An explanation of how the nation's past shapes its present and fortells its future.

Includes index. Donation in memory of Lionel V. Patenaude

The theory of America : experiment or destiny? -- The cycles of American politics -- Foreign policy and the American character -- National interests and moral absolutes -- Human rights and the American tradition -- The Solzhenitsyn challenge -- America and empire -- Why the Cold War? -- Affirmative government and the American economy -- The short happy life of American political parties -- After the imperial presidency -- The future of the Vice Presidency -- Vicissitudes of presidential reputations -- Democracy and leadership.