U.S. Senate — Bunk History

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J.F.K.’s “Profiles in Courage” Has a Racism Problem. What Should We Do About It?

Kennedy defined courage as a willingness to take an unpopular stand in service of a larger, higher cause. But what cause?

by Nicholas Lemann via The New Yorker on July 23, 2020

"It Has Not Been My Habit to Yield"

Charles Sumner and the fight for equal naturalization rights.

by Lucy E. Salyer via HNN on July 5, 2020

The Real Story of the 49ers

The reality of the early gold-rush prospectors was not nearly as benevolent as the mascot’s wide smile may suggest.

by Bruce Barcott via The Atlantic on February 2, 2020

Joe Biden Tried to Cut Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare for 40 Years

Joe Biden was once a New Deal Democrat. Then he “evolved” and starting backing decades of Republican plans to cut Medicare and Social Security.

by Branko Marcetic via Jacobin on January 29, 2020

Making Impeachment Matter

Democrats need to face up to their constitutional duty without fear.

by Alex Pareene via The New Republic on November 21, 2019

The Man Who Tried to Claim the Grand Canyon

Ralph H. Cameron staked mining claims around the Grand Canyon, seeking to privatize it. To protect his claims, he ran for Senate.

by Adam M. Sowards via JSTOR Daily on July 31, 2019

Nancy Pelosi, Impeachment, and Places in History

Nancy Pelosi's reluctance to impeach Trump only denies the reality of his transgressions.

by Sean Wilentz via The New Yorker on July 11, 2019

A National Debate Over Politics, Principles and Impeachment — in 1868

Was the impeachment of Andrew Johnson a matter of national principles? Or an affair of pragmatic politics?

by John Fabian Witt via Washington Post on May 24, 2019

wE’rE a rEPuBLiC nOt A dEMoCRacY

A political usage guide for a feckless commentariat.

by Ed Burmila via The Baffler on May 6, 2019

Sick Days

How Congress bent the rules to combat the Spanish Flu while it's own members began to become victims of the pandemic

via History, Art, & Archives: United States House of Representatives on December 17, 2018

Supreme Court building.

The Supreme Court Confirmation Process is Actually Less Political Than it Once Was

Our fights over nominees might be bitter, but they’re still less contentious than the 19th century.

by Timothy S. Huebner via Made By History on December 12, 2018

The Electoral College Conundrum

There’s no consensus on abolishing the Electoral College, which has countered the popular vote in two of the past five presidential elections.

by Parker Richards via The Atlantic on November 23, 2018

The Second Half of Watergate Was Bigger, Worse, and Forgotten By the Public

That's when the public learned that American multinationals were making enormous bribes to politicians in foreign countries.

by David Montero via Longreads on November 20, 2018

Electing the House of Representatives

A series of interactive maps showing the results of nearly two centuries of congressional elections.

by Robert K. Nelson, LaDale Winling via American Panorama on October 15, 2018

The Visionary John Wesley Powell Had a Plan for Developing the West, But Nobody Listened

Powell’s foresight might have prevented the 1930s dust bowl and perhaps, today’s water scarcities.

by John F. Ross via Smithsonian on July 3, 2018

How Supreme Court Nominations Lost Their Apolitical Pretense

It used to be that nobody would admit to opposing a nominee for ideological reasons. Should we be happy that illusion is over?

by David Greenberg via Politico Magazine on June 30, 2018

RFK, in Arthur Schlesinger’s Words

On the 50th anniversary of RFK's death, a glimpse inside one of his closest relationships.

by David Margolick via New York Review of Books on May 31, 2018

Roger Goodell’s Father Had a Political Backbone—Why Doesn’t Roger?

The NFL commissioner is bending to pressure from a reactionary Republican president—something his father refused to do.

by John Nichols via The Nation on May 27, 2018

“Weaponized Babies”; or, Damn, Why Didn’t I Think of Using That Term?

Babies have been playing in the political arena for a long time.

by Janet Golden via Nursing Clio on April 23, 2018

Obama's Legacy of Impunity for Torture

Obama's desire to “look forward” on torture has enabled Trump to look backward in his appointment of a new CIA director.

by Adam Serwer via The Atlantic on March 14, 2018

Drawing showing Nixon and Clinton in a criminal line-up

How Impeachment Works

It’s not enough to bring the articles of impeachment against an official – you have to convict them, too.

by Allyson Shwed via The Nib on February 23, 2018

Anita Hill and Her 1991 Congressional Defenders to Joe Biden: You Were Part of the Problem

Hill revisits the infamous Clarence Thomas hearings with five of the congressional women who supported her.

by Annys Shin, Libby Casey via Washington Post on November 22, 2017

A DNA Test Won’t Explain Elizabeth Warren’s Ancestry

You’re not 28 percent Finnish, either.

by Matt Miller via Slate on June 29, 2016

The Epic Bar Fight That Sums Up the Problem with Memorial Day

A Depression-era story of mourning, motherhood, and grandiosity.

by Lisa M. Budreau via What It Means to Be American on May 26, 2016

How Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. Won the 1964 New Hampshire Primary Without Lifting a Finger

Lodge's victory in the 1964 New Hampshire primary is a fascinating testament to the power of whim in American elections.

by Seth Gannon via Slate on February 8, 2016

Joe Biden from ca. 1975.

How a Young Joe Biden Turned Liberals Against Integration

Forty years ago, the Senate supported school busing—until a 32-year-old changed his mind.

by Jason Sokol via Politico Magazine on August 4, 2015

Senator Abraham Ribicoff

The North’s Shameful Refusal to Face Its Own Tangled Racial Past

What we should learn from Senator Abraham Ribicoff’s failed attempt.

by Jason Sokol via HNN on January 5, 2015

Supreme Court Cronyism

With the nomination of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court, George W. Bush restarts a long and troubled tradition.

by David Greenberg via Slate on October 5, 2005

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