George Washington

I am in a few weeks into a project to read bios of all 44 U.S. presidents. After a detour to read a pair of excellent Theodore Roosevelt books, I started at the beginning with George Washington.

I am now up to Lynne Cheney's 2012 bio of James Madison and I wanted to jot down a few thoughts before they escape me. It is fascinating to look back on our infant nation and the astonishing ways things were so different and yet very much the same.

Let me explain. The differences resulted primarily from lack of precedence and the technology of the time. Still, these things are interesting in hindsight. For example, Thomas Jefferson didn't learn until months later that he had been appointed secretary of state by Washington.

Some behaviors have changed greatly, too. In the 18th century, to show ambition for public office was considered a faux pas. So great men like John Adams were required to wait to be asked to serve.

And the presidential timelines were seriocomical. Washington decided a few weeks before the fall election to accept a second term. The evolution of competitive presidential campaigns with Adams v. Jefferson in 1796 is interesting to review.

The ways things remain unchanged is equally fascinating. We are an interesting people, and our groupthink response to Syrian refugees, for example, echoes our earliest American ancestors.

In 1798, Adams signed the Alien and Sedition Acts, an unfortunate set of laws in response to the pressing French crisis. The former gave the president the authority to immediately expel any French-American suspected of conspiring against America.

Sound familiar? It's worth noting that Adams never expelled anyone, and it's highly likely no Syrian refugees will turn up as future terrorists. Seems probable that a better study of history might elicit a better response.

More thoughts on Washington:

1. Washington: He's been called the perfect man for the time, and it's hard to argue with those sentiments. The patience and foresight exhibitied by President Washington is remarkable. He had a special ability to elicit not just respect, but devotion from those around him, strangers and confidantes alike.
We recognize this as leadership, of course, but Washington had something more. His compassion and integrity (and probably his physical stature) made women want to be with him, and men want to be like him.
While he enjoyed a honeymoon of sorts during his first term, Washington frequently found himself between Federalists and Republicans during his second term. He was attacked by the press, and more often, from his own double-dealing cabinet officials.
Washington almost never responded, an incredible display of discipline and probity that carried him calmly through the fiercest of political crisises. It turned out to be a vital display of courage in leadership for a young nation that, despite winning independence in 1783, was under almost continuous threat of attack for the next several decades.
Washington's extraordinary heroism and leadership extended to his deathbed, where he kept a team of the best doctors informed on his progress ("It won't be long now") and instructed a trusted aide to delay burial until "three hours after death." The old general was concerned he'd be buried alive.