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President Precedents
President Precedents
President Precedents
To mark Presidents' Day, we compiled an exhibit that explores the shifting ways Americans have conceived of the U.S. presidency.
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The Mandate
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The Pulpit
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President Precedents
The Pulpit
The Pulpit
How TV Paved America’s Road to Trump
“A brand mascot that jumped off the cereal box”: a TV critic explains the multimedia character Trump created.
by
Sean Illing
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James Poniewozik
FDR's War Against the Press
Franklin Roosevelt had his own Breitbart, and radio was his Twitter.
by
David Beito
Men in Dark Times
How Hannah Arendt’s fans misread the post-truth presidency.
by
Rebecca Panovka
Daniel Schorr and Nixon’s Tricky Road to Redemption
Nixon portrayed himself as a victim of the press. But from the 1952 Checkers speech through his post-presidency, he proved to be an able manipulator of the media.
by
Ryan Reft
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Ronald Reagan, the First Reality TV Star President
Ronald Reagan is at the heart of the modern American politics of advertising, public relations, and a television in every home.
by
Matthew Wills
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Tim Raphael
What Happens When a President Really Listens?
Jonathan Alter on Jimmy Carter ditching politics for truth.
by
Jonathan Alter
Trumpism Is the New McCarthyism
Just as as McCarthyism did decades ago, Trumpism conceals the Republican Party’s long-term program to dismantle the public sector.
by
Ellen Schrecker
Presidents and Mass Shootings
How Consoler-in-Chiefs respond to senseless gun violence.
by
Tevi Troy
How the Ghost of Jimmy Carter’s Presidency Haunts Everything Biden Says About Supply Shortages
The last from-the-top critique of American overconsumption generated a massive backlash.
by
Kevin Mattson
Democracy’s Demagogues
A new history of five heroes of the revolutionary period considers the power and instability of charismatic leadership.
by
Ferdinand Mount
George W. Bush Declares a War on Terror
Bush’s 2002 State of the Union address kicked off a war that continued well into the 21st century.
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Voices & Visions
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Republicans Think Celebrities Can Win Them the Black Vote. They’re Wrong.
Kanye West won't win Trump black support. But it will cost West his.
by
Leah Wright Rigueur
The Hardest Job in the World
What if the problem isn’t the president—it’s the presidency?
by
John Dickerson
Can America’s Problems Be Fixed By A President Who Loves Jon Meacham?
How a pop historian shaped the soul of Biden’s presidency.
by
Kara Voght
Lincoln’s Faith
The President's spiritual journey transformed him and the nation.
by
Joshua Zeitz
The Language of the State of the Union
An interactive chart reveals how the words presidents use reflect the twists and turns of American history.
by
Mitch Fraas
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Benjamin M. Schmidt
Pictures at a Restoration
On Pete Souza’s Obama.
by
Blair McClendon
How the War on Terror Undermined American Democracy
Spencer Ackerman’s new book argues that the forever wars created the conditions for Trump’s rise.
by
Patrick Iber
The Unusual Group Trying to Turn Biden into FDR
In a city of ambitious influencers, a shadow cabinet hopes it can summon a new New Deal.
by
Ruby Cramer
The End of the Businessman President
Donald Trump’s catastrophic tenure will be the nail in the coffin of the worst idea in politics: that the government can be run like a corporation.
by
Kyle Edward Williams
The Legacy
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