President McKinley, Robert W. Merry
President McKinley, Robert W. Merry
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President McKinley
Architect of the American Century

Author: Robert W. Merry

Narrator: Tom Perkins

Unabridged: 19 hr 45 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 02/11/2025


Synopsis

Republican President William McKinley transformed America during his two terms as president. Although he does not register large in either public memory or in historians' rankings, in this revealing account, Robert W. Merry offers "a fresh twist on the old tale . . . a valuable education on where America has been and, possibly, where it is going" (The National Review).

McKinley settled decades of monetary controversy by taking the country to a strict gold standard; in the Spanish-American war he kicked Spain out of the Caribbean and liberated Cuba from Spain; in the Pacific he acquired Hawaii and the Philippines; he developed the doctrine of "fair trade"; forced the "Open Door" to China; forged our "special relationship" with Great Britain. He expanded executive power and managed public opinion through his quiet manipulation of the press. McKinley paved the way for the bold and flamboyant leadership of his famous successor, Teddy Roosevelt, who built on his accomplishments (and got credit for them). Merry writes movingly about McKinley's admirable personal life, from his simple Midwestern upbringing to his Civil War heroism to his brave comportment just moments before his death by assassination. Lively, definitive, and eye-opening, President McKinley resurrects this overlooked president and places him squarely on the list of one of the most important.

About Robert W. Merry

Robert W. Merry is president and publisher of Congressional Quarterly, Inc. Formerly a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, where he covered national politics, Congress, and the White House, he is the author of the award-winning Taking on the World: Joseph and Stewart Alsop-Guardians of the American Century. He lives in McLean, Virginia.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Steve on March 17, 2021

[URL not allowed] Published in 2017, “President McKinley: Architect of the American Century” is Robert Merry’s fifth, and most recent, book. He is a former journalist and executive at the Wall Street Journal, Congressional Quarterly and The National Interest. In 2009 he wrote a......more

Goodreads review by Alan on April 26, 2020

4.5 Stars. This was a surprisingly captivating biography, well written and thoroughly interesting. Why McKinley is not better known or held in high regard as one of our best presidents is beyond my ken, unless it is because that era is more readily defined in the public eye by his bombastic successo......more

Goodreads review by Jon on January 29, 2022

William McKinley is one of those oft forgotten American presidents. Despite having a transformationally consequential presidency, he is largely overshadowed by his more boisterous vice president and successor Theodore Roosevelt, while being more remembered for his assasination by Polish-American ana......more

Goodreads review by Christopher on December 22, 2017

Robert Merry’s book, “President McKinley: Architect of the American Century” is a solid history of William McKinley’s life and presidency. The work is straightforward and workmanlike. It is, however, written in a stolid prose that lacks the narrative ability of better know popular historians like Ca......more

Goodreads review by Amy on May 08, 2018

This is a good solid and well-researched biography on William McKinley, a President who is often overshadowed by his successor, Teddy Roosevelt. Even though he is from Northeast Ohio, I knew very little about McKinley when I started this book. Although not always easy to read, I did learn a lot about......more