Q&A

As the nation celebrates the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, former U.S. ambassador David McKean and former State Department historian M. Todd Bennett, co-authors of "The Flag Was Still There," look back at the 1776 founding and the four previous semi-centennial celebrations of America in 1826, 1876, 1926, and 1976. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoic...

New York Times White House Correspondents Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan discuss their just-published bestseller about the first year of the second Trump administration. They discuss his inner circle, the decision-making process on some of the major issues, and what they found inside the Oval Office and the Situation Room. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mollie Hemingway, editor-in-chief of The Federalist and author of "Alito," discusses the life, career, and legal opinions of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, who joined the Court in 2006. She talks about Justice Alito's role in overturning Roe v. Wade, the flag controversy involving his wife Martha-Ann, and the backlash that he and other justices on the Court have received in response to their...

As the Supreme Court's term winds down, with some notable cases still to be decided, we take a behind the scenes look at the Supreme Court and how it operates with SCOTUSblog editor Sarah Isgur. Her new book on the topic is titled "Last Branch Standing." In part two of our discussion, we talk to Sarah Isgur about the power of Chief Justice John Roberts, the personalities and influence of the other...

As the Supreme Court's term comes to an end, with decisions on birthright citizenship, transgender athletes, and gun rights still to be rendered, we take a behind the scenes look at the Supreme Court and how it operates with SCOTUSblog editor Sarah Isgur. Her new book on the topic is titled "Last Branch Standing." In part one of our discussion, we talk to Sarah Isgur about the current court, the c...

From June 11th to July 19th, the United States, Mexico, and Canada will be hosting the FIFA World Cup, the most popular sporting event in the world, with billions of viewers expected worldwide. To provide an overview and history of the World Cup we talk to Guardian (UK) soccer columnist Jonathan Wilson, author of "The Power and the Glory," which tells the history, politics, and corruption behind t...

Every week in the 1950s and 60s, 30 million Americans watched the congenial Bennett Cerf on Sunday nights on "What's My Line?" But he was much more than a game show panelist. In 1927, he co-founded the publishing giant Random House and brought to the public authors such as James Joyce, Ayn Rand, Truman Capote, Dr. Suess, and William Faulkner. Author Gayle Feldman spent 30 years researching and wri...

Former Republican Senator and Governor of Tennessee Lamar Alexander, author of "The Education of a Senator," talks about his personal life and nearly six-decade career in politics. As a public servant Sen. Alexander worked with ten presidents, from JFK to Trump. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Adam Szetela, author of "That Book Is Dangerous!," discusses his investigation into the rise of self-censorship in the publishing industry, which he argues is being negatively transformed by social media and the culture wars in the United States. Mr. Szetela talks about the role played by the Big Five publishers, literary agents, sensitivity readers, and online pressure groups in the process. Lear...

From the Supreme Court of the United States, Justice Neil Gorsuch discusses his children's book, "Heroes of 1776," about the signers of the Declaration of Independence and other, lesser known, revolutionaries who put their life, liberty, and property on the line to gain independence from the British. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week on Q&A, it's a rare interview with one of America's leading historians. We tour the New York City office and home library of Pulitzer Prize-winning bestselling biographer Robert Caro, who is currently working on the final volume of his 5-volume biography of Lyndon Johnson. During the tour, Mr. Caro talks about his research and writing process on the LBJ series, and the impact of "The Pow...

Jean Becker and Tom Collamore, former staffers to President George H.W. Bush, discuss the work done by advance teams for presidential events, including foreign trips, state visits, and campaign rallies. They share behind-the-scenes stories of success, near disaster, and failure, told by the professionals who prepared for these events over the past 60 years. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

This year's White House Correspondents' Association dinner will take place on Saturday, April 25th, at the Washington Hilton. In preparation, we look back at memorable performances by presidents and comedians at the annual fundraiser going back to the Reagan administration. Joining us for the discussion is C-SPAN's Director of Communications Howard Mortman, who for years has been chronicling the h...

