Drawing extensively on primary sources, including presidential papers, Kaufman maintains that this evolution has followed a path similar to that of the presidency itself. He shows that most have had fascinating post-presidential careers filled with both accomplishment and failure, and that in some cases their lives after leaving office were as important historically as their careers as president and give new insights into their personalities.

In The Arab Middle East and the United States, Burton I. Kaufman presents a comprehensive survey of U.S. involvement with the Arab nations from World War II to the present. Kaufman focuses both on the critical role of the United States in the history of Arab-Israeli relations and on U.S. interest in the vast oil resources of the Arab nations. He explores these intertwined, but often conflicting, developments with an emphasis on the internal divisions...

Examination of the Carter Presidency concentrating on major issues including arms control and the energy crisis.