A month after Lexington and Concord, the Colonial leaders met for the Second Continental Congress in May, 1775. They had two conflicting goals at this meeting. It was a year before we would declare our Independence from England. The first goal was to convince the Crown that we were still loyal and wanted peace after … Continue reading Class Notes →

In the 1960 election, JFK turned one of his biggest obstacles into an asset. Kennedy was not the first Catholic to run for the presidency, but was the first to win. Even though Catholics were the largest denomination in America, Americans still held reservations about the influence of the Pope. Kennedy turned his religion into … Continue reading Class Notes →

Elections changed forever in 1952, when the parties hired professional advertising companies.  TV was still new, and few had them, but that did not stop Republicans from running the first TV ads.  Democrats accused Republicans of cheapening the election by selling themselves the same way they could sell soap or toothpaste.  However, advertising worked for … Continue reading Class Notes →

Being Veteran's Day, I thought I would do a class note on the Vietnam War.  The most infamous battle of the conflict was the January 1968 Tet Offensive.  The Viet Cong hoped to show Americans that they were not winning the war and create disaffection back home.  It worked.  More than any other battle, the … Continue reading Class Notes →

After WWII, President Truman supported the principle of Containment, which meant we must stop communists everywhere.  As part of Containment, he supported the Marshall Plan and NATO.  Republicans fought back with Robert Taft’s Fortress America Plan, that stated that the U.S. should pull back and not get involved in foreign affairs.  After two World Wars … Continue reading Class Notes →

By the Election of 1944, Roosevelt had reached legendary status, making it difficult to run against him.  The Republicans could not take on the popular New Deal, or the War.  The one crack FDR had in his armor was his age.  The Republicans played up Thomas Dewey’s youth and referred to the FDR Administration as … Continue reading Class Notes →