The Power of the Purse
The first time a president withheld funds for something approved by Congress, it led to the Impoundment Control Act. We’ll soon find out if that law has teeth.
Richard Nixon Redux
On the fiftieth anniversary of US President Richard M. Nixon’s resignation from office, we offer a collection of stories to contextualize his decision.
All The Way With LBJ?
In March 1968, US President Lyndon B. Johnson announced he would neither seek nor accept the nomination of the Democratic Party. That wasn’t the whole truth.
Power over Presidential Records
By law, all communications seen and/or touched by a United States president are supposed to be preserved. Reality—and executive privilege—is a lot messier.
The Border Presidents and Civil Rights
Three US presidents from the South’s borders—Truman, Eisenhower, and Johnson—worked against Southern politicians to support civil and voting rights.
Using False Claims to Justify War
Hardly the recent innovation it’s frequently mistakened to be, deception as a path to war has been used by American presidents since the 1800s.
Two William McKinley Autopsies
The 1901 assassination of US President William McKinley at the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo revealed the abysmal state of race relations in America.
Lyndon B. Johnson’s Decision Speech: Annotated
United States President Lyndon B. Johnson’s televised announcement that he would not run for re-election shocked a nation divided by the Vietnam War.
The Pardon of President Nixon: Annotated
President Ford’s unconditional pardon of Richard Nixon created political controversy. It also tarnished Ford’s own reputation with the American public.