Muckraking journalist Jessica Mitford and her 5 sisters – two of whom were intimate friends with Hitler – were global celebrities during the early and mid-20th century, known for their colorful personal lives and political differences. Born a British aristocrat like her sisters, Jessica Mitford rejected her upbringing at an early age, eventually moving to America, where she became a communist, civ...

The Smithsonian Institution National Air & Space Museum's Jennifer Levasseur discusses the history of the 135-mission Space Shuttle program (1981-2011), its accomplishments, and two tragic failures that led to the deaths of 14 shuttle astronauts. Ms. Levasseur, the curator in charge of the Space Shuttle Discovery at the Air & Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia, where this interview took...

Former Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein, author of the memoir "Streetwise," discusses his upbringing in public housing in Brooklyn, being educated at Harvard, and rising through the ranks of one of the world's largest investment banks. He also talks about the 2008 financial crisis, which happened during his tenure as CEO, and the power and influence of Goldman Sachs executives within the U.S. gov...

New York Times staff photographer Doug Mills has won 3 Pulitzer Prizes for his work covering the White House & Washington, Super Bowls, Olympics, and many other major events. He tells us that he's taken over one million photographs of President Trump alone. In our conversation, he talks about some of the events he's covered going back to the Reagan administration. He talks about being in the Oval...

Former longtime Columbia University president Lee Bollinger discusses his book "University: A Reckoning," about the purpose and future of universities in the United States. He also talks about protests and free speech on college campuses and the targeting of Columbia, Harvard, and other institutions of higher learning by the Trump administration. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.f...

California governor Gavin Newsom (D) discusses his memoir, "Young Man in a Hurry," in which he chronicles moments in his life that influenced his political career. He was mayor of San Francisco from 2004 to 2011 and then served as lieutenant governor before becoming governor in 2019. Gov. Newsom also talks about his personal life, including living with dyslexia, and his relationship with billionai...

Former U.S. Congressman Steve Israel (D-NY) discusses his book, "The Einstein Conspiracy," a novel based on an actual plot by the Nazis to silence physicist Albert Einstein during the 1930s. Einstein, a prominent critic of Hitler, moved to the United States with his wife in 1933 and became a citizen in 1940. This interview was recorded at Theodore's Book in Oyster Bay, New York, an independent boo...

Former Washington Post correspondent Wil Haygood, author of "The War Within a War," discusses the experience of Black American soldiers in Vietnam and the struggle for racial equality, happening at the same time, back home in the United States. He also talks about growing up in Columbus, Ohio, during this period, where, as a child, he witnessed this dichotomy firsthand. Learn more about your ad ch...

White House Historical Association president Stewart McLaurin, author of "The People's House Miscellany," talks about the history of the White House and White House-related trivia. He also discusses the changes that presidents and first ladies have made to the White House's interior and exterior going back to President Thomas Jefferson. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoice...

The Smithsonian Air and Space Museum's Teasel Muir-Harmony discusses the history of the U.S. space program, from the creation of NASA in 1958 through the Gemini early flights to Neil Armstrong taking his historic first steps on the lunar surface in July 1969. She also talks about the missions that followed and NASA's current efforts to return astronauts to the moon. Learn more about your ad choice...

Nicholas Boggs discusses the personal life and activism of American writer James Baldwin (1924-1987). Mr. Boggs, who spent over 20 years working on "James Baldwin: A Love Story," also talks about Baldwin's many books, his life outside the United States, and his involvement in the civil rights movement. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC News chief Washington correspondent Jonathan Karl discusses his book, "Retribution," a behind-the-scenes look at Donald Trump's winning 2024 presidential campaign. Mr. Karl, who started covering Trump in the mid-1990s for the New York Post, also talks about his longtime relationship with the 47th president and the contrast between President Trump's public and private sides. Learn more about yo...