Torrent of passion -- Man of straw -- The most glorious war -- The country is almost ours -- A presidential war -- Fort Sumter -- Blood flowing all about me -- Maine blown up -- We must keep what we want -- The world is on fire -- Salvation of mankind -- How could this have happened? -- The survival war -- I am going to let them have it -- I didn't ask their permission -- We got slapped -- I don't see any way of winning

"Ten years in the making, Presidents of War is a fresh, intimate, irresistibly readable narrative of how a procession of Chief Executives took the nation into major conflicts, mobilized Americans for victory and seized greater power for themselves. Beschloss's findings in original letters, diaries, and declassified documents, and his interviews with surviving participants in the drama, allow him to bring us into the room and into the minds of these men as they make the most difficult decisions that face any President, at times sending hundreds of thousands of American men and women to their deaths. From James Madison and the War of 1812 to Lyndon Johnson and Vietnam, we see these leaders struggling with Congress, the courts, the press, their own advisers, and antiwar protesters; seeking comfort from their spouses, families, and friends; and dropping to their knees in prayer. We come to understand how these Presidents were able to withstand the pressures of war--both physically and emotionally--or were broken by them. Presidents of War combines this sense of immediacy with the overarching context of two centuries of American history. Through his rich and vivid storytelling, Beschloss shows how far we have traveled, from the time of our Founders, who tried to constrain presidential power, to our modern day, when a single leader has the potential to launch nuclear weapons that can destroy much of the human race."--Dust jacket

Beschloss provides a groundbreaking and often surprising saga of America's wartime chief executives. From James Madison and the War of 1812 to recent times, we see them struggling with Congress, the courts, the press, their own advisors and antiwar protesters; seeking comfort from their spouses, families and friends; and dropping to their knees in prayer. We come to understand how these Presidents were able to withstand the pressures of war-- both physically and emotionally-- or were broken by them. -- adapted from publisher info