NBtM: The Cabinet by Lindsay M. Chervinsky

Congratulations to tour winner Victoria S. and to host winner Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!

Thank you for your interest in hosting this tour, but all stops are filled.

Goddess Fish Promotions is organizing a Virtual Name Before the Masses Tour for The Cabinet by Lindsay M. Chervinsky, a History available now from Belknap Imprint of Harvard University Press. The tour will run every Monday for 16 weeks starting on June 15, and Lindsay M. Chervinsky is available for guest post and interviews. A PDF copy of the book is available for review in conjunction with a guest post or interview.

Lindsay M. Chervinsky will be awarding a $50 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour, and a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn host.

The US Constitution never established a presidential cabinet―the delegates to the Constitutional Convention explicitly rejected the idea. So how did George Washington create one of the most powerful bodies in the federal government?

On November 26, 1791, George Washington convened his department secretaries―Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, Henry Knox, and Edmund Randolph―for the first cabinet meeting. Why did he wait two and a half years into his presidency to call his cabinet? Because the US Constitution did not create or provide for such a body. Washington was on his own.

Faced with diplomatic crises, domestic insurrections, and constitutional challenges―and finding congressional help lacking―Washington decided he needed a group of advisors he could turn to. He modeled his new cabinet on the councils of war he had led as commander of the Continental Army. In the early days, the cabinet served at the president’s pleasure. Washington tinkered with its structure throughout his administration, at times calling regular meetings, at other times preferring written advice and individual discussions.

Lindsay M. Chervinsky reveals the far-reaching consequences of Washington’s choice. The tensions in the cabinet between Hamilton and Jefferson heightened partisanship and contributed to the development of the first party system. And as Washington faced an increasingly recalcitrant Congress, he came to treat the cabinet as a private advisory body to summon as needed, greatly expanding the role of the president and the executive branch.

June 15: Rogue's Angels
June 15: Straight From the Library
June 22: Viviana MacKade
July 6: All the Ups and Downs
July 13: Fabulous and Brunette
July 20: Andi's Book Reviews
July 27: Beyond Romance
August 3: Lisa Haselton's Reviews and Interviews
August 10: Unabrided Andra
August 17: Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
August 24: Readeropolis
August 31: T's Stuff
September 7: Locks, Hooks and Books - review only
September 7: Danita Minnis
September 14: Our Town Book Reviews
September 21: Author C.A.Milson
September 28: It's Raining Books
October 5: Long and Short Reviews