I'm launching a pre-order campaign with
@porchlightbooks
! You can purchase a signed copy (with an originally designed bookplate) for 30% off until August 22, 2024.
See more details below!
Today I start as the Executive Director of the George Washington Presidential Library. I plan to spend a lot of time talking about Washington’s decision to step away from power. It was a radical act in 1783. It was revolutionary in 1797. And it remains extraordinary in 2024. 1/3
I bought this suit for my book launch the day I saw the cover, because obviously I needed a green pantsuit. Well plans changed, it's now a virtual event, and no one will see my pants. But by golly, I'm wearing the damn pantsuit.
In the fall of 1800, President John Adams lost his reelection bid. A few months later, he did something remarkable, historic, and under appreciated - he went home.
You don’t get to love your country only when you win.
For what it's worth, when speaking publicly, citing another person's work doesn't make you look like you don't know things. It makes you look well read and generous.
#OTD
in 1871, President Ulysses S. Grant warned 9 counties in South Carolina to disband Ku Klux Klan activities or he would impose martial law. 5 days later, he followed through on his promise with the authority vested in him by the new Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871.
I rarely attempt to predict the future as my business is the past, but I am confident that the choice to leave is what will be remembered in history books, not the bickering in the preceding weeks. /fin
Great first look of the Oval Office. This shot caught my eye. Most presidents don't have this many portraits on the wall opposite the Resolute Desk, but I ❤️ it. The 3 presidents who faced the biggest crises (GW, Lincoln, FDR), & the feuding AH & TJ. So symbolic.
#OTD
in 1743, Thomas Jefferson, the 3rd president of the US, was born. I'll be honest, I struggle with Jefferson. Capable of such extraordinary thought and rhetoric, as well as unimaginable hypocrisy and cruelty. All humans are flawed, he's among the hardest to understand.
I'm traveling to see family and thinking about those who are missing someone and for whom this week will forever be tainted. I can't believe this country, which can get so much right, can't protect children in schools, people practicing their faith, or loving who they love.
For all those grumbling about delay or resistance, I get that Biden isn’t Washington. But context is everything. GW left office in the same era that Napoleon escaped Elba. Biden stepped away in the same era that his opponent staged a violent coup to overthrow an election. 2/3
This statistic stunned me. 11 of Obama's cabinet nominations were confirmed unanimously, 7 by voice vote on January 20, 2009. Zero of Biden's appointees have been approved unanimously. We talk about increasing partisan divisions, but those numbers show the real change.
#OTD
in 1800, the
@librarycongress
was born! What a tremendous gift to the nation and to future generations. Happy birthday
#loc
! Like wine and old books, you only get better with age.
Last night’s
@January6thCmte
hearing was crafted with a clear eye to the stakes for democracy, the moment, our history, our nation, and the world. A🧵for those who missed it.
#OTD
248 years ago, the Continental Congress voted to declare independence from a king. I don’t know what comes next, but I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that the Supreme Court decision is the antithesis of what the framers intended and is the opposite of originalism.
This moment is incredibly historic and shouldn't be overlooked. It's a long time in coming and very emotional.
They are also my pantsuit icons and absolutely slay. 🔥
I'm excited to share that I'm joining the
@WhiteHouseHstry
as the White House Historian. I'm thrilled to continue my scholarship on the presidency and learn more about the White House & all the people who lived & worked in it!
Susan Collins is suddenly very concerned about temperament for OMB leadership, but not so much for the Supreme Court. I'd think that would play a larger factor in lifetime appointments. Maybe if Tanden had kept her tweets focused on her love of beer it wouldn't be a problem.
Susan Collins a NO on Tanden: “Neera Tanden has neither the experience nor the temperament to lead this critical agency. Her past actions have demonstrated exactly the kind of animosity that President Biden has pledged to transcend.”
#OTD
in 1767 John Quincy Adams was born. At 7, he watched the Battle of Bunker Hill and lived to see the Civil War coming. In between, he served as a diplomat across the globe, a killer secretary of state, the 6th president, a lion in Congress. Deeply flawed. An absolute legend.
.
@Transition46
will take office with no cabinet secretaries confirmed. The last president to do so was Eisenhower. Hawley's stalling of a key national security position at a time of several national crises is governing malpractice.
#OTD
in 1972, Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm announced her candidacy for Presidentof the United States. Her campaign slogan was "Unbought and Unbossed."
Adulthood is drinking caffeine in the afternoon because you didn't sleep well the night before, then not sleeping well because you drank caffeine in the afternoon.
On repeat. Until you die.
This month, 227 years ago, John Adams wrote to Abigail Adams:
"Our Constitution was made only for a moral...People. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."
True on January 27, 1795, true today.
#OTD
200 years ago, Ulysses S. Grant was born. The more I learn about him as a man, a leader, and a president, the more I want to learn. Which is not something I can say about all presidents.
Wildly flawed, but fascinating.
The presidency requires a certain amount of ego to believe that you can make the impossible choices required of the office. Very few people can set that aside and this act is a remarkable one.
