American POTUS

It was the 1780’s and this future POTUS was suffering through middle age, his wife had passed away after a long illness and he had sworn off politics after a rough stint as Virginia’s governor.  He was in desperate need of a big change!  So off he went to spend the next 5 years as America’s representative to France.  How to make wine, grow rice, design landscapes and buildings were all at the top of his list.  But it was his firsth...

It was a time when political conventions were far different than today.  There might have been a favorite leading candidate going in, but the deal was not done until the back-room deals were made and the votes were cast. Enter unknown, long shot candidate Abraham Lincoln.  An absolute dark horse whose strategy was to lay low, not offend anyone and wait to be seen as the guy who could best represent the new Republican party. The cra...

Long before he became our 1st POTUS, young George Washington was forging relationships, for better or for worse, with Native Americans on the western frontier. As life would have it, it’s these critical experiences that wound up serving him well over the next few decades, as General during the Revolutionary War and as President during his 8 years in office. How George Washington, Major-General-and President dealt with the delicate ...

Overcoming the barriers to having their voices heard, female trailblazers in the late 40’s and 50’s opened the door to a new role in American politics.  Their good reasoning and sound judgement were finally being paid attention to by presidential candidates from both parties, something our leaders still benefit from today. The first female presidential counselors and their stories of perseverance, intellect, and innovation that cha...

We all have friends, and politicians have A LOT of friends.  But when it comes to political “Best Friends”, TR and his buddy Henry Cabot Lodge sets the bar. From a young age, the two men were taught to serve others and achieve tremendous success, which they did with the assistance of each other. But as close as they once were, political bickering tore them apart, only to be brought back together by life threatening challenges. The ...

On the national stage, humble politician James Garfield was a virtual unknown - thrust into a long-shot run for the ultimate office, the Presidency. He went on to win the White House in one of the closest elections up to that time. And unexperienced as he may have been, after just 6 months in office he was making a difference and citizens were beginning to take notice.  But as soon as things appeared to be full speed ahead, he was ...

It was Thomas Jefferson’s big bold real estate deal, the 15 Million Dollar Louisiana Purchase that was just too good to pass up.  It doubled the size of the country, eliminated the threat of a foreign power, connected the western lands, and gave us a stronger hold on the incredibly valuable Ohio territory. So why was this deal that was as important as the revolution and the constitution so controversial at the time? Thomas Jefferso...

Abraham Lincoln’s election of 1860 saw an amazing 80% voter turnout due in part to extreme passions for who would be leading our divided nation, they had never and would never be as high. As a result, Honest Abe’s whisker-close win proved to be the final spark in the explosion of Civil War. So the stage was now set for him to take over, but first he had to travel through the South to get to D.C., facing a series of unprecedented vi...

Jack Kennedy won the presidency as a fresh new face for a new generation.  A young, renegade leader who pushed the standards of how the White House conducted its business.  And to this, he was successful just as much as he was a failure. But when he was assassinated in Dallas, his very short 2 plus years in office suddenly became the Presidential standard that our politicians are still compared to, to this day. The debatable, compl...

Harry Truman was a smart, humble, confident midwestern Vice President, who woke up one day to find himself in the top job, running the country! And it was no time to sit back and let issues and policies just play out.  It was one of the most tumultuous times in global history, wrapping up a world war and attempting to manage a new cold war!

The surprising rise to power of POTUS 33, and how he managed to be  so successful. Soldier, H...

The Soviets weren’t too thrilled when this actor turned President rolled into the White House.  His Build-Up-To-Build-Down strategy was about to make life very, very difficult for them. But if one thing was certain, he wouldn’t be able to star in this production alone.  So he put together a dynamic internal cast of characters and relied on supporting allies around the world. We're talking about the man who became both a direct...

When the Soviet Union fell apart, and China began its economic liberalization, it looked like those two old Cold War foes were becoming, if not friends, at least not enemies.  But now we find ourselves in a new Cold War as both those nations aggressively confront America and our allies.  On this special episode of American POTUS being hosted at the Howard Baker Center for Public Policy, we will explore why this has occurred, and th...

Marine One is easily the most famous helicopter in the world, typically using the South lawn of the White House to pick up the most famous passenger in the world. So, it’s to no one’s real surprise, that flying, operating, and maintaining this important aircraft is a huge job, because there’s plainly zero room for failure! Flying the POTUS, from the White House, from Camp David, from all over the world, giving him a “lift” wherever...

It had been a long time since a Democrat was elected to the White House, until New Yorker Grover Cleveland grabbed the keys in a squeaker.  Taking a tough stand on several domestic issues got him kicked out after just 4 years.  But the poor performance from the guy that replaced him opened the door for an unprecedented return trip to Washington. We're uncovering Cleveland's relentless spirit, stubborn determination, solid...

From Washington to Buchanan, the first group of guys to head up our new nation were not just dealing with an exciting new job, they were also figuring out what that new job should or shouldn’t be. As the growing pains of our fragile country developed deep divisions both domestically and internationally, each man’s hand was forced.  They were required to do something, anything to try and achieve peace and progress. The revealing tru...

In mid-June of 1972, Richard Nixon was riding high.  After just 1-term, the country was getting along better with each other and with our global frien-enemies.  His reelection was all but certain. But after a sloppy burglary of the Democratic headquarters in Watergate, and the chaotic cover-up that followed, our 37th POTUS’s 2nd term fell into a tailspin. We’re offering up a modern, objective look at Nixon’s Presidency and the noto...

World War 1 had just wrapped up, and the nation was desperate for a “return to normalcy”.  So who’s more normal than Warren Harding, a small town newspaperman from the Midwest?

He was elected in a landslide and seemed to have a fairly successful presidency.  But after he got sick and died in office, trouble started bubbling to the surface.  It seems, while Harding may have been a good guy in office, his cabinet was anything but.  Se...

While in office, we debate and critique just about everything a POTUS does.  When they pass on, either in office or long after, the conversation about their policies might lighten up a bit, but the controversy rolls on. Washington’s last wishes, Adams and Jeffersons divine timing, Lincoln’s eventual resting place, Reagan’s final closing scene.  They all reflect the impact these leaders had on us and how we remember them to this day...

This son-of-a-peanut-farmer could have easily laid down his roots on the land he grew up on.  But great things were calling him far removed from the Georgia countryside.  A graduate of the Naval Academy, a Governor, a President, the man just kept achieving amazing things no one thought possible! But a rough economy here at home and trouble abroad brought his unlikely presidential ascension to a close after just 1 term.  And while h...