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Lindsay Chervinsky

Contributor

Dr. Lindsay M. Chervinsky is a Senior Fellow at the Center for Presidential History at Southern Methodist University and a Professorial Lecturer at the School of Media and Public Affairs at George Washington University. She received her B.A. with honors in history and political science from George Washington University, her masters and Ph.D. from the University of California, Davis, and her postdoctoral fellowship from Southern Methodist University. Previously Dr. Chervinsky worked as a historian at the White House Historical Association. Her writing has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Ms. Magazine, The Daily Beast, The Bulwark, Time Magazine, USA Today, CNN, NBC Think, and the Washington Post. Dr. Chervinsky is the author of the award-winning book, The Cabinet: George Washington and the Creation of an American Institutionrecently out in paperback, and the forthcoming book An Honest Man: The Inimitable Presidency of John Adams.  She can be found on Twitter at @lmchervinsky.

Since the country’s founding, the federal government has had its fair share of scandals often followed by a congressional hearing to find out what went wrong and why. Some are famous, others less so.
George Washington and John Adams were no fans of the Boston Tea Party, but the disruptive protest has endured as a prime example of how some Americans will express their desire for change.
The war in Ukraine has triggered an outpouring of sympathy for the plight of the people under attack, but also a surprising amount of isolationist sentiment. It’s not the first time this has happened.
Despite a stellar career that started in the Roosevelt administration, Weaver’s appointment to head the Department of Housing and Urban Development in 1966 didn’t come easy.
The nation survived the burning of the Capitol by the British in 1814, the Civil War and the corruption of Richard Nixon. But with most Republicans siding with Trump and the insurrectionists, we face a threat to democracy unlike any other.
Misinformation is a political game that has been played for more than 200 years between presidents and the press. While the tools have changed over the years, the tactics of rumors, attacks and lies remain the same.
Some wrote for financial stability. Others wanted to rehabilitate their reputation as a leader. No matter the reason, these memoirs provide the country with a window of transparency into our presidents.
The Constitution meant for Congress to pass bills by a simple majority. But the process has changed over the decades, turning the Senate’s cautious view on legislation into a major obstacle that can only be fixed by reform.
They provide nonpartisan advice and expertise on the legislative process. In recent decades, their role has grown more influential, especially with budgetary matters, but not everyone agrees that’s good.
Vaccines against smallpox during the Revolutionary War may have saved the Continental Army from defeat. It’s one example of how mandates have protected the health of Americans for more than two centuries.