As a general rule, there are three things l always want to know:
1) who secured this bond for Trump
2) how did Kavanaugh pay off his debts
3) why didn’t Pence trust the Secret Service (beyond his detail)
#OTD
in 1743 Thomas Jefferson was born. From 1775-1826, he shaped and defined the world perhaps more than any other person alive.
I understand and defend his importance and significance.
He was also cruel, manipulative, and duplicitous, and I often find him very annoying.
As
@SecDef
plans to announce a vaccine mandate for active duty troops, here's a history of vaccine mandates in the US. Naturally it starts with George Washington, but it doesn't end there! My latest for
@GOVERNING
:
Whenever I teach Washington's presidency, I always teach the Farewell Address. It's the most prescient document from the 1790s and shockingly relevant. He had 2 warnings: avoid partisan divisions & reject foreign attachments. I have no doubt what he would think of today's events.
JQA's career in Congress is one of my favorite things about him. He knew that southerners couldn't physically attack him- he was the son of a founding president & former president himself - so he intentionally provoked them. Modeled how to use a protected position to good effect!
#OTD
in 1886, President Grover Cleveland married Frances Folsom at the White House.
We don't talk enough about the fact that Grover was 49, Frances was 21, he had doted on her as a baby, and served as her guardian when her father (and his close friend) died. It's creepy.
Lots of new faces! A quick intro: I'm a presidential historian & Exec. Dir. of the George Washington Presidential Library. My 🐶, Quincy, makes regular appearances. I have a new book, Making the Presidency: John Adams & the Precedents That Forged the Republic, out on September 5.
Tomorrow, the
@January6thCmte
returns with another hearing. In the last two months, the committee has acquired hundreds of thousands of documents and countless minutes of new testimony. Looking forward to what they share tomorrow. Catch up on the information so far. 🧵
This photo is a powerful statement about the expansion of citizenship and representation in the executive branch.
It's also an amazing material culture artifact that historians will reference to describe this current moment.
As I listen to all of this evidence, one of the most pressing questions remains: why was the Capitol and Congress left so horribly unprepared and unprotected? The attack wasn't a surprise. That failure is going to require extensive investigation and public reckoning.
#impeachment
I know we all like to rag on the main stream media, but the reporting done this week (especially by the
@washingtonpost
) to counter conspiracy theories and bring essential information to the American people is nothing short of mindblowing. 🤯
A recap of the third
@January6thCmte
hearing. Main takeaway: Donald Trump knew the vice president had no legal authority to overturn the election and his advisors agreed it would be illegal. He pressured Pence to break the law anyway. 🧵
Exciting news, as they say. Yesterday, I started a long-term fellowship at the
@KlugeCtr
@librarycongress
.
I got to see some awesome stuff, wandered endless tunnels, and only got lost once. I can't imagine a better place to finish my book on the presidency of John Adams.
With the deadlines I have looming, I had no business spending the morning frosting cookies. But these are my favorite things in the whole world to make and I was not going to let 2020 take that away. So frost cookies I did.
I received this question on my Instagram account. You can see my public reply below. I wanted to share here for 2 reasons: 1) Books take a really long time and are a really big deal (which I didn't fully appreciate until I did it). 2) No one else will promote for you.
This summary from
@JoyceWhiteVance
is excellent. I read everything she writes and officially recommend her newsletter on my
@SubstackInc
, but this overview is especially helpful. Highly encourage you to read it.
A bit of exciting news. Grateful to
@garamondagency
for guiding me through this process and
@OxUniPress
for believing in this book. Thrilled to spend the next few years with the John Adams. 📚
It's weird to share good news right now, but I don't want to be secretive about things changing. So I'm excited to share that as of July 1, I will be Scholar-in-Residence with
@TheITPS
& Senior Fellow at the International Center for Jefferson Studies. I'll also teach
@GSPMgwu
. /1
#OTD
in 1776 Commander in Chief of the Continental Army George Washington received a copy of the Declaration of Independence. He had it read aloud to his troops and assembled New Yorkers.
That night, a crowd rushed to the Bowling Green to pull down a statue of King George.
I spent the day wading through 490 letters for one chapter. I still have several other archives, newspapers, and material culture elements to digest. For *one* chapter.
Which is why certain black-robed individuals shouldn't cherry-pick phrases and claim they understand history.
#OTD
in 176, John Quincy Adams was born. His life spanned the Revolution to the coming Civil War.
He crossed the globe for the nation, was one of the greatest secretaries of state, and constantly reinvented himself.
Deeply flawed, but "Old Man Eloquent" remains a favorite.
As we head into a new week, a recap of where things stand with the Trump documents situation, why it matters, and why this criminal behavior could finally be the one that sticks. 🧵
I am so excited to share the cover of my upcoming book MAKING THE PRESIDENCY: John Adams and the Precedents That Forged the Republic. The book is out Aug. 2024 from
@oxunipress
! Available for pre-order:
B&N:
Amazon:
In honor of
#MemorialDay
, President Eisenhower stated: "Only our individual faith in freedom can keep us free."
Few people knew the sacrifices required to preserve freedom better than Eisenhower. I hope we can recapture that individual commitment in the 21st century.
#OTD
in 1781, the British army under General Cornwallis surrendered to George Washington and the allied American and French forces at Yorktown, Virginia.
