he says in the autobiography  erm   my view was that every president was a  and this was a famous phrase  every president was a steward of the people, a steward of the people, bound actively and affirmatively to do all he could for the people and not to content himself with the negative merit of keeping his talents undamaged in a napkin   curious turn of phrase   i decline  he says  to adopt the view that what is imperatively necessary for the nation cannot be done unless the president can find some specific authorization to do it in the constitution.