In This Review

Make-Believe Presidents: Illusions of Power from Mckinley to Carter
Make-Believe Presidents: Illusions of Power from Mckinley to Carter
By Nicholas von Hoffman
Pantheon, 1978, 256 pp

A gadfly's mixture of flippancy, hyperbole, and conventional historical wisdom masquerading as insight. The argument is that Presidents are not omnipotent emperors but creatures of the interest groups who wield power in America. The author's intent is to combat complacency, but his vehicle is lightweight.

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