when presidents lead
PoliticsYahoo NewsLeadership in the Oval Office, from FDR to Barack Obama
"CBS This Morning" co-anchor John Dickerson’s essay on presidential leadership is based on a series of Yahoo News interviews with historians.
PoliticsYahoo NewsLyndon B. Johnson: Moral clarity on civil rights
Historian Jonathan Darman examines deciding to pursue civil rights legislation over objections of fellow Southern Democrats.
PoliticsYahoo NewsGeorge W. Bush: Standing up for tolerance after 9/11
Author Peter Baker discusses Bush’s push against anti-Muslim hatred and discrimination after the attacks on Sept. 11. 2001.
PoliticsYahoo NewsJimmy Carter: Staking his reputation on a dream of Mideast peace
Jimmy Carter decided to stake his reputation on a dream and personally broker a peace deal between Egypt and Israel.
PoliticsYahoo NewsFranklin Delano Roosevelt: Calling a ‘bank holiday’ for a collapsing economy
Historian Doris Kearns Goodwin says the "bank holiday" is Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s defining moment of presidential leadership.
PoliticsYahoo NewsJohn F. Kennedy: Cutting a deal with Khrushchev to save the world
Author Michael Dobbs discusses JFK's defining moment of presidential leadership: preventing nuclear war with Russia.
PoliticsYahoo NewsBarack Obama: Going for broke in the bin Laden raid
Author Peter Bergen discusses Barack Obama’s defining moment of leadership.
PoliticsYahoo NewsDwight D. Eisenhower: Facing down the Soviets — and the military-industrial complex
Historian Evan Thomas details Eisenhower's decision to push back on the military-industrial complex during the Cold War.
PoliticsYahoo NewsGerald Ford: Doing the wrong thing for the right reasons
Journalist Barry Werth discusses the 38th president's defining moment of presidential leadership: his pardon of Richard Nixon.
PoliticsYahoo NewsGeorge H.W. Bush: Breaking a pledge, doing the right thing on taxes
Historian Jon Meacham examines Bush's costly decision to defy the GOP base and break his "no new taxes" pledge.
PoliticsYahoo NewsRonald Reagan: Setting back the ‘doomsday clock’ of nuclear war
Historian Lou Cannon looks at Reagan's decision to defy his base and pursue nuclear disarmament with Mikhail Gorbachev.
PoliticsYahoo NewsHarry S. Truman: A courageous stand on integrating the armed forces
Author Cornelius Bynum explores Truman’s desegregation of the U.S. military, which went against public opinion and military leaders.
PoliticsYahoo NewsBill Clinton: Taking on the NRA to pass assault-weapons ban
Author David Maraniss discusses Clinton's defining moment of presidential leadership: getting an assault-rifle ban through Congress.
PoliticsYahoo NewsRichard Nixon: A Nixon-goes-to-China moment
Historian Evan Thomas examines Richard Nixon's defining moment of presidential leadership: initiating a relationship with China.
“It may be a campaign tactic, but older workers, be forewarned. Ageism runs deep in our culture.”
“Genuine concerns about the capacities of people who want the world’s most powerful job mingle bizarrely with insults.”
“Joe Biden and Donald Trump are both old. But the media should not be making mental illness a campaign issue, on either side.”
“The Trump campaign is now betting his reelection’s already slim chances on Biden proving Trump’s diagnosis is right.”
“The nightmare scenario for Democrats is that, at a pivotal moment, Biden will struggle to put together a coherent thought.”