Pulitzer Prize Winner Garry Wills Talks About His New Book ‘Bomb Power’

Pulitzer Prize Winner Garry Wills Talks About His New Book ‘Bomb Power’

WBEZ brings you fact-based news and information. Sign up for our newsletters to stay up to date on the stories that matter.
The power of the United States Executive Branch became a charged issue during the tenure of George W. Bush. Critics argued that the President and members of his administration were claiming unprecedented powers for the office – leaving Congress and sometimes the Constitution in its wake. But in his new book, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Garry Wills argues that an expansive, even unchecked executive has been a feature of the United States since the post World War II period. The book is called Bomb Power: The Modern Presidency and the National Security State. Wills says that the race to build the atomic bomb laid the groundwork for a new form of presidential power, one we still operate under today.

Chicago Amplified: Bomb Power: The Modern Presidency and the National Security State

RELATED:
Bomb Power-Video
Interview with Garry Wills and Joanne J. Myers