i'm joined by john meechah out with a new book and executive editor at random house and of course a frequent guest here and is on "meet the press." congratulations on the book. so what i highlighted initially just from the prologue -- and i will get through all of this even if i'm a slow reader, but this is what stood out to me about jefferson. broadly put, philosophers think politicians maneuver. jefferson's genius was that he was both and he could do both often simultaneously such as the art of power. why did you want to look at thomas jefferson through the prism of how to wield power? >> because i think he sent us in the direction of his ideas and his intellectual achievements, his art, his architecture, with his tombstone. one of the great trivia questions in american history is what are the three things, author of the declaration of independence, founder of the university of virginia, that's what he wanted to be remembered for. and for 40 years, from 1769 when he was elected at age 25 to 1809 when he left right after james madison's inauguration right here as -- after being a two-term p