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History As It Happens

Mar 31, 2022

An overwhelming majority of Americans agree the Supreme Court is an important institution, yet the confirmation process for its lifetime appointments has devolved into all-out partisan warfare and absurd political theater. Less is learned about the SCOTUS nominees than about the politics of the Senate inquisitors and...


Mar 29, 2022

If you meander through the history of the 1930s, you will find any number of possible parallels with today's crisis in Eastern Europe. Aggressive powers, namely Germany and Italy, challenged the existing order by attacking or annexing weaker nations. Today some American politicians are warning that "appeasing" Vladimir...


Mar 24, 2022

Military historian Max Hastings, an acclaimed chronicler of the twentieth century's terrible wars, says Ukraine's defenders are inspiring the world with their courage and resilience in the face of Russia's unprovoked onslaught. But Hastings says Russia remains enormously powerful compared to Ukraine, and therefore may...


Mar 22, 2022

This is the second episode in an occasional series that will focus on slavery, the Constitution, and the ongoing debate over the meaning of the American founding. The first episode with historian Joseph Ellis dropped on Feb. 1.

In a sense it may seem odd that Americans continue to argue over what the Constitution says...


Mar 17, 2022

Cold War historian Mary Elise Sarotte says a new, more dangerous form of that 20th century conflict may descend upon Europe because of Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. The nuclear weapons are still around, although fewer in number, but gone are the climate of detente, mutual trust, and most of the major arms...