History That Doesn't Suck

"At long last, Mr. President.”—Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill This is the story of the second year of WWII and the United States’ response.  As the war enters its second full year, things are looking dire for Britain: Germany has forced France into submission, the Blitz is in full swing, and the cash-strapped nation is running out of money to pay for US aid. Lend-Lease, or H.R. 1776, is the proposed solution; it’ll allow Franklin to transfer munitions to “any country whose defense the President deems vital to the defense of the US.” But there is stiff opposition. Is the language too dictatorial? Does it make entering the war unavoidable? As Americans discuss the bill across the country, famed aviator Charles “Lucky Lindy” Lindbergh will argue against it, while recently defeated 1940 presidential candidate Wendell Willkie will argue for it. Nor are they the only ones disagreeing: workers are striking in record numbers. Building an “arsenal of democracy” means labor and business will have to settle their differences. Meanwhile, as FDR and Winston Churchill secretly meet for the first time in the frigid climes of the northern Atlantic, the Army and Navy are drilling down to brass tacks—what would it really mean if America enters the war? How many men would the nation need in uniform? Could American production cope with wartime demands? Pragmatic American leaders are preparing and planning just in case, mostly with their eyes on Germany … but increasingly on Japan. Relations are eroding swiftly. Perhaps Uncle Sam’s greatest immediate threat isn’t across the Atlantic but the Pacific … ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Professor Greg Jackson shares a personal message about our politically divided times and announces more tour dates for his live show: The Unlikely Union.  This show is not recorded for the podcast. Go to HTDSpodcast.com/live-shows for more information and dates.  Prof. Jackson’s national tour has already been to half of the 50 states, so-called red and blue states, big cities and small towns.  What he’s encountered is everyday people, regardless of their political stripe coming together to share in the telling of the extraordinary history of the first century of our nation. That period from fiery revolution through bloody civil war is– not despite of, but because of its ugly and all but insurmountable challenges– a consoling reminder that we have been through far, far worse times and much greater division than is even imaginable today.  And it's a cautionary tale. Our great strength is our union and our great peril is our division.  The words of the Republican candidate from Illinois for the US Senate spoken in 1858 ring true today:  "A house divided against itself cannot stand." You're damn right, Abe. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“I have said not once but many times that I have seen war and that I hate war. … I hope the United States will keep out of this war. I believe that it will.” This is the story of the first year of WWII in the European theater and the United States’ response.  Since the days of President George Washington, the United States has largely held to George Washington’s and Thomas Jefferson’s counsel to avoid “interweaving our destiny with that of any part of Europe,” and to have “entangling alliances with none.” The nation has dismantled its military built up during the Great War, and many regret ever being a part of it. Then Adolf Hitler invades Poland. Britain and France, realizing the Führer will never stop, declare war and brace for impact. President FDR reassures Americans: the US remains neutral.  That said, the “cash-and-carry” policy soon expands to allow the Allies to purchase US munitions, and as the brief pause known as the “Phoney War” gives way to Nazi Germany’s overrunning country after country—including France—Britain’s in trouble. The new Prime Minister Winston Churchill knows that his country needs American help if they’re to survive and win the war.  With the Old World getting bombarded and blitzkrieged, Franklin Delano Roosevelt becomes gravely concerned. He decides to run for a third term in the White House while trying to persuade Congress and the American people to help the Allies by building an “arsenal of democracy,” even as they hope to avoid war. It’s a tough sell though: can he overcome the United States’s long history of relative isolationism, so adamantly pushed by the new “America First” opposition? Have concerns that the last World War was waged for money left too much baggage to overcome? We’ll find out. ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“A great war can hardly be avoided any longer.” This is the story of Nazi Germany’s aggressive territorial expansion and the start of WWII.   The Treaty of Versailles has long been a thorn in Adolf Hitler’s side. Its troublesome limits on troops and technology pose challenges for a man bent on taking lebensraum and building a Grossdeuschland by any means necessary. So he starts quietly building planes and submarines. Then he starts publicly adding a few hundred thousand more soldiers. By 1936, he’s ready to move. He remilitarizes the Rhineland. When that goes well, he only grows bolder. He takes Austria. He takes Czechoslovakia’s Sudetenland.  Many European leaders—particularly those not named Winston Churchill—fail to grasp just how far the Fuhrer will go. They hope to “appease” him. But when Adolf strikes again, brazenly seizing the rest of Czechoslovakia, even British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain is ready to draw a line. That line is Poland.Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“Comrade Stalin, now that he is general secretary, has concentrated immense power in his hands, and I am not sure whether he will always be capable of exercising this power with sufficient caution.” This is the story of Joseph Stalin’s path to becoming the dictator of the USSR.  Ioseb (Joseph) Jughashvili, or little “Soso,” is a good student. A choir boy, in fact. But that changes as the Orthodox Georgian increasingly puts his faith in the Bolshevik branch of Russia’s Social Democrats. Under Vladimir Lenin’s leadership, Soso, now going by Joseph Stalin, becomes a true revolutionary. One who embraces violence and murder as an acceptable means to an end amid Russia’s shift from revolution to civil war. With Lenin’s passing in 1924, it’s clear that someone has to step into his shoes, and Stalin deftly outmaneuvers Leon Trotsky to be that someone. But he won’t just lead it. Stalin will remake the Soviet Union in his own image, industrializing and consolidating his power at all costs. Millions will die. Millions more disappear into the gulags, never to be seen again. This is the rise and reign of Joseph “the Man of Steel” Stalin. ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“Being a Jew is not a crime, I am not a dog.” This is the story of the start of the Holocaust.  Serving as the scapegoat for everything from a disappearing child to the Black Plague, European Jews are used to “anti-Jewry.” But as the nation state rises in the modern world, it brings the so-called “Jewish Question” to the fore: can one be a faithful Jew and modern citizen? As modern antisemitism rises and European Jews face pogroms and the Dreyfus Affair, some begin to think they need a nation of their own. Jewish nationalism, or “Zionism,” is born. Meanwhile, in the aftermath of the Great War, Adolf Hitler’s Nazism is leaning into the continent’s centuries-old anti-Jewry and antisemitic ideas to claim that the Jews are responsible for Germany’s postwar woes. Once in power, he begins systematically removing rights from the Reich’s Jewish population. This includes taking their citizenship through the Nuremberg Race Laws in 1935, and an unfathomable, deadly, destructive pogrom in 1938: Kristallnacht.  Stateless and persecuted, European Jews try to flee Nazism—can they find safety in America? We’ll see how that goes as we follow the St. Louis to America’s shores, and as the German American Bund gathers in Madison Square Garden… ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Professor Greg Jackson is touring the country with a live version of the podcast telling the story of The Unlikely Union of American states. Starting Sep 19, 2025 through July 4, 2026, you can hear the Professor history-tell in person, with video and live musicians.  It’s not recorded for the podcast so get your tickets now at ⁠HTDSpodcast.com/live-shows In 100 minutes Professor Jackson will take audiences on a remarkable 100-year journey that begins when thirteen distinct, disparate British colonies set aside differences to unite as something greater. Then, in less than a century of this young nation's existence, the durability of its union and commitment to its founding ideals are put to the test in a bloody civil war.  In 2026, America will turn 250 years old, remarkably— because it nearly died a thousand deaths in just its first 100. This live stage show celebrates America’s semiquincentennial (250th birthday) by not only returning to its bold Declaration of Independence, but revisiting key events in its first centennial that gave this nation, as Abraham Lincoln spoke, “a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“There will be no more mercy now; anyone who stands in our way will be butchered.” This is the story of Adolf Hitler and the collapse of the Weimar Republic.  