Educator Seminar: The Presidency in the Early Republic and Today

The President of the United States is the most powerful position in the world, but was it meant to be? This seminar will explore the origins of the presidency, how the Constitutional Convention conceptualized the presidency, how it evolved in the Early Republic, and the precedents the early presidents left for their successors. Article II of the Constitution was an outline of the executive branch, at best. But like all best-laid plans, the ideas about the presidency contained in the Constitution quickly clashed with the demands of governing in the real world. The early presidents, George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson, grappled with domestic insurrections, threats of foreign war, endless constitutional questions, cabinet insubordination, partisan tensions, political violence, distrust of a standing army, and territorial expansion. They built the presidency upon the scaffolding crafted by the delegates at the Constitutional Convention. The legacy they left behind is mostly unwritten. Our focus, therefore, will be on the norms, customs, and precedents that determine the powers and limitations of the executive branch. We will consider a series of primary documents and colorful characters to better understand the beginnings of this influential institution and the historic origins of the contemporary moment.

Dr. Lindsay M. Chervinsky is the Executive Director of the George Washington Presidential Library.  Her research can be found in publications from op-eds to books, speaking on podcasts and other media, and teaching for every kind of audience.  Dr. Chervinsky’s book, The Cabinet: George Washington and the Creation of an American Institution, was published on April 7, 2020 (paperback February 2022). She also co-edited Mourning the Presidents: Loss and Legacy in American Culture (February 20, 2023). She is a regular guest on podcasts and appears frequently on Listening to America podcast. She is the creator of the Audible course: The Best and Worst Presidential Cabinets in U.S. History.  Her next book, Making the Presidency: John Adams and the Precedents that Forged the Republic, will be published on September 5, 2024.