20
Feb
Celebrate Presidents’ Day by brushing up on the glories and glitches of the institution.
“In 1787, nothing quite like this office existed anywhere on earth. Hereditary monarchs and feudal lords held sway across the Old World, and American states generally allowed only propertied men to vote for or serve as governors. By contrast, the framers of the Constitution designed the presidency as an office that would be open to rich and poor alike, and imposed no constitutional property qualifications on presidential electors or ordinary voters. In the 1960s, the Constitution’s Twenty-fourth Amendment went a step further, freeing presidential and other federal elections from poll taxes that might limit voting by the poor.”
- Akhil Reed Amar, “Two Cheers For the American Presidency!”
Photo courtesy of MSNBC
