Author Erik Larson joins guest host John McCaa to discuss the presidential election of 1860, how Southerners labeled it a “hostile act,” and the chaotic months that followed before the first bullets flew at Fort Sumpter.
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Lessons from Lincoln on effective politics
Steve Inskeep, cohost of NPR’s Morning Edition, joins host Krys Boyd to discuss how Lincoln sought to build a social revolution and hold the nation together.
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The forgotten story of how Lincoln tried to bring together a divided nation
Political analyst John Avlon discusses Lincoln as a peacemaker, his approach of reason over brute strength, and how that was derailed after his assassination.
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How Lincoln calibrated his moral compass
Pulitzer Prize winner Jon Meacham discusses his biography of the 16th president, from birth to assassination, and Lincoln’s conviction that slavery must be ended as a moral evil.
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Everybody hates gerrymandering, but it’s here to stay
Professor Nick Seabrook joins guest host John McCaa to discuss the history of gerrymandering — even Abraham Lincoln was a victim — and why it’s not so easy to mitigate its effects today.
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Why we can trace today’s America to Reconstruction
Kermit Roosevelt III, a professor of Constitutional law, joins guest host John McCaa to talk about how Abraham Lincoln’s vision of America and the Reconstruction period that followed served as a course correction.
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The forgotten story of how Lincoln tried to bring together a divided nation
John Avlon discusses Lincoln as a peacemaker, his approach of reason over brute strength, and how that was derailed after his assassination.
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Even Lincoln Battled Fake News
Elizabeth Mitchell joins us to discuss an incendiary, false story published in two newspapers during the Civil War and how it became a battle of the press vs. the president.
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The Violent Path To Emancipation
H. W. Brands, Jack S. Blanton Sr. Chair in History at the University of Texas at Austin, joins us to talk about a man who called for change via murder and another who looked to Washington for solutions.
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Was It A Mistake To Unite The States?
Richard Kreitner, contributing writer to The Nation, joins us to look at past and present attempts to dissolve the United States.
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When Lincoln Died, The Drama Began
The co-creators of a dramatic podcast about the days following Lincoln’s assassination join us to talk about crafting a compelling modern drama from the annals of history.
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Best Of Think: Lincoln In The Bardo
George Saunders joins us to talk about his first novel, “Lincoln in the Bardo.”
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