The title uses the past to illuminate the present and the future. Presidential power, it points out, has been nurtured above all by war.

What the Founding Fathers intended -- Where the Founding Fathers disagreed -- The rise of presidential war -- Congress makes a comeback -- The presidency resurgent : the Second World War -- The presidency ascendant : Korea -- The presidency rampant : Vietnam -- The revolutionary presidency : Washington -- Democracy and foreign policy -- The secrecy system -- The future of the presidency.