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Articles on Lyndon Baines Johnson

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The New York Times resumed publication of its series of articles based on the Pentagon Papers in its July 1, 1971, edition, after it was given the green light by the Supreme Court. AP Photo/Jim Wells

The New York Times worried that publishing the Pentagon Papers would destroy the newspaper — and the reputation of the US

The New York Times’ publication of the Pentagon Papers showed the paper was willing to jeopardize connections to other powerful institutions, including the government, to serve the public interest.
Andrew Brimmer gets sworn in as a member of the Federal Reserve Board. President Lyndon Johnson, right, Brimmer’s wife and daughter look on. Robert L. Knudsen via Wikimedia Commons

Sudan’s war is wrecking a lot, including its central bank – a legacy of trailblazing African American economist and banker Andrew Brimmer

Andrew Brimmer, the first African American on the Board of Governors of the US Federal Reserve, helped develop the blueprint for the Central Bank of Sudan.
A 1973 photo shows an estimated 5,000 people, women and men, marching around the Minnesota Capitol building protesting the U.S. Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision. AP Photo

Many anti-abortion activists before Roe were liberals who were inspired by 20th-century Catholic social teaching

A historian explains why the pre-Roe anti-abortion movement was filled with liberal Democrats who opposed the Vietnam War and supported the expansion of the welfare state.
U.S. soldiers stand guard along the perimeter of the international airport in Kabul, Afghanistan. Hundreds of Western nationals and Afghan workers have been flown to safety since the Taliban reasserted control over the country, but still in hiding are Afghans who tried to build a fledgling democracy. (AP Photo/Shekib Rahmani)

How Afghanistan is — and isn’t — Vietnam all over again

The Vietnam War was the defining issue for Joe Biden’s generation. His botched withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan could be the defining act of his presidency.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, standing at center and facing left just above the eagle, takes the presidential oath of office for the third time in 1941. FDR Presidential Library and Museum via Flickr

Has any US president ever served more than eight years?

Only one president has done so – Franklin Delano Roosevelt – but others considered it, and even tried.
The Senate wing of the U.S. Capitol building. Matt H. Wade via Wikimedia Commons

What happens when senators die or are incapacitated?

With several senators testing positive for the coronavirus, and many older than 65, political scientists look at 1954, when senators’ deaths changed control of the chamber.
White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows speaks to reporters about President Trump’s positive coronavirus test outside the White House on Oct. 2, 2020. Drew Angerer/Getty

A brief history of presidents disclosing – or trying to hide – health problems

President Trump was direct in announcing he had COVID-19. But presidents in the past have been very good at deceiving the public about the state of their health. Which direction will Trump go now?
A protester raises a fist in New York’s Washington Square Park during a June 2, 2020 demonstration. Ira L. Black/Corbis via Getty Images

Where are the African American leaders?

Sweeping changes were possible in the past because black leaders were willing to risk their lives and call out problems before they became crises.
President Donald Trump holds up a newspaper to show a headline that reads, ‘Acquitted,’ at the 68th annual National Prayer Breakfast, in Washington D.C.. AP Photo/ Evan Vucci

National Prayer Breakfast was a moment for leaders to show humility – Trump changed it

The National Prayer Breakfast has been a time to forge friendships. But, as a scholar says, Trump used it to praise his accomplishments, malign his enemies, and thank God for being on his side.
Richard Nixon flashes the victory sign on the night he received the Republican nomination for president Aug. 9, 1968 in Miami. AP File/AP Photo

Why it’s hard to remove, or even diagnose, mentally ill or unstable presidents

Some cite mental illness, or at least instability, as a basis to remove Pres. Trump from office. A doctor and a lawyer use a 1965 novel, ‘Night of Camp David,’ to explain why that’s unlikely.

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