Presidents, Power, And The Myths We Love with Sharon McMahon

Power isn’t magic, and the presidency isn’t a throne. We sit down with Sharon McMahon—former government teacher, civic educator, and New York Times bestselling author—to unpack the biggest myths about presidential power and replace guesswork with constitutional clarity. Together, we draw a clear line between executive orders and actual laws, explore why modern presidents feel pressure to “do something” when Congress stalls, and map where the Constitution draws hard boundaries that even the most determined administration cannot cross.Sharon takes us past slogans like “what the founders intended” to the nuance the framers built in: amendment paths, short text meant for public reading, and a design they knew would need updates. We dig into how an administrative state and the internet outgrew eighteenth-century vocabulary, why courts lean on history, and how citizens can use annotated constitutions from Annenberg, the National Constitution Center, and Congress.gov to make sense of today’s fights over executive authority. If you’ve ever wondered whether a president can simply reverse a policy, change legal ages, or ignore statutes, this conversation gives you a practical test: look to the text, check past precedent, and ask what the law actually permits.We also examine the 24-hour news cycle’s role in turning outfits and photo ops into narratives of power, and we re-center what lasting leadership really looks like. The president's history ranks highest in terms of sharing a few traits: fortitude, a commitment to the common good, and the ability to articulate a positive vision that invites people in. Sharon brings this to life through a historian’s lens, drawing on insights from the remarkable correspondence of John and Abigail Adams—a rare primary-source window into character, strain, and decision-making at the dawn of the American experiment.If you’re ready to trade hero worship for civic literacy, this episode is your field guide. Listen, share with a friend who loves Presidents’ Day debates, and subscribe for more clear, honest conversations about how the American government actually works. If this helped, please leave a review—your feedback helps more curious listeners find the show.In Pursuit Check Out the Civic Literacy Curriculum!School of Civic and Economic Thought and LeadershipCenter for American Civics