Almost President: The Men Who Lost The Race But Changed The Nation - Softcover

Farris New York Times Bestselling Author Of Kennedy & Reagan: Why Their Legacies E, Scott

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0762780967 ISBN 13: 9780762780969

Publisher: Lyons Press, 2013

Synopsis

Veteran political journalist Scott Farris tells the stories of legendary presidential also-rans, from Henry Clay to Stephen Douglas, from William Jennings Bryan to Thomas Dewey, and from Adlai Stevenson to Al Gore. He also includes concise profiles of every major candidate nominated for president who never reached the White House but who helped promote the success of American democracy. Farris explains how Barry Goldwater achieved the party realignment that had eluded FDR, how George McGovern paved the way for Barack Obama, and how Ross Perot changed the way all presidential candidates campaign. There is Al Smith, the first Catholic nominee for president; and Adlai Stevenson, the candidate of the "eggheads" who remains the beau ideal of a liberal statesman. And Farris explores the potential legacies of recent runners-up John Kerry and John McCain. The book also includes compact and evocative portraits of such men as John C. Fremont, the first Republican Party presidential candidate; and General Winfield Scott, whose loss helped guarantee the Union victory in the Civil War.
     This new edition of Almost President brings the work up-to-date with a section that explores the results and ramifications of the 2012 presidential election.

About this title

From the Inside Flap:

“I would rather be right than be president.”
—Henry Clay, 1824, 1832, 1844 presidential runner-up Henry Clay is one of a dozen men profiled in the chapters of Almost President, men who have run for the American presidency and lost but who—even in defeat—have had a greater impact on our history than many of those who have served in the Oval Office. Veteran political journalist Scott Farris tells the stories of these legendary figures, from Clay to Stephen Douglas, from William Jennings Bryan to Thomas Dewey, and from Adlai Stevenson to Al Gore. He also includes concise profiles of every major candidate nominated for president who never reached the White House but who helped promote the success of American democracy.
 
Farris explains how Barry Goldwater achieved the party realignment that had eluded FDR, how George McGovern paved the way for Barack Obama, and how Ross Perot changed the way all presidential candidates campaign. There is Al Smith, the first Catholic nominee for president; and Adlai Stevenson, the candidate of the “eggheads” who remains the beau ideal of a liberal statesman. And Farris explores the potential legacies of recent runners-up John Kerry and John McCain. The book also includes compact and evocative portraits of such men as John C. Fremont, the first Republican Party presidential candidate; and General Winfield Scott, whose loss helped guarantee the Union victory in the Civil War.
 
Almost President reveals that losers often show more foresight than winners, that being ahead of their time is one cause of their defeat, and that losing, like the demolition of a house, can be an opportunity for reconstruction of a political party and the nation. Losing presidential campaigns have created new political alignments and broken down barriers to participation for a wide variety of groups, from Catholics to women. And losing presidential candidates, by conceding victory graciously—an uncommon occurrence in many other nations—ensure that our American democracy works.

From the Back Cover:

Stirring portraits of the men who fell just short of theWhite House, but transformed America Henry Clay (Whig) 1824, 1832, 1844  ·  Stephen Douglas (Dem.) 1860
 William Jennings Bryan (Dem.)  1896, 1900, 1908  ·  Al Smith (Dem.)  1928 
Thomas E. Dewey (Rep.) 1944, 1948  ·  Adlai Stevenson (Dem.) 1952, 1956 
Barry Goldwater (Rep.) 1964  ·  George McGovern (Dem.) 1972
Ross Perot (Ind., Reform Party) 1992, 1996  ·  Al Gore (Dem.) 2000
 John Kerry (Dem.) 2004  ·  John McCain (Rep.) 2008
 And concise profiles of the Federalists through Bob Dole   “Scott Farris shines a welcome spotlight on the neglected subject of presidential
also-rans. In this impressive new book, Farris shows that the losers and their
ideas have sometimes transformed their political parties and moved the nation ahead. Meticulously researched, Almost President is rich in detail and anecdotes, and a pleasure to read.”

About this edition

• Publisher: Lyons Press
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 0762780967
• ISBN 13: 9780762780969
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 384