'The Soul of America' reminds us that living up to our highest ideals has always been tricky
Pundits, politicians, and plenty of voters have described the Trump era as one of unprecedented circumstances.
The unusual political journey of US President Donald J. Trump and his populist, often divisive, rhetoric inspired historian Jon Meacham to write The Soul of America, a book that will – depending on the reader – serve as either a corrective to erroneous assumptions about American racial, religious, and gender precedents or as a primer on our national history. But for everyone, Meacham’s book – which traces the bumpy, long road of trying to live up to the ideals of the Declaration of Independence – serves as a sobering reminder that protest, divisive politics, and partisan rancor have been near-constants in the United States.
Meacham begins the book, quite intentionally, with a speech by South Carolina segregationist Gov.
