Roosevelt University to host author of new book on FDR
Posted: 03/19/2010
On the 65th anniversary of the death of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Roosevelt University will host author Jeff Shesol, who will talk about his new book, Supreme Power: Franklin Roosevelt vs. The Supreme Court. He also will contrast the beginning of FDR’s first term with President Barack Obama’s first term.
The lecture, free and open to the public, will be held at 11 a.m. on April 12 in Ganz Hall (Room 714), at Roosevelt University, 430 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago.
Shesol’s book, which will be released this month, examines FDR’s plans in February 1937 to expand the Supreme Court to 15 justices and to “pack” the new seats with liberals who shared his belief in a “living” Constitution.
Providing new evidence and fresh insight, Shesol shows why understanding the court fight is essential to understanding the presidency, personality, and legacy of FDR and to understanding America at a crossroads in its history.
A graduate of Brown and Oxford Universities, Shesol is a founding partner of West Wing Writers, a speech writing and communication strategy firm.
In 1997, President Clinton read Shesol’s book Mutual Contempt on the Lyndon Johnson-Robert Kennedy feud and invited Shesol to become a White House speechwriter. During his three years as a speechwriter, Shesol became the deputy chief of Presidential Speechwriting. He had a lead role in drafting two State of the Union addresses, the President’s 2000 convention speech and the Farewell Address.
Before speechwriting, Shesol wrote and drew a syndicated comic strip, Thatch, which appeared in more than 150 newspapers daily. His book, Mutual Contempt, was a New York Times Notable Book and a Washington Post Critic’s Choice.
After the talk, Shesol will be available to answer questions and sign his book.
The lecture is sponsored by Roosevelt’s Center for New Deal Studies. For further information, contact Professor Margaret Rung, 312-341-3724.legacy.roosevelt.edu/newdeal/
