My History Can Beat Up Your Politics

We discuss all things Ike with William Hitchcock - author of "The Age of Eisenhower." We talk about how President Eisenhower was a surprisingly good politician, how he navigated Civil Rights, Social Security and other domestic programs, how he dealt with LBJ. We discuss the failure that upset him the most, and what he may have gotten wrong. We also get to the bottom of that Military Industrial Complex. (PREMIUM SUBSCRIBERS - get a special episode on the 1957 Civil Rights Bill). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Was the past better? Were the "Good Old Days" really all they are chalked up to be?  Gregg Easterbrook, author of It's Better Than it Looks: Reasons for Optimism in an Age of Fear, has a bold argument. Things are better now then they have ever been. A reminder about our sponsor Warby Parker eyeglasses - get your try on pack of 5 frames at www.warbyparker.com/myhistory Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bruce is interviewed on Ohio v. The World Podcast, which is the creation of MHCBUYP fan Alex Hastie. The subject is Curtis LeMay. Politically we know him as George Wallace's reluctant running mate in 1968. But there was much more to him, as Bruce and Alex discuss.  His career spanned World War II, Kennedy, Vietnam, The Cold War and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

50 years ago, Medicare was created and some of it was recorded.We'll look at the original conversations that demonstrate LBJ's work on the bill, and compare the enactment of Medicare to the Affordable Care Act. And we'll contrast the two bill's passages and implementation, effect and popularity.Based on a previous cast called 'Medicare Atmosphere' from 2010... but updated and re-recorded. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A few questions, some from an older cast that now bears repeating in the wake of a new speaker election, and others from the premium channel now elevated. Was Andrew Jackson's Indian Removal allowed to happen by a quiet public, or was thee resistance? And what would Revolutionary protests look like.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Saturday Night Massacre was the name given to the triple firing of a special prosecutor investigating President Nixon, the AG and the deputy AG on the same night in 1973. After the firing of the FBI Director by President Trump, all eyes are looking back on this historical event. Are they right to do Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bruce takes a look at one day in the life and career of President George H.W. Bush - not in his presidency but in his vice-presidency. That day revealed his leadership style and set future precedents, perhaps. March 30, 1981 the day of the attempted assassination of President Reagan. We also look at Bush's Presidency and legacy.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bruce and Daily Beast/CNN correspondent Matt K. Lewis talk about midterms, and Presidents post midterms. Bruce tells a story about Lincoln that he told 11 years ago. (more information on that story in the premium podcast).  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We are joined today by David Priess, former CIA intelligence officer and author about his new book on the history and the realities of impeachment, what people think it is, and what has really happened in history. He is the author of How To Get Rid of a President: History's Guide to Removing Unpopular, Unable, or Unfit Chief Executives.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A law that may have given Billy The Kid a few more months of life, long enough to build a legend is still a part of today's politics. The rich history of the Posse Comitatus law that separated military from law enforcement and forbids, in some cases, the use of military on American soil. , Music by Lee Rosevere, Squire Tuck and Lucas Gonze at freemusicarchive Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices