The son of Wallbuilders founder David Barton recently gave a rambling “history” sermon at Christian Missions Church in Jacksboro, Texas. This is what can happen when the past is only useful as a form of activism. Here is Barton: Let’s...
Declaration of Independence
Thomas Jefferson: hero or villain?
The title of this post is not, primarily, a historical question. It is primarily a moral question. We should keep the complexity of the past in mind as we celebrate Independence Day. Check out early American historian’s Jack Rakove‘s recent...
Sorry Michael Flynn, the Constitution does not mention the word “Creator” four times. In fact, it never mentions the word.
Here is Kyle Mantyla at Right Wing Watch: Michael Flynn, a right-wing conspiracy theorist who served as national security adviser to former President Donald Trump, spoke at a campaign rally Saturday for MAGA pastor Jackson Lahmeyer in Oklahoma, where he falsely claimed that “the word ‘Creator’ is in...
Josh Hawley’s “Love America Act.” Let’s break it down
Last week we published a post on Missouri Senator Josh Hawley’s op-ed in The New York Post condemning critical race theory and promoting his personal view of what young Americans should learn in history class. His views are encapsulated in...
Six things you may not know about the Declaration of Independence
Historian Woody Holton explains at The Conversation: Ordinary Americans played a big role. American independence is due in part to African Americans. The complaints weren’t actually about the King. The Declaration of Independence does not actually denounce monarch. The Declaration...
Michelle Bachmann: This week revealed the “greatest attack” on the “foundations” of America that “we have ever seen in 400 years”
Michelle Bachmann, the new dean of Regent University’s school of government, visited MAGA evangelical Jim Garlow’s “election integrity” prayer meeting this week. You can watch it here. (It was posted on Eric Metaxas’s Rumble page). Bachmann warns the pro-Trump evangelical...
What should we make of Trump’s 1776 Commission Report? Part 3
Read previous installments in this series here. It is now difficult to find the 1776 Commission Report, but I managed to locate a copy in the Internet Archive. The authors begin with the Articles of Confederation. The report teaches a...
What should we make of Trump’s 1776 Commission Report? Part 2
Read the entire series here. As I type, I am learning that Joe Biden will rescind the 1776 commission today. But I will go ahead with my analysis since I imagine that states with conservative governors or legislators may try...
Wednesday night court evangelical roundup
What have Trump’s evangelicals been saying since our last update? John Hagee invited Fox News commentator, conspiracy theorist, disgraced Christian college president, and convicted felon Dinesh D’Souza to speak at the Sunday evening service at his Cornerstone Church in San Antonio. Watch: [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXnd5fMkIaA&w=560&h=315]...
How fast did news of American independence spread?
I just ran across this Smithsonian piece from 2017. Fascinating: It was the breaking news to end all breaking news—the fledgling British colonies of North America were committing treason and declaring independence. But in an era long before smartphone push alerts, TV...
Thinking historically about Trump’s Mount Rushmore speech
A lot of conservatives liked Trump’s speech on Friday night. I am told that The Wall Street Journal gave it a positive review. I commented on the speech here, but I thought I would say a few more things about Trump’s...
The World Socialist Web Site Gathers Historians to Discuss the American Revolution and the Civil War
The historians participating include Victoria Bynum, Clayborne Carson, Richard Cawardine, James Oakes, Gordon Wood, and Tom Mackaman. The conversation, moderated by Mackaman and World Socialist Web Site’s David North, will live-stream at 1:30pm EDT. Here is the press release: The...
What did Jefferson believe when he wrote “all men are created equal”?
Over at Stanford News, Melissa De Witte interviews historian Jack Rakove. Here is a taste: You argue that in the decades after the Declaration of Independence, Americans began understanding the Declaration of Independence’s affirmation that “all men are created equal” in...
What Do We Mean By “Rights” and “Justice”?
For the last few months, I have been thinking about rights. Protesters at state capitals do not want governors taking away their right to open their businesses during the pandemic. White evangelicals support Donald Trump because he is defending their...
The Author’s Corner with Carli Conklin
Carli Conklin is Associate Professor at The University of Missouri School of Law. This interview is based on her new book, The Pursuit of Happiness in the Founding Era: An Intellectual History (University of Missouri, 2019). JF: What led you to write The...
The Copy Error in the Declaration of Independence
Here is Danielle Allen of Harvard: [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AqiFMiQeXNQ&w=560&h=315] ...
Partisanship and Publishing the Declaration of Independence
Over at Age of Revolution blog, Emily Sneff of the Declaration Resources Project writes about the partisan fights over the publication of the Declaration of Independence in the early republic. Here is a taste of her piece: The tradition of...
Danielle Allen’s Commencement Address at Pomona College
Scroll ahead to the 1:08:22 mark: [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u–gu6XrDVI&w=560&h=315] When you are finished watching Allen’s short speech, read Conor Freidersdorf’s take at The Atlantic....
The Paragraph on Slavery That Thomas Jefferson Cut From the Declaration of Independence
Ben Railton has a nice blog post on this here. A taste: In this July 4th, 2015 piece for Talking Points Memo, my second-most viewed piece in my year and a bit of contributing bi-monthly columns to TPM, I highlighted and...
When the Declaration of Independence Came to Exeter, New Hampshire
Historian Jessica Lepler writes: “Exeter’s residents thought they were King George’s subjects twelve days longer than Philadelphians.” In her piece at Common-Place, Lepler tells the very interesting story of a first edition copy of the Declaration of Independence printed in 1776...