A dropout. A failed applicant to Vienna’s prestigious Academy of Fine Arts. A decorated but low-ranking soldier who attempts to overthrow the state and is convicted of treason. But only a decade or so later, he’s the nation’s leader. Not just the Chancellor, not even a “mere” president. He’s Germany’s dictator. The “Führer.”  How on earth does such an underwhelming man rise to such an overwhelming position of power? With virulent nationalism, rabid antisemitism, fearmongering, and violence in an economically panicked, democracy-doubting, and defeated Germany. This is the rise of Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Reich.  ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“Italy, Gentlemen, wants peace, wants quiet, wants work, wants calm; we will give it with love, if that be possible, or with strength, if that be necessary.” This is the story of Italy’s Benito Mussolini’s creation of fascism and rise to power in interwar Italy. Benito starts life the way his father intended—as a socialist—and the often moving, young schoolteacher quickly emerges as a leading voice in the movement as he’s entrusted to serve as the editor of one of the party’s most important newspapers. But the Great War changes that. Benito supports it, the party doesn't, and by the conflict’s end, the returned soldier has a new idea—one that takes him across the political spectrum, all the way from the Marxist left to the nationalist far-right—a violent, war-glorifying, anti-democratic, one-party, dictatorial version of nationalism. He calls it “fascism.”  Benito speaks of order. Economic prosperity. National pride. Some see his black-clad fighting squads, known as “Blackshirts,” as their saviors from the far-left’s communism, so feared in the wake of the recent Bolshevik Revolution in Russia. Indeed, many Italians welcome his march on Rome and his growing powers as Prime Minister, and celebrate his foreign policy achievements, including a reconciliation between Italy and the Vatican.  But as Benito kills Italy’s constitutional monarchy in all but name as he turns into a dictator, conquers Ethiopia, ignores the League of Nations, and bonds with Germany’s rising dictator Adolf Hitler, former allies are growing concerned. Some fear his anti-democratic path will also embolden Germany. As W.E.B. Du Bois questions: “If Italy takes her pound of flesh by force, does anyone suppose that Germany will not make a similar attempt?” Only time will tell. Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is the story of interwar preparation–not that the United States realized it was preparing for World War II, new technologies, innovation, and a constant pushing of the limits in the 1930s did indeed help Uncle Sam prepare for the fight to come. To get us into an interwar mindset of praying for peace while preparing for war, Professor Jackson tells us the tale of the B-17 bomber and is then joined by GEN James E. Rainey, Commanding General, U.S. Army Futures Command, to discuss how the current day Army thinks about history to prepare for the future. In this informative conversation, GEN Rainey talks about the lessons, leaders, and innovations from the Army’s 250 years of service to the nation that can inform and inspire officers, soldiers, and leaders of all vocations to meet the missions of tomorrow. General James E. Rainey is the Commanding General Commander, Army Futures Command (AFC). Headquartered in Austin, Texas, AFC is the Army’s newest major command, responsible for transforming the Army to ensure war-winning future readiness, employing 30,000 Soldiers and Civilians at 128 locations worldwide. In his previous position, General Rainey served at the Pentagon, where he oversaw the Army’s operations and plans. General Rainey commissioned as an infantry lieutenant upon graduating from Eastern Kentucky University in 1987. He has commanded at every level from platoon to division and has served in numerous combat deployments in both Iraq and Afghanistan. He earned a master’s degree in advanced military arts and science from the School of Advanced Military Studies and another in Public Administration from Troy University. He also completed a Senior Service Fellowship at the University of Denver’s Korbel School of International Relations.  