Who was the best president？ That we can even ask the question is thanks to George Washington who shaped the role on his own 【M1】______ battle-hewn hands. Elected unanimously, he assured the job 【M2】______ reluctantly and batted away efforts to make him a king. His humility ensured the institution was built to the last. 【M3】______ It would have been easy for the first boss of a new government to have grown tipsy with power. So after years of fighting against 【M4】______ hunger and defeated as a revolutionary hero on the battlefield, 【M5】______ Washington was not seduced by pomp. He rejected an array of flowery titles, preferring the simplicity of Mr. President. Not only did he drone on at the lectern, but he swiftly appointed an 【M6】______ ideologically balanced cabinet of advisers, including Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton. Mindful of precedent, he personally ensured his executive power is checked by the legislative and judicial 【M7】______ branches of government. After decades of public service, Washington pined for a quiet life at home in Virginia, and hoped to retire after one four-year term in office. He succumbed to take a second term in the interests of 【M8】______ national unity, but was then glad to hand over the reins to his electing successor, John Adams. 【M9】______ Few American children are spared some malarkey about a young George Washington who cannot tell a lie. These tales are 【M10】______ largely invented to explain Washingtons integrity as an adult. Americas first president was not a witty intellectual or a scintillating orator, but he was uniquely honorable at a vulnerable time for the nascent republic.
【M1】