex.ward@vox.com Nov 5, 2018, 8:00am EST
All wartime presidents have preserved our democracy largely through self-restraint, and I dont see any of that in President Trump.
Thats historian Michael Beschlosss stunning observation. For his new book Presidents of War, he spent a decade looking at Americas wartime commanders in chief how they handled the decision to send US troops into combat, how they navigated the politics surrounding war, and how the war changed them personally.
I called up Beschloss to find out what hes learned about the way Americas presidents go to war and what that tells us about how Trump might do it if a major fight breaks out.
What he told me was sobering. He said that every single one of Americas wartime presidents abused his power. If you are worried about a president with authoritarian tendencies grabbing too much power, you look at a president in wartime, Beschloss told me. People will accept a lot of violations of their civil liberties in wartime.
He also said that no president in American history scares him more than Donald Trump does. Hes in a category of his own, Beschloss told me during our interview, because Trump has shown no willingness to learn from history and little empathy two key ingredients that make great wartime presidents who dont eradicate most democratic norms.
A transcript of our conversation, edited for length and clarity, is below.
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https://www.vox.com/2018/11/5/18056156/trump-michael-beschloss-presidents-of-war-book-interview