The following is an extract from our course “Trust and the Presidency.” You can get the entire course here: https://cffad.org/topics/#the-presidency
2.17. Presidents can use their connection to the voters to bypass reluctant party leaders. Teddy Roosevelt was one of the first presidents to reach out to the voters, using a speaking tour through the western states, to pressure conservative members of his own party in Congress to fall into line with his progressive railroad reforms. He was successful. Modern presidential administrations have retained this option by developing sophisticated communications capacities to speak directly to their political bases and the American people in general.
Image: George W. Bush. The White House.
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