It's striking how many of the presidents we venerate—Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and John F. Kennedy—oversaw some of the republic's bloodiest years. Perhaps they were rising to the occasion, but as Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith argue, it may be that these astute politicians were just looking out for themselves. Putting some of America's greatest leaders under the microscope, this revisionist study builds a case that our presidents chose personal gain over national interest while evoking justice and freedom. An eye-opening retelling of American history, this book also serves as a call for reforms that may make the future better.