Since 2006, this podcast has been using history to elevate today's political debates. "The perfect antidote to bloviating talking heads, My History is thoughtful, nuanced, and highly engaging." -Columbia Journalism Review
15th Anniversary Show Part I: Speaking w/ Liste...
Bruce reviews favorite old clips and speaks to two listeners from all the way back at the beginning, Kevin Willis and Tom Morris.
82 min
127
Dennis Kucinich on Public Service, Public Power...
We speak to Dennis Kucinich about his fight to save Cleveland's municipal power system as mayor of the city in 1970's. He risked not only his career but his life during that battle, and he gives us some of the details from his new book -"The Division of Light and Power"
40 min
128
The Man in the Cave and Other Stories of the Si...
We know Jefferson and Franklin, but what about the other signers - John Hart, John Penn, William Williams, Richard Stockton, William Whipple, John Morgan, William Floyd, George Read and others. I released this series as its own podcast in 2012, some...
323 min
129
The Man Behind the UN Who Never Got Credit - Ed...
Edward Stettinius, Jr. served a short but important time as Secretary of State serving F.D.R. and Truman. Without him, there may not have been a UN. And because he got very little credit, he was able to be successful. With...
53 min
130
Golden Beauty Boss: Madame Sara Spencer Washing...
In this episode, we speak with Cheryl Woodruff Brooks, author of Washington was a cosmetic entrepreneur whose company turned her into one of of America's first black millionaires. She was founder and president of Apex Enterprises consisting of...
30 min
131
The 25th Amendment, Section Four Explained, w/ ...
The Constitution contains two possible forms of presidential removal outside of election, one is the much-discussed impeachment process. The other is the 25th Amendment's fourth section. We discuss 25 Section 4 with Professor Brian C. Kalt, Professor...
46 min
132
Cholera and Benjamin Harrison
In 1892, a dreaded disease caused a President to navigate local health situation and created a new law. We look at the precedent-setting quarantine order of the 23rd President, Benjamin Harrison. While we are at it, we look at Harrison's...
41 min
133
16 Obscure Facts About Presidents w/ Jeremy And...
Who was Chester Arthur's secret pen pal? How did Herbert Hoover spend his last day in office? What was McKinley's obscure accomplishment? What was Rutherford B. Hayes passionate hobby? What event hurt Taft's Presidency from the...
68 min
134
The Power to Pardon
From Eugene Debs to Richard Nixon, from a previously run episode, the President's power to pardon is examined.
26 min
135
Democracy w/ Dr. Paul Cartledge of Cambridge Un...
We speak often of Democracy, but do we really know what it is? We point to Athens as an example. But what was Greek Democracy really like? A conversation with Dr. Paul Cartledge, A.G. Leventis Senior Research Fellow at the University...
67 min
136
Masks Then and Now, 1960 Election Presidents Le...
Host Bruce Carlson reflects on 14 years of the podcast, provides a show update. Plus some listener questions on masks then and now, Presidents leaving (or not leaving) the Oval, and Kennedy's 1960 election and allegations of fraud.
59 min
137
Etiquette and Social Media: Where are Our Manne...
Jessica Weisberg has traced Ben Franklin's early advice-writing, read the "Lord Chesterfield" letters that early Americans read to learn how to act, attended Dale Carnegie workshops and spoke with Miss Manners all in a quest to track down why...
46 min
138
Pirates and America, w/ Rebecca Simon, Author o...
America's fascination then and now with sea rebels, sea dogs, privateers, smugglers, and pirates by other names is pretty clear. Books, movies and video games with pirates sell. We talk with pirate expert and historian Rebecca Simon, Ph.D....
49 min
139
Did Nixon Win the Popular Vote in 1960? And Ot...
In this episode we look at an enduring mystery, one that didn't matter too much in the 1960 election but has since taken on significance. Could it be that Kennedy lost, and Nixon won, the popular vote nationally in 1960. We looked at it a decade ago,...
73 min
140
Notes of 1884: Thoughts on That Election, and t...
We discuss the tight election that elected the first Democratic President in 25 years and some comparisons and contrasts to the current election. A President's umbrella, salutes for his "big foot," chain-armor clad parades, and the importance of...
45 min
141
The 1880 Election and The Morey Letter: a Tale ...
The 1880 election was close, with Democrats and Republicans seeking an advantage in its waning days when a letter hits a major city newspaper purporting to be in the hand of a candidate. It is a letter that could turn the election. With...
59 min
142
King Corn, Story of Ethanol (from 2013)
A bit of an American political story about politics, corn, common sense.
20 min
143
Operation Eagle Claw and the 1979 Iran Embassy ...
Eagle Claw, popularly known as Desert One, was the unsuccessful attempt to rescue hostages in Iran in 1980, hostages that had been held since the storming of the embassy in 1979. Replaying two previous podcasts on the topic, we look at the...
High political stakes, secret plots, Plug Uglies armed with sharp awls to help 'convince' voters... Baltimore in the 1850's was a fearsome place where politics and gangs were hard to separate. Yet it was the connecting stop for new Presidents...
62 min
145
A Powder Keg About to Explode: Newark, NJ 1967
Newark N.J. suffered a brutal and consuming riot, or rebellion, depending on how you see things, in the hot summer of 1967. Through the voices of history, we hear about those events, what caused it, and the musician who got caught up and became an...
65 min
146
The Cabinet, George Washington's Creation, with...
George Washington did not get a Cabinet as President. He created it. His precedents forged the institution and the President's relationship to the Executive Departments. Washington didn't fire a cabinet member, but he set the precedents in this area...
42 min
147
History's Nine Most Insane Rulers w Scott Rank ...
We talk about Idi Amin, Kim Jong-il and other despots with Scott Rank of History Unplugged Podcast. He joins us to talk about his book History's Nine Most Insane Rulers. We get into Amin's awful suppression of opposition, deportation of...
68 min
148
Eyewitness to Kent State Shootings: Paula Stone...
The May 4, 1970 shootings at Kent State killed 4 students and wounded 9. Paula Stone Tucker was a student going through her work and studies on campus when she witnessed a historic event. We talk about Kent State, how the 4 days unfolded, and get...
54 min
149
Rules of Political Debate: Godwin's Law is Not ...
Godwin's Law is Not a Law. And yet, it probably should be followed in most cases. (re-do of past episode that contained an error). The surprising history of the rule that one should not discuss Nazis in debates, and the person who is...
25 min
150
The Spanish Flu of 1918 and Its Aftermath - Con...
We speak with Laura Spinney, science journalist and author of "Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How It Changed the World" and discuss the dreadful disease that claimed 50-100 million lives, more than the Great War that preceded it....