How FDR Emasculated the Black Press in World War II
Instead of indulging in politically risky sedition prosecutions of the black press, the government relied on indirect methods of behind-the-scenes manipulation and intimidation.
Presidential History
Third Party Candidates Shouldn't Get Their Hopes Up
If Joe Manchin or Larry Hogan thinks he’ll be elected on a No Labels ticket, he’ll be sorely disappointed.
When the Left and Right Came Together To Applaud Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
A Republican, a Communist, and a Catholic conservative walk onto a movie set...
Clark Neily: Regardless of Guilt, Trump Won't Go to Jail
The constitutional lawyer and criminal justice reformer talks about our two-tier punishment system and deep-seated corruption at the Justice Department.
Biden's Experience Doesn't Mean He Can Plan an Economy
No amount of experience can solve the "knowledge problem."
Free Immigration Is a Core American Value
Just consider the policies that the Founding Fathers embraced.
Presidents' Day Is a Good Reminder To Treat the Presidency With Skepticism
While the office was created with "modest authority and limited responsibilities," the modern president has increasingly unchecked power and authority.
Biden May Dream of 6 More Years, but His Three Closest Comps Never Got There
What we can learn from the State of the Union addresses by Jimmy Carter in 1979, Richard Nixon in 1971, and JFK in 1963
The Political Lies That Really Matter
From George Santos to Joe Biden, résumé padding is unacceptable. But it's all the lies about legislation we can't afford.
It's Way Past Time To Release the Rest of the JFK Assassination Files
Joe Biden just declassified another batch, but the government is still keeping some under wraps.
What the FBI's Mar-a-Lago Warrant Does—and Doesn't—Mean
Even if a warrant wasn’t the DOJ’s only option, its choice to go this route doesn’t signal—let alone prove—anything about the future of the probe.
How the U.S. Paid for the Civil War
Lincoln's wartime governance had dire, and longstanding, economic consequences.
The Queen Is Dead. Anarchy in the U.K.?
Plus: The editors respond to a question about the Forward Party.
Maybe a Ceremonial Monarchy Can Show the Way to a Less Powerful State
The real danger to citizens is the use of coercive government power, no matter how it’s named.
R.I.P. David McCullough, Who Saw the Bright Side of History
McCullough didn't just build on academic historians' work—he filled a gap they left.
George Will Loves To Argue About America
The octogenarian columnist has a lot to say about happiness and history in the United States.
George Will vs. 1619 Project: The U.S. Founding Is 'the Best Thing That Ever Happened'
The Washington Post columnist says President Joe Biden isn't a progressive but "will go where the [Democratic] party goes, and the party is being driven by other people."
What Joe Biden Can Learn From Studying Presidential History
A new book holds valuable lessons for the president-elect.
Biden Acknowledges Constitutional Limits to the Power of the Presidency
That’s a rare position for modern White House residents, and not necessarily a popular one with the public.
Joe Biden's Endless River of Debt and Regulation
There are at least 11 trillion reasons to be very scared about what comes next.
Why Electing Biden (or Trump) Won't Settle Anything for Long
In an age of parties run by extremists, the next majority is just an election away, explains political scientist Morris P. Fiorina.
Morris P. Fiorina: Why 'Electoral Chaos' Is Here To Stay
Whether Trump or Biden wins, the Stanford political scientist says "unstable majorities" will persist in the coming decade.
Public Disclosure of Presidential Illnesses
A useful summary of how White Houses are not always forthcoming about medical issues afflicting Presidents.
Violent Protests in 1968 Helped Elect Richard Nixon. Will Today's Protests Help Trump?
Princeton's Omar Wasow talks about the complicated effects of civil rights demonstrations, police brutality, and racial fears on public policy.
H.L. Mencken on 'Numskull' Presidents, the Spanish Flu, and the Depression
Thought during an epidemic from a defender of freedom
On the Money: Presidential Portraiture and Power in D.C.
Kehinde Wiley's pre-presidential works criticized inequalities and hierarchies of power. His presidential portrait doesn't do the same.
Activists Want a Problematic Mural of George Washington Destroyed. It Will Cost a High School $600,000.
The artist wanted students to learn about Washington's flaws. How traumatizing.
Who's Afraid of Howard Schultz? Just About Everyone, and They're Right To Be
The former Starbucks CEO is getting dragged by liberals and progressives because he is talking about debt and spending in ways they don't like.
What Bill Clinton Can Teach Donald Trump About Surviving Endless Scandal
The former president radically flipped the conventional wisdom about dealing with political enemies, legal issues, and impeachment.
Did I Really Once Think That George H.W. Bush Was the Worst President of My Lifetime?
A presidential derangement syndrome for all seasons
Farewell to Nicholas von Hoffman, the Newsman Who Got Fired for Comparing Nixon to a Dead Mouse
Friday A/V Club: Columnist, broadcaster, and critic of concentrated power
'Worse Than Watergate' Is Worse Than Watergate
The rhetorical war over the Justice Department's Trump/Russia investigation is beating a dead metaphor.
How Alexander Hamilton Screwed Up America
The foreword to a new history of our controversial Founder written by Ron Paul.
Don't Rush to Impeachment
There's a reason it's supposed to be hard to remove the president.
How To Impeach the President (Or Not)
It's more complicated than you think and one method involves a constitutional amendment invoked when presidents get colonscopies.
All This Impeachment Talk Is Pure Trump Derangement Syndrome
That man in the White House is vulgar, disrespectful, self-involved, maybe even dangerous. So?
Will the Trump Fiasco Deprogram Presidential Cultists?
The current occupant of the White House may just be the right guy to deflate excessive expectations for the presidency.
What's the Deal With Presidential Foreign Policy Doctrines Anyway?
They paper over the fact that America enjoys extraordinary latitude when choosing how to interact with the rest of the world.
What Washington's Farewell Address Tells Us About Trump's America (Reason Podcast)
The nation's father warned against "hyper-partisanship, excessive debt and foreign wars" in 1796. Why aren't we paying attention, asks John Avlon.
The Paranoid Presidency
Many presidents have spouted conspiracy theories. What's different about Trump is the way he does it.
How Trump Affects the Presidential Rankings
Eisenhower and Jackson now perceived differently. What's going on?
Is It Cool To Call the President a Bastard Again?
People who not long ago said it was disrespectful to criticize the tenant in the White House seem to have rediscovered the value of dissent. Well, maybe.
Could Trump Lose the Way Gore Lost?
Electoral College math makes victory a challenge.
Meet Mike Pence, Possible Donald Trump Vice President
The Indiana guv is a social conservative, surveillance-state booster, drug warrior...and budget hawk. So where does that leave libertarians? Still #NeverTrump.
The Preacher and the President: Weekend TV Draws from History, Comic Books
LBJ and DC (comics) offer very divergent entertainment options.
Learning from 1896: Why an Anti-Trump Third Party Will Flop
History shows the flaws in temporary 'fixes' against populist takeovers.