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George Washington was the first president of the United States, from 1789 to 1797. In the hopes of creating a durable, balanced democracy, he set the bar for presidential behavior in many respects. For instance, he introduced the norm of a two-term limit and the tradition of respecting Congress’s right to legislate, while limiting vetoes and executive orders. In general, Levitsky and Ziblatt argue, he created a strong tradition of institutional forbearance for subsequent presidents.
George Washington Quotes in How Democracies Die
The How Democracies Die quotes below are all either spoken by George Washington or refer to George Washington . For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 6 Quotes
Throughout his life, Washington had learned that he “gained power from his readiness to give it up.” Thanks to his enormous prestige, this forbearance infused many of the American republic’s other nascent political institutions. As historian Gordon Wood put it, “If any single person was responsible for establishing the young Republic on a firm footing, it was Washington.”
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George Washington Character Timeline in How Democracies Die
The timeline below shows where the character George Washington appears in How Democracies Die. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 5: The Guardrails of Democracy
...the U.S., presidents normally limited themselves to two terms, following the precedent set by George Washington and Thomas Jefferson. When Franklin D. Roosevelt broke the norm in the 1940s, Congress formalized...
(full context)
Chapter 6: The Unwritten Rules of American Politics
...issue pardons to avoid judicial oversight. Therefore, it’s crucial for them to exercise forbearance. George Washington understood this and set a strong precedent for restraint. He avoided overstepping his authority and...
(full context)
Through the 20th century, other presidents followed Washington’s lead—including those who wanted greater power, like Theodore Roosevelt. Presidents limited executive orders and pardons,...
(full context)
