Mr. Capra Goes to Washington
John Houseman, Frank Capra, Pare Lorenz I often associate my intersection with famous people as limited to my days as Director of Public...
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Mar 4, 20227 min read
Tapping Into History
If the idea is good, sometimes plans effortlessly fall into place. Such was the case one magical night in the rotunda of the National...
Feb 26, 20224 min read
The Famous Little Portraitist
One Friday afternoon early in the tenure of Governor John Carlin as Archivist of the United States, I heard a voice in the outer office...
Feb 5, 20227 min read
This Land is Your Land
There were two reasons that John Carlin, Archivist of the United States, and I were travelling to the FDR Library and Museum in Hyde...
Jan 29, 202210 min read
I Believe in Science - Political Science
Senator Charles (Mac) Mathias (R-MD) Governor Theodore R. McKeldin (R-MD) Ok folks, the topics today are political patronage and...
Jan 22, 20226 min read
Church with 41
During my tenure at the National Archives, I got into the habit of attending St. John’s Lafayette Square each year on Good Friday. As an...
Jan 15, 20222 min read
The Boy from Troy
I think the first time that I met Congressman John Lewis was at the opening of the Eyewitness exhibit at the National Archives in June...
Jan 8, 20224 min read
Turd Blossom
Karl Christian Rove, or “Turd Blossom” as he was christened by George W. Bush, is probably the most well-known Republican political...
Jan 1, 20225 min read
The Senator from Searchlight
As I emerge from my writing hiatus, I am channeling my dad who was an early riser and read two newspapers before my mom had opened her...
Dec 12, 20214 min read
Filial Piety
It is xiào in Mandarin, haau in Cantonese, hiêu in Vietnamese, and Kō in Romanized Japanese. It traces its roots to ancestor worship back...
Dec 7, 20214 min read
Bob Dole
We lost another political giant this week. Robert Joseph “Bob” Dole. 98 years old. He was a son of Russell, Kansas, war hero, longtime...
Nov 21, 202114 min read
A President's Casket
As a long-time employee of the National Archives in Washington, DC, I had learned to never utter the words, “well, now I’ve seen it all”....
Nov 1, 20215 min read
WWII Flyboys and a Special Night
They say that it’s dangerous to meet your heroes in person lest your image of them be dashed on the rocks of reality. Not so with John...
Oct 22, 20216 min read
The Way We Were
When you are in the congressional affairs biz in a place like the National Archives, you are also in the tour biz. Your daily goal is to...
Oct 20, 202114 min read
In the Room Where it Happened
So, it was 35 years after the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, and I was the Director of Congressional Affairs at the National...
Oct 14, 20212 min read
Patron Saints
I've thought long and hard about whether to post this old letter. While as the author I own its contents, the recipient and the subject...
Oct 12, 20219 min read
Equal Justice Under Law, 1976
It was early springtime in Washington DC, and it was past time for this project to be finished. After all, it was the bicentennial year,...
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