And the world turned upside down.
Second, he spoke to his co-chair,
@RepLizCheney
. He called her a patriot. Before January 6, 2021, I suspect Thompson and Cheney agreed on almost nothing. But democracy and the sanctity of the elections come first. That *should* be a bipartisan commitment. /3
These messages convey such an overwhelming sense of relief and excitement that the US will once again be a reliable partner on the world stage. They make very clear that our allies don't want an isolationist, fragmented US.
Spoke with US Secretary of Defence
@LloydAustin
& congratulated him on his confirmation. Great discussion about the values we share & the challenges we face. I look forward to working closely with him to strenghten the bond between Europe & North America through
#NATO
.
Monarchies are characterized by hereditary accession. Authoritarians seize power through violence. Oligarchs buy their influence. Only in democracies do people choose their leaders. If their choice isn’t respected, the nation isn’t a democracy. It’s that simple. /5
In case anyone was keeping track, it appears likely that there will be more Abigail Adams letters cited in my next book than John Adams letters. She does, in fact, have all the dirt. Thanking my lucky stars he disregarded her order to burn them.✨
I am not a diplomat, nor am I a military expert. But I am a historian and I can tell you that global crises rarely have easy solutions. Beware those who offer simple answers. Diplomacy is hard.
Happy Birthday to
@librarycongress
, which was created
#OTD
in 1800 when John Adams approved the use of $5,000 to purchase “such books as may be necessary for the use of Congress.” The collection started with 740 volumes and 3 maps. Today, it has over 170 million items.
#OTD
in 1826, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson - coauthors of the Declaration of Independence - died 50 years after its publication. Five years later, in 1831, on the exact same day, James Monroe died. If nothing else, history has a nose for dramatic symbolism.
It's a dark time, but I found a moment of real happiness today. It is unbelievably gratifying to write notes and send people books. It doesn't even begin to make up for all they have done for me, but it's a start.
I'm excited to share that THE CABINET won
@TodaysDAR
Excellence in American History Book Award. I wish my grandmother (who was a member) could have been here to see the award ceremony. But she carried around the book in her purse, so I know she would have loved it. 💚
No matter how many times I read the Gettysburg Address, I am always astounded by the wisdom, grief, and extraordinary grace contained in so few words.
It defies imagination that one human could write like that. 🤯
I am thrilled to share that my book, "The President's Cabinet: George Washington and the Creation of an American Institution," is under contract with
@Harvard_Press
. Look for it in Fall 2019!
Many scholars, myself included, have bemoaned the death of expertise. Respecting expertise means we must also acknowledge when we are *not* experts. I'm not a 21st-century foreign policy expert, so I'm listening to and learning from those who are. That's how expertise works.
Studies have shown that listening to the sound of beavers enthusiastically munching on white cabbage can temporarily reduce stress levels by up to 17%.
Why yes, I do think a pink ombre suit is the perfect choice for
@VirginiaMuseum
. Quincy agrees and decided to get in on the action today. I also moved my shelves together per
@ratemyskyperoom
's suggestion, so this event has to be the best yet!
Washington voluntarily relinquished power, twice. Ever since, presidents have followed his example. Every president has peacefully stepped away from office. Except one. /30
#OTD
in 1880, Frances Perkins was born. As FDR's Sec. of Labor & the first woman secretary, she helped end child labor, create a minimum wage, unemployment insurance, social security, & oversaw many critical New Deal programs. She was the most influential Sec. of Labor ever.
.
@BennieGThompson
’s opening statement was powerful. Four points stuck out to me. First, he reminded us that the world is watching. He’s right. I’ve received so many messages from citizens across the world hoping desperately our democracy will survive. /1
Listening to The Next Level on
@BulwarkOnline
with
@Timodc
@JVLast
and
@SarahLongwell25
.
"I still want America to try and defeat dictators. Brutal, horrible dictators. I still want that for America."
This. This energy for 2023. Down with dictators.
#OTD
in 1814, British troops entered Washington, D.C. and set fire to the Capitol and the President's House. Despite several wars, including a deadly and vicious civil war, 1814 was the last time hostile forces invaded the halls of Congress.
Until January 6, 2021.
This person is arguing about the date of the Bill of Rights, insisting that the amendments came before the government. History can be subjective, but surely we can all agree that the Bill of Rights came after the new government was sworn in. Surely those dates we can agree on.
1/
#OTD
in 1793 Washington convened a cabinet meeting to deal with the ongoing Neutrality Crisis. It's one of my all-time favorite cabinet gatherings and has *all* the things: partisan tensions! foreign intrigue! snarky comments! material culture! Buckle up, it's a wild ride.🧵👇
1988: I’m on deadline with baby Cait in my lap. “What am I doing to her?” I used to wonder.
2016: My Cait fights for families, baby Milo strapped to her chest.
Feeling guilty about our ambition is such a waste of time. You’re doing all that you can. It’s enough.
#breathe
There's a special kind of joy for when you've been reading hundreds of letters on microfilm and come across one written by John Jay.
Dude had the most lovely, clean handwriting.
(Niche tweet if there ever was one).