Smithsonian political curators Harry Rubenstein and Larry Bird give a behind-the-scenes look at the buttons, signs, hats, and novelties in the presidential campaign memorabilia collection of the National Museum of American History.

More Info »

One of the most iconic political advertisements in American history was the 1964 “Daisy Girl” spot produced by the presidential campaign of Lyndon Baines Johnson. Professor Robert Mann uses that ad among others in his class on political communication at Louisiana State University. This week’s class looks at the history of campaign advertisements.

More Info »

Each week American Artifacts takes viewers into archives, museums and historic sites around the country. The American Antiquarian Society in Worcester, Massachusetts, is an independent research library founded in 1812 by Revolutionary War patriot and printer Isaiah Thomas. American History TV visited the library to look at their early American political collection, including ballots, cartoons and party newspapers.

More Info »

University of Missouri history professor Jeffrey Pasley discusses his work as an author, teacher, blogger and former political speechwriter.  Mr. Pasley is the author and editor of several books, including "The Tyranny of Printers" and “Beyond the Founders.”

More Info »

Democrat Pat Schroeder of Colorado served in the U.S. Congress for 24 years. When she was first elected in 1972, she was a 32-year-old mother of two young children. When she arrived in Washington, she was one of only fourteen women in the House. In this speech at the History Colorado Center in Denver, she talks about the obstacles that women and other minorities faced in the 1970s, and describes her work as a representative at the height of the women’s movement.

More Info »

The National Archives hosts a discussion on the history of women’s suffrage, with an emphasis on the impact of Mary McLeod Bethune. Panelists explore the past and current role of women in government and the gender divide in Congress.

More Info »

Metropolitan State University professor Douglas Rossinow teaches a class on the Iran-Contra affair, which took place in the mid-1980s during the Reagan Administration. The Iran-Contra affair stems from Reagan administration officials funding the Contras - who were fighting against the Sandinista regime in Nicaragua - with money from the sale of arms to Iran. The arms were being sold to Iran in the hope of gaining the release of American hostages held in Lebanon - hence the reason the affair is sometimes called as the “arm-for-hostages” scandal. Metropolitan State University is in St. Paul, Minnesota.

More Info »

Forty years ago, in May 1973, a U.S. Senate Select Committee began its nationally televised hearings on Watergate. James McCord was one of the five men arrested a year earlier attempting to bug the offices of the Democratic National Committee at the Watergate complex in Washington, DC. McCord was security director for the 1972 Committee to Re-elect President Nixon, and was convicted of conspiracy, burglary and wiretapping in January 1973. In this portion, Committee Chair Sam Ervin questioned McCord about his January 1973 conversation with Jack Caulfield, a former White House aide.

More Info »

Mary Elizabeth Bowser was a former slave who became a Union spy in the Confederate capital of Richmond, Virginia. She was part of a pro-Union underground spy ring run by Elizabeth Van Lew, the daughter of a prominent Richmond citizen. In this program, authors Elizabeth Varon and Lois Leveen talk about the life and story of Ms. Bowser, as well as her relationship with Ms. Van Lew. The two authors also discuss how they wrote and researched their books. The event took place at the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond.

More Info »

Saul Cornell discusses his book "A Well-Regulated Militia: The Founding Fathers and the Origins of Gun Control in America."  He explores the opposing sides of the gun control debate, arguing that both base their opinions on a flawed understanding of the second amendment.

More Info »