History First

The facts of Abraham Lincoln's assassination are well-known — the president was shot and killed by John Wilkes Booth at Ford's Theatre, on April 14, …

How have American presidents interacted with the British Royal Family when one of the "Firm" weds? 

Is the presidency romantic? Well, couples throughout history have thought so—multiple people have gotten married at the White House since the …

When Gerald Ford assumed the presidency following Richard Nixon’s resignation in 1974, he had to decide whether not to pardon his predecessor. …

When it comes to Inauguration Days, nothing quite tops Abraham Lincoln’s first inauguration in 1861. By the time Lincoln took the oath of office on …

In this episode, we check in with three American presidents—Warren G. Harding, William Howard Taft, and Franklin Roosevelt—who all had an eventful …

If President Trump were to run again in 2024, and win, he would become only the second president to serve two, non-consecutive terms. The first was …

We take a look back at a few awkward Inauguration Days in the 20th-century. We'll discuss the transition from Harry Truman to Dwight D. Eisenhower; Jimmy Carter to Ronald Reagan; and Bill Clinton to George W. Bush

Happy Halloween! Here's a short episode about White House ghosts. Presidents, first ladies, and White House visitors have reported supernatural sightings at the executive mansion. 

At the beginning of the month, President Trump was diagnoses with coronavirus—and questions quickly followed. For several days, the truth about the …

Today, we’re going to delve into Calvin Coolidge’s 1928 trip to Cuba. At the time, it seemed like a rather serene affair. The wild truth about the …

Conventions are historically pretty wild. (This has changed in the last several election cycles…they’ve become much more predictable). We look back at four memorable convention moments from the 20th-century—from the …

These days, all anyone can talk about is coronavirus. Our conversations are consumed with social-distancing, quarantine measures, and questions about testing. Many have drawn similarities between the pandemic of today …

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Joe Biden has officially picked Kamala Harris to be his running mate. This came after some grumbling within Biden's circle that Harris was "too ambitious" and "lacked remorse" for her attacks on Biden during the …

Today, Donald Trump is throwing a huge military style parade to celebrate the 4th of July in DC. So what have American military parades looked like …

The youngest candidate running for president in 2020 is 37. The oldest is 77. So what role has age played in past campaigns?

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On this day in 1933 FDR gave the first of his fireside chats. It *completely* transformed how presidents communicate with the country.

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Is changing the size of the Supreme Court a radical idea? The short answer is no. We take a look at the history of the Court’s changing size, and how this may be an issue in 2020.

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Those who have run for either successfully or not, play a curious role during new campaigns.

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This weekend marked the death of John Quincy Adams in 1848. JQA led a dramatic life, closely interwoven with the early years of a young United States.

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The 80th Congress saw the start of Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy’s political careers. We take a look at their parallel divergent paths, and …

Today we celebrate George Washington’s birthday. Name a fact, any fact about him—first President? Revolutionary War General? Something about a cherry …

It took the United States a long time to formally add an amendment to the Constitution outlining the path of succession. So, what does the 25th amendment do?

If elected president, Cory Booker would join the small club of men who held the presidency without a wife.

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Happy birthday to William Henry Harrison! Yes, his presidency was only a month long. Yet it, and his campaign, were deeply consequential in American …

“Why do you want to be president?” This question should have an easy answer. Ted Kennedy learned the hard way what happens when you aren’t prepared …

There are a lot of senators running in 2020. But only three sitting senators have ever become president. This got us thinking—where do presidents come from?

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American presidential history is filled with twists and turns, and surprise success stories. Today we take a look at a few of the dark horse candidates that changed the game—and what that means for 2020

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Inaugurations can be dramatic affairs. Today, we take a look back at the end of Harry Truman's presidency, and his involvement in the inaugurations …

Speaker Nancy Pelosi has written the president asking him to submit a written State of the Union in lieu of a speech. A written address isn't all that unusual. The tradition of a speech has only been set in the last 100 …

THE FORMER VICE PRESIDENT HAS RUN BEFORE, NEVER SUCCESSFULLY. COULD 2020 BE DIFFERENT?

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President Trump isn’t the first president to manufacture a crisis at the border as a means to an end. He follows in the footsteps of James K. Polk. …

Presidential hopefuls are increasingly relying on Instagram to get their message across. Is it so different from the front porch campaigns or …