The 47th president has smashed norms, enriched himself, and even bungled cleaning the Reflecting Pool. But July 4 still survives.
John Adams
Posted inPolitics
What Trump Has to Say on America’s 250th Birthday Won’t Top Coolidge and Ford
The history of semicentennial American presidential oratory is limited, but Donald Trump’s upcoming semiquincentennial remarks are destined to mark a low point in the canon.
Posted inPolitics
John Adams Faced a January 6 Moment
John Adams’s January 6: The acclaimed new biography of the second president reveals how division, insurrection, and repression threatened the young nation and offers lessons for our time. An excerpt.
Posted inPolitics
From Abigail Adams to Jill Biden, We’ve Been Arguing about First Ladies since 1787
From Abigail Adams to Jill Biden, We’ve Been Arguing about First Ladies since 1787. As the president’s family discusses his future, it’s a good time to remember the important roles first ladies have played and the criticism they’ve often faced.
Posted inNovember/December 2023
How the Founders Overcame Partisan Dysfunction
At the dawn of the republic, ideological divisions and personal hatreds were, if anything, worse than they are today. The nation survived because its warring leaders compromised.
