Excited for things to come… — Well, 2022 didn’t start exactly as I wanted it to. I love New Year goals, lists, calendars, etc. Instead, I got COVID and fell way behind. I’m feeling better now and have lots of good news to share, so I’m hoping this year will only improve. Up first, the paperback…

And what *really* happened in those cabinet battles — Hamilton: The Musical reopened on Broadway in September and students are heading back to school, so many teachers will include songs, lyrics, and video clips in their curriculum. As they should! The musical helps the history come alive and encourages viewers of all ages to think of historical figures as…

In the last few months, an increasing number of politicians have made arguments that start with “The Founders never intended…”. While Americans have been appealing to the founding generation to bolster their positions since the founding generation, there seems to be an uptick of this rhetoric in political dialogue. I’ve…

How one historian tries to be transparent about biases On May 28, Pulitzer Prize-winner Gordon Wood reviewed Pulitzer Prize-winner Alan Taylor’s new book, American Republics. The reviewed caused quite the Twitter brouhaha among historians, journalists, and readers. …

(Even if it will never happen…) — There are so many challenges that face our nation today: the lingering pandemic, climate change, systemic racial and economic inequality, rising inflation, the threat of white supremacist violence, and constant threats to our democratic institutions. …

A bibliography — Over the last year, I’ve worked with Great Courses (now Wondrium) to create a new Audible course on the history of the president’s cabinet. It’s chock full of scandal, power, failure, leadership, and very colorful characters. I think you’ll enjoy it. Like all history, my work is built on the…

And it should — Two weeks ago, the FBI released the first of several formerly-classified document about the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. The FBI released this information in accordance with President Biden’s executive order. These documents offer an important reminder about the process of history — it takes time. There are many…

And the dangerous precedent he is following Earlier this week, the Democrats passed a stopgap measure to fund the government until December. But a debt ceiling deadlines still looms on October 18 and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is threatening to tank the economy in pursuit of his own political…

And the long history behind these attempts to define who counts as an American — At the beginning of the month, Senate candidate J.D. Vance decried “childless cat ladies” as lesser Americans. In particular, he pointed to people like Vice President Kamala Harris, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortex, and Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. It’s easy to roll your eyes and dismiss this statement as ridiculous campaign…