Vaulting Ambition: Fdr's Campaign to Pack the Supreme Court

Description: "Vaulting Ambition is a book for the Landmarks Presidential Decisions series about Franklin D. Roosevelt's 1937 effort to pack the Supreme Court. Unlike most work on the subject, Michael Nelson's focus is more on the president's decisions than on the Court's responses. At the heart of the book will be an analytically narrative account of what FDR was doing (or choosing not to do) in response to these developments as they occurred. While keeping Court-packing front and center, Nelson embeds the effort in FDR's larger campaign to direct American government and politics in pursuit of his desire to entrench the New Deal lastingly in several of the country's major political and governmental institutions: Congress, the Democratic Party, and the executive branch, as well as the Court. It was an understandable effort: the Republicans had dominated all three branches for varying but considerable lengths of time. In the end, the president's effort was unevenly successful"--

Brief description:

Michael Nelson is Fulmer Professor of Political Science at Rhodes College and a senior fellow at the University of Virginia's Miller Center.

Review Quotes:

"Franklin D. Roosevelt was justifiably frustrated by Supreme Court decisions that struck down New Deal programs, but his attempt to pack the court with sympathetic Justices caused an uproar that seriously damaged his relations with Congress. Michael Nelson meticulously reconstructs Roosevelt's fateful decision-making and the alternatives he rejected. The issue remains as timely as today's headlines."--Donald A. Ritchie, author of Electing FDR: The New Deal Campaign of 1932

"How did the maestro of modern presidential politics, Franklin D. Roosevelt, blunder into an ill-fated scheme to pack the Supreme Court? In a fresh and insightful narrative, Michael Nelson takes us step-by-step through Roosevelt's decision-making process and its spate of erroneous assumptions. Here is a tale of hubris--and its costs--on the grand scale."--Bruce Miroff, author of Presidents on Political Ground: Leaders in Action and What They Face

"Vaulting Ambition: FDR's Campaign to Pack the Supreme Court is distinguished political scientist Michael Nelson's brief but detailed analysis of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's decision-making process. Nelson offers a fresh look behind the scenes at FDR's plans and how they impacted institutions such as the executive branch, Congress, and the Democratic Party. Highly recommended for anyone interested in this formative era of US politics and its legacy."--Jeffrey Crouch, coauthor of Newt Gingrich: The Rise and Fall of a Party Entrepreneur

"Any POTUS who wins smashing reelection, with strong majorities for his party in the House and Senate, should study Vaulting Ambition assiduously to prepare for the second term. Michael Nelson's dissection of the attempt by FDR to pack the US Supreme Court will be especially compelling whenever the Justices face sustained attack. Vaulting Ambition mixes trenchant political analysis with rich historical detail, providing a delightful read and serious insight into presidential politics."--W. Taylor Reveley III, president emeritus, The College of William & Mary