Spend the night with the Founders.

What Would The Founders Do?

by Richard Brookhiser

     Celebrated historian Richard Brookhiser uses his vast knowledge of the Founders’ writings to bring together a book that is contemporary in appeal and historic in perspective. While everyone wants to believe the Founders would be on their side of an argument (Much like everyone wants to believe God is on their side), Brookhiser shares their strongly opinionated and often conflicting views of subjects we are debating today. Occasionally he has to reach a bit when subjects that the Founders never had to deal with (i.e.: gay marriage or stem cell research) come up, but his answers are always firmly based in what they said and did. Possibly the most shocking thing about the book is that we are still dealing with so many of the same debates today that they were at the beginning of our country.

    This is a great book for someone who wants to dip their toes in founding philosophy before getting into the deep waters like The Federalist and Anti-federalist papers. It takes you right to the meat in their arguments without your having to dig through piles of journals and letters yourself. It is incredibly short on definitive answers; instead it gives a new perspective on the debates. I found that it challenged some of my ideas on liberty and government, as I think it will most readers, and it led me to further readings of many Founders’ works. The end result is that you get to spend some time in the company of great men and women whose ideas and words are still influencing us today. It should be required reading for our leaders today.