Jacksonian Democracy Mark R. Cheathem, Andrew Jackson, Southerner (LSU Press, 2013) ISBN 9780807150986 Cassandra Good, Founding Friendships: Friendships between Men and Women in the Early American Republic (Oxford Univ. Press, 2015) ISBN 9780199376179 Spencer W. McBride, Joseph Smith for President: The Prophet, the Assassins, and the Fight for American Religious Freedom (Oxford Univ. Press, 2021) ISBN 9780190909413 Joshua D. Rothman, The … Continue reading Books for Spring 2022
Books for Spring 2021
Civil War America After taking a cycle off, I'm teaching the Civil War course in the spring. All three books are new to the course and will be supplemented with articles and essays. Kevin Levin, Searching for Black Confederates: The Civil War's Most Persistent Myth (University of North Carolina Press, 2019) ISBN 9781469653266 Kellie Carter … Continue reading Books for Spring 2021
Books for Fall 2020
American Presidency Mark R. Cheathem, The Coming of Democracy: Presidential Campaigning in the Age of Jackson (Johns Hopkins Univ. Press, 2018) ISBN 978-1421425986 Erika Falk, Women for President: Media Bias in Nine Campaigns, 2d. ed. (Univ. of Illinois Press, 2010) ISBN 978-0252076916 Jennifer R. Mercieca, Demagogue for President: The Rhetorical Genius of Donald Trump (Texas A&M Univ. Press, … Continue reading Books for Fall 2020
A Precedent for Presidential Censure
In his remarks on Donald Trump's Senate impeachment trial, Senator Joe Manchin (D-West Virginia) called for his fellow legislators to censure the president. "Censure would allow this body to unite across party lines," Manchin argued, "and as an equal branch of government to formally denounce the President's actions and hold him accountable." While there appears … Continue reading A Precedent for Presidential Censure
Review of A Stranger Here Below
Earlier this fall, author Charles Fergus offered to send me a copy of his newest book, A Stranger Here Below, which is set in the Jacksonian period. There's not a lot of fiction that focuses on this period, so I agreed to read the book and write a short review about it here. A Stranger … Continue reading Review of A Stranger Here Below
A Primer on Presidential Impeachment
As I wrap up teaching the first part of the U.S. survey, we’ve been talking about President Andrew Johnson’s impeachment. Because of the current impeachment inquiry into President Trump, my students were very interested in learning more about the impeachment process. I wanted to share some of what we’ve been talking about. The first thing … Continue reading A Primer on Presidential Impeachment
Books for Spring 2020
Jacksonian Democracy Patrick H. Breen, The Land Shall Be Deluged in Blood: A New History of the Nat Turner Revolt (Oxford Univ. Press, 2016) ISBN 9780190055615 Mark R. Cheathem, Andrew Jackson, Southerner (LSU Press, 2013) ISBN 9780807150986 Cassandra Good, Founding Friendships: Friendships between Men and Women in the Early American Republic (Oxford Univ. Press, 2015) ISBN 9780199376179 Amy Greenberg, A Wicked … Continue reading Books for Spring 2020
Alcohol at SHEAR
An exchange with an old grad student buddy unexpectedly prompted an interesting Twitter discussion of alcohol at academic conferences, specifically SHEAR. I wanted to provide my email to SHEAR president Annette Gordon-Reed, sent earlier this year, for context on my request. Annette (if I may), I don't know that we've met in person, but we've emailed … Continue reading Alcohol at SHEAR
Thoughts on Andrew Jackson’s Place on the $20 Bill
Note: This post is an adaptation of a Twitter thread I wrote earlier this week. Several years ago, a publisher asked me to write an essay defending Jackson's place on the $20 for a book on debating political reform. Each set of essays took a pro or con position. I was given the intellectual exercise … Continue reading Thoughts on Andrew Jackson’s Place on the $20 Bill
John Quincy Adams’ Take on Trump’s Wall
I came across a quote recently that piqued my curiosity. In discussing immigration, the author credited John Quincy Adams with writing the following statement while secretary of state: The American Republic invites nobody to come. We will keep out nobody. Arrivals will suffer no disadvantages as aliens. But they can expect no advantages either. Native-born … Continue reading John Quincy Adams’ Take on Trump’s Wall
Jacksonian America: Society, Personality, and Politics 