For George Washington, the stakes were high. If the nation fragmented, as it had almost done after the war, it could never become the strong, independent nation for which he had fought. In scores of communities, he communicated a powerful and enduring message—that America was now a nation, not a loose collection of states. And the people responded to his invitation in ways that he could never have predicted.
In T. H. Breen's book, George Washington's Journey: The President Forges a New Nation, he shows Washington in the surprising role of political strategist.
