{"product_id":"james-madison-americas-first-politician-9781541699557","title":"James Madison: America's First Politician","description":"\u003cb\u003eAn intellectual biography of James Madison, arguing that he invented American politics as we know it \u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eHow do you solve a problem like James Madison? The fourth president is one of the most confounding figures in early American history; his political trajectory seems almost intentionally inconsistent. He was both for and against a strong federal government. He wrote about the dangers of political parties in the \u003ci\u003eFederalist Papers\u003c\/i\u003e and then helped to found the Republican Party just a few years later. This so-called Madison problem has occupied scholars for ages.  \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAs Jay Cost shows in this incisive new biography, the underlying logic of Madison's seemingly mixed record comes into focus only when we understand him primarily as a working politician. Whereas other founders split their time between politics and other vocations, Madison dedicated himself singularly to the work of politics and ultimately developed it into a distinctly American idiom. He was, in short, the first American politician. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Basic Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 11\/09\/2021\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781541699557\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 464\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations: \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 09\/15\/2021\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 10\/11\/2021\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Jay Cost","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":41229687455925,"sku":"9781541699557","price":29.75,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/products\/img_c8544b26-a8d3-487f-8102-314edee746ad.jpg?v=1634042281","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/james-madison-americas-first-politician-9781541699557","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}