Photo by T.C. Andersen I have now written 150 blogs in the 3+ years of Constancely Hoping and over 25 percent of them have had to do with...

It occurred to me the other day that November 5th will be one of the most important days of my life. To not write something on the topic...

Senator Joe Biden, 2002 While Joe Biden came to the National Archives on more than one occasion during my tenure, outside of social...

Billionaire Republican Congressman, heir to the HUFFCO Energy fortune, husband of Arianna Huffington (Greek-born founder of the...

As is often the case in recent years, when a high-profile member of the US Senate or House of Representatives passes away, friends ask me...

In the Spring of 2005, I got a call from Bob King, long-time chief of staff to Congressman Tom Lantos of California. I had developed a...

From the National Archives Oral History catalog: John Constance, whose storied National Archives career spanned 35 years from 1972 to...

When I was at the National Archives, we were unwillingly drawn into the controversy regarding the public display of the Ten Commandments....

Not so fast there, my friend. No, this blog is not about politics, but about human values, common decency, and naivete. Early in my...

Be careful what you wish for when researching your family history I feel that I have sufficient credibility to comment on the American...

I looked up the definition of “legacy” this week and was surprised that Webster lists money or property as the first meaning of the term....

Those of you who know me, have heard me say, "when you work at the Vatican you have to work Christmas Eve; and when you work at the...

In the context of a world where everything is partisan, everything is divided, everything pushes us to make an affirmative choice between...

[A dear friend recently invited me to address a luncheon meeting of retired members of the NC Bar at the NC State University Club. A...

My first real job out of college was with a division of the National Archives called the National Audiovisual Center. The director was a...

When I started this blog in 2021 it soon occurred to me that if I wasn’t careful, I could write an obituary every week. That wasn’t going...

Dr. Trudy Huskamp Peterson, Dr. Michael Kurtz, Adrienne Thomas Michael Kurtz Michael Joseph Kurtz was born on March 8, 1949, in Leesburg...

John Constance and Herb Angel, Deputy Archivist of the United States, August, 1971 I recently received a note from a young lady who...

(Movie Poster, National Treasure , Walt Disney Pictures) I couldn’t be prouder of my old ship, the National Archives. Events in recent...

(Capitol Reflections, photo by John Constance) Congress is broken. Politics is a vicious blood sport. There is no such thing as a...