Videos

Robert Merry, longtime editor-in-chief and CEO of Congressional Quarterly, talked about U.S. presidential history, Congress, and the current state of American politics. He is the author of several…

Former second lady Lynne Cheney chronicled the leadership of four of the first five presidents who hailed from the state of Virginia: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and…

Mr. McCullough discussed his book, Truman published by Simon and Schuster. He discussed his research for the book, which is an exhaustive biography of the former president, spanning from a brief…

Participants in the events talked about President Ford’s decision to pardon Richard Nixon for his involvement in the Watergate scandal. Topics included the possibility of a deal between Ford and Nixon,…

Author Edward Renehan talked about the relationship between President Theodore Roosevelt and his four sons. Following their father’s military values, all four sons fought in World War I. By the end of the…

Ms. Caroli talked about her book The Roosevelt Women, published by Basic Books. The book examines the lives of nine women of President Theodore Roosevelt’s family, from his mother to the…

Panelists discussed the topic “Making of the Presidents: Bringing History Alive on the Page.” Three historians who have written about widely differing aspects of the American presidency described…

Professor Ari Hoogenboom discussed his book, Rutherford B. Hayes: Warrior and President, published by University of Kansas Press. He talked about President Hayes' life and career and…

Author Alvin Felzenberg talked about his new book The Leaders We Deserved (And a Few We Didn’t): Rethinking the Presidential Ratings Game. He discussed which presidents are the best and…

Robert Sobel discussed his biography, Coolidge: An American Enigma, published by Westview Press. The book contradicts the picture of President Calvin Coolidge as a silent and do-nothing…

Professor Lance Banning discussed his book, The Sacred Fire of Liberty: James Madison and the Founding of the Federal Republic, published by Cornell University Press. The book is a…

Professor of History Jack Rakove talked about his new book, Original Meanings: Politics and Ideas in the Making of the Constitution, published by Knopf. The book won the 1997 Pulitzer Prize…

Mr. Beschloss provided a history of the relations between President John F. Kennedy and Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev and its impact on the Cold War. Beschloss, a Chicago native, did his…

Nathan Miller talked about his biography of President Theodore Roosevelt entitled, Theodore Roosevelt: A Life, published by William Morrow and Company. He spoke on his research into the former…

Author C. Bradley Thompson talked about his book, John Adams and the Spirit of Liberty, published by the University Press of Kansas. He described President Adams' political and…

Professor Willard Sterne Randall discussed his book, Thomas Jefferson: A Life, published by Henry Holt and Company. In the 700-page book, the emphasis is on Jefferson’s years in France as…

Professor Mark Neely spoke about his biography The Last Best Hope of Earth: Abraham Lincoln and the Promise of America, published by Harvard University Press. The title is taken from Lincoln’s…

Geoffrey Perret talked about his book, Ulysses S. Grant: Soldier and President, published by Random House. The book outlines Grant’s entire life including detailed accounts of his service during…

John Marszalek talked about his new book, The Petticoat Affair: Manners, Mutiny, and Sex in Andrew Jackson’s White House, published by the Free Press. The book told the story of Margaret O’Neale, a daughter of a…

Chief Justice William Rehnquist described a little history of the U.S. Supreme Court in his book, "Grand Inquests: The Historic Impeachments of Justice Samuel Chase and President Andrew…