Current developments
James Wilson's Draft
I have been tickled by the recent identification of records of James Wilson at the Historical Society of Pennsvlvania as an early draft of the Constitution prepared during the Constitutional Convention in the Summer of 1787. I think the find is slightly less electrifying than the initial ballyhoo suggests, but it’s still a great thing. …
Read MoreTreason, American Style
Nattering on about Aaron Burr’s 1807 treason trial this week, I was brought up short by a very simple question: How many treason trials have there been in the United States? I resolved to investigate the question, which yielded the following. The Framers of the Constitution mistrusted treason prosecutions, seeing them as an easily abused tool of political…
Read MoreThe Wit and Wisdom of Aaron Burr
In my current work on the conspiracy of former Vice President Aaron Burr in 1805-07, I am constantly coming across epigrams that flowed from the pen of Burr. I will cram as many as I can in the book. Until then, I have resolved to share them in this forum. So, for our first entry,…
Read MoreNovember 19: Can we handle the truth?
Next Thursday at lunchtime, I try something entirely new: a joint public appearance with my wife, Nancy Floreen, member at-large of the Montgomery County Council! We’ll be at the Literary Luncheon series of the Friends of the Library of Montgomery County, at Strathmore Hall Mansion in North Bethesda, MD. The fun starts at 11:30 a.m.…
Read MoreOn the Road Again . . .
Summer’s over when it’s time to go out and hustle books. So this Thursday (Constitution Day!) I’ll be at St. Mary’s College in southern Maryland at 4:30, speaking on The Summer of 1787. Then it’s back to Impeached, which will be my topic next Wednesday, September 23, at the National Archives in DC, at noon. …
Read MoreImpeachment Season
We started this year of impeachment with Governor Blago in Illinois. Then federal Judge Sam Kent in Houston went down. And now Gov. Mark Sanford of South Caroline — he of the Appalachian Trail euphemism — may be next up on the impeachment hit parade. My musings on this impeachment surfeit are at Huffington Post.
Read MoreThe Wages of Mendacity
Fed up with bestselling authors who plagiarizes and just make up facts? Me, too. I let it rip on Huffington Post today. After a day spent struggling with the microfilm readers at the Library of Congress, trying to nail down the facts for my new project, I was stunned to read how Ben Mezrich wrote the book…
Read MoreReconstruction, Andrew Johnson and the South
In the last several weeks, I have talked about my book, Impeached, before several groups in the South: Altanta, Lexington (KY), Nashville, Memphis. I was somewhat anxious about these appearances. After all, The book (and my talks) are highly critical of Southern policies towards the freed slaves.immediately after the Civil War. I also take a…
Read MoreThe French Revolution
No, not the decade-long upheaval in Europe that veered between liberty and riot. The novel set in San Francisco by Matt Stewart, which is being released on Twitter RIGHT NOW, as part of a great new experiment in social media. The media has had a field day with this story, including the Wall Street Journal…
Read MoreForgetting History, California Style
Sure, he was scrawny and not real good-looking, but Thomas Starr King was a giant in California in the turbulent 1860s. And he’s about to be thrown out of the U.S. Capitol — my objection is at Huffington Post.
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