Midmorning With Aundrea - October 7, 2020 (Part 2)

(Part 2 of 4) Former Second Lady Lynne Chaney has written a book that explores the lives of our first four Presidents.

The presidential election is now just days away.

But this morning, we are also taking you way way back, to the days of the first presidential elections, and the remarkable origins of four of our first five presidents.

It's the focus of a new book called "the virgini dynasty," b former second lady lynne cheney.

Jeff glor has more.

Script: like the men she writes about, lynne cheney has led a life under a glaring spotlight.

Second lady of the united states& former chair of the national endowment for the humanities& and prolific author.

From contemporary novels to children's books.

Now, history.

001146 lynne cheney: it's amazing if you think about it, in this little-- part of the world, 60 mile circle east of the-- blue ridge mountains, these four amazing leaders-- came.

"the virgini dynasty" is abou the four of the first five men who served as president.

And how, for the first 36 years of the republic, excepting john adams' single term, all the men elected were basically neighbors.

George washington, thomas jefferson, james madison, and james monroe.

Jeff glor: people are very familiar with george washington and thomas jefferson, much less so with monroe and madison.

Why is that?

Lynne cheney: madison has been consistently undervalued.

He was-- sometimes is called the father of the constitution.

He-- he denied that.

He said many hands had-- had played a role.

But he was.

He was the intellectual force behind the constitution.

He was the intellectual force behind the bill of rights, behind getting the constitution ratified.

Cheney's book gives equal attention to four figures who've received unequal attention in history books.

She calls madison, the 4th president, the intellectual force behind both the constitution and the bill of rights.

He was followed by another man also unfamiliar to many today.

Jeff glor what should people know about james monroe that they don't know now?

Lynne cheney: he was a pretty good president.

He had a very stable cabinet// he had a reputation, it was probably somewhat justified, as note being quite as clever as his predecessors//but, he learned along the way, which was a good thing.

Monroe was also responsible for a major expansion of us territory including the louisiana purchase and the growth of the country from coast to coast.

Although he is perhaps best known for shaping u.s. foreign policy through the "monroe doctrine" which simply put, declared that the western hemisphere was no longer open to colonization by europe.

Monroe, madison, and jefferson all competed mightily for the attention and respect of the first member of the dynasty.

Our first leader, and a bit of a loner.

Lynne cheney: washington was austere.

He tried to make friends but had a very hard time doing it.

People talk about, you know, the loneliness at the top-- the loneliness of leadership.

And i think that-- was part of-- w-- what made washington the way that he was.

He was somewhat isolated by the role he played in the revolution lynne cheney: washington was really a man of the 18th century.

// he came from a different century and was imbued with the idea that a leader ought-- not to have to pay too much attention to those who had voted him to let him lead.

His idea was that you picked a leader in a republic that-- a leader was picked and then the job of citizens was to go away and leave him alone and let him govern.

So it infuriated him when-- people had different opinions about what he should do.

And he was especially infuriated about newspaper attacks.

Jeff glor: was that the first time newspapers had been weaponized?

Lynne cheney: i think so so why did so many men who lived so close together come to lead the nation for more than thirty years?

In part, their elite educations.

And in part, because they all benefited heavily from a southern economic system that relied on enslaved labor.

We asked cheney about that.

Jeff glor: you don't deal with slaveholding very much in this book.

Why?

Lynne cheney: well, that's the not focus of the book, though i certainly do deal with it.

I think, in fact, it w-- was an important purpose of the book to point out that these men, though they were slave holders, accomplished something-- quite amazing.

They came forth with the ideas and the ideals that became the most powerful weapon for doing away with slavery.

Cheney also doesn't talk a lot in the book about the four mens' childhoods.

Her own children have grown up in a political machine.

One's now become part of it.

Congresswoman liz cheney currently has the part of it.

Congresswoman liz cheney currently has the third highest position in house gop leadership.

And made some headlines this summer.

Jeff glor: your daughter has been critical of the president over his coronavirus response.

And she's taken a great deal of heat from some of her republican colleagues over that.

Have you talked to her about that?

Lynne cheney: well, i think if i were to-- to talk about liz's decisions, i mean, how-- how would you feel if your mother were advising you on-- how you could-- best appear on television?

Probably you wouldn't like it much.

And i'm sure liz wouldn't like it much.

Moreover, she knows a lot more about it than i do.

Jeff glor: but you've been on the battlefield plenty of times and she is now.

Lynne cheney: that's-- that's correct.

But-- she is now, how shall i say, she's the active member of the family.

Jeff glor: how do you think she's doing?

Lynne cheney: oh i think she's great cheney says these days the focus of her activity will remain on writing.

At 79, she still rarely misses a day.

Jeff glor: what is next for you?

Lynne cheney: you know, i'm not sure.

I wrote children's books for a time.

I did that when dick was vice president.

I thought it was a good way to stay out of trouble.

// so, maybe another children's book is in the future.

Letters that describe a picture in time actually helped shape a lifetime.

We'll show you next on mid morning.