Includes bibliographical references (pages 208-218) and index.

"The vision thing" -- Chameleons on plaid -- E pluribus unum: the virtues of consensus -- The power and limits of presidential personality -- In presidents we trust.

In Hail to the Chief, Robert Dallek, award-winning historian and acclaimed biographer of Lyndon Johnson, offers an unprecedented and engaging examination of presidential excellence - and its less distinguished counterpart. Dallek addresses five themes that have been typically manifested in successful administrations - vision, pragmatism, consensus, charisma, and trust - and traces how they have been played out by the forty-one men who have attained the highest rank of public service. From James Madison's facing the War of 1812 to Lincoln's leadership through the greatest crisis of the nation's history; from Hoover's inability to overcome the challenges of the Great Depression to LBJ's tragic miscalculations in Vietnam and his achievements in advancing civil rights; from the beneficent paternalism of FDR to the ruthless cynicism of Richard Nixon, Dallek offers a penetrating analysis of the presidency, the personalities who have defined it, and the strategies that led to their triumphs or defeats.