“An invigorating, marvelously cogent tour of democracy and its limits.”
The Pursuit of Liberty
How Hamilton vs. Jefferson Ignited the Lasting Battle Over Power in America
Description
The bestselling author of The Pursuit of Happiness shows how the opposing constitutional visions of Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton have defined our country for 250 years, influenced presidents from Washington to Trump, and continue to drive the debate over the power of government today.
In The Pursuit of Liberty, bestselling author and president of the National Constitution Center Jeffrey Rosen explores the clashing visions of Hamilton and Jefferson about how to balance liberty and power in a debate that continues to define—and divide—our country: Jefferson championed states’ rights and individual liberties, while Hamilton pushed for a strong Federal government and a powerful executive. This ongoing tug-of-war has shaped all the pivotal moments in American history, including Abraham Lincoln’s fight against slavery and southern secession, the expansion of federal power under Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal, and Ronald Reagan’s and Donald Trump’s conservative push to shrink the size of the federal government.
Rosen also shows how Hamilton and Jefferson’s disagreement over how to read the Constitution has shaped landmark debates in Congress and the Supreme Court about executive power, from John Marshall’s early battles with Andrew Jackson to the current divisions among the justices on issues from presidential immunity to control over the administrative state.
More than ever, the clash between Hamiltonian and Jeffersonian ideals resonates today in our most urgent national debates over the question of whether modern presidents are consolidating power and subverting the Constitution—the very threat to American democracy that both Hamilton and Jefferson were determined to avoid. The Pursuit of Liberty is a compelling history of the opposing forces that have shaped our country since its founding, and the ongoing struggle to define the balance between liberty and power.
Reviews
“Jeffrey Rosen has given us another great gift: a wise, searching, and illuminating study of the tumultuous dawn of American politics and partisanship. This book is at once an important work of history and a clarifying lens on our own time.”
“Jeffrey Rosen brilliantly illuminates a core division that has shaped American life from the start. A must-read for anyone looking to make sense of the American story.”
“An exciting and authoritative book tracing the ways our politicians have used the principles of Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton throughout our history. . . . It’s the kind of honest and impartial history we desperately need.”