Disclosure: HTDS has not paid nor received any remuneration for this episode from the US Army or any other government agency. The opinions of the guest are his own and do not represent the opinions of Professor Jackson or HTDS. We are grateful to the many soldiers who have served our nation throughout history, and proud to bring discussions like this to the public in the spirit of education and access to the leaders in whom We the People place our trust. Books referenced in the interview: The official US Army field manual number one, “A Primer to our Profession of Arms” Freedom's Forge: How American Business Produced Victory in World War II by Arthur Herman Prodigal Soldiers: How the Generation of Officers Born of Vietnam Revolutionized the American Style of War by James Kitfield Real Soldiering: The US Army in the Aftermath of War, 1815-1980 by Brian McAllister Linn America's First Battles, 1776-1965 by Charles E. Heller (Editor), William A. Stofft (Editor) General Fox Conner: Pershing’s Chief of Operations and Eisenhower’s Mentor (Leadership in Action) by Steven Rabalais  Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“If he is lost it will be the most universally regretted single loss we ever had. But that kid ain’t going to fail.” This is the story of the high-fliers in early twentieth-century American aviation.  Wright brothers Orville and Wilbur stunned the nation and the world with their pioneering flight in 1903, and since then, aviation has spread its wings, so to speak. The Wright Brothers and other innovators like Glenn Curtiss are innovating and pushing the limit while the Great War takes aviation to new heights altogether.  But when the guns fall silent in Europe, the roar of its plane engines doesn’t. Former doughboy pilots and an upcoming generation of postwar aviators have all sorts of uses for these aircraft: crop dusting, photography, high-flying “barnstorming” stunts, and, of course, mail delivery. And as planes get faster and flights get longer; as daring pilots like Charlie “Lucky Lindy” Lindbergh, Howard Hughes, and Amelia Earhart refuse to accept anything short of the “sky’s the limit”; as postage and fine-dining passengers take to the skies; the United States will never the be the same. ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“If this is to be a skyscraper… why not make it scrape the sky.”  This is the story of the race for the tallest building in New York City—in the world.  Erstwhile partners-turned-bitter rivals, architects William Van Alen and Craig Severance are both looking to build the tallest skyscraper in New York City. William is working with automobile titan Walter Chrysler to build his Chrysler Building; Craig is working with George Ohrstrom, a.k.a., the “Boy Wonder” of Wall Street”, to build the Manhattan Company Building at 40 Wall Street. It’s a battle of engineering, wits, zoning, and egos, as each alters their plans with money being no object in the fight to construct the taller (and tallest) skyscraper in the world. But as these two rival teams duke it out, the city’s beloved Waldorf-Astoria Hotel on 5th Avenue is going under. Something new is rising there—something that just might prove a late entry and dark horse winner in this race with… a mooring mast for airships at the top? Yes—the proposed Empire State Building is threatening to blow this race out of the water and change New York City’s skyline forever. ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“Everybody says it can’t be done.” This is the story of San Francisco’s two great bridges.  The bustling cities of Oakland and San Francisco are separated by less than ten miles of water, but for early twentieth-century Bay Area residents, it may as well be thirty—that’s the distance traveling around the Bay. Meanwhile, the mile of water across the Golden Gate Strait makes communities directly north of San Francisco likewise inaccessible. Bridges across both stretches of water would change the game entirely, but between harsh winds, thick fog, strong currents, and over 300 feet deep water—to say nothing of earthquakes—crowded ferries seem to be the only even-if-imperfect answer.  Or so they did.  From deep-sea divers to catwalking “bridge monkeys,” from deeply-driven caissons to high rising towers, miles of cables, and deadly accidents–this is the tale of the unyielding dreamers and doers who pushed the bounds of engineering in the midst of the Great Depression to bridge the San Francisco’s Golden Gate Strait and Bay.   ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“I felt no distress whatever…I was perspiring freely and was as limber and helpless as a wet rag. It was an exhilarating experience.... It was then and there that I first conceived the idea of the reclamation of the desert.” This is the story of the Hoover Dam.  A wild, precarious, and dangerous river, the Colorado tears across the American southwest’s otherwise arid and largely uninhabitable desert. Yet, if tamed, the Colorado could reclaim countless acres; it could provide sustenance and hydroelectricity for untold millions! But that’s the catch: “if.” From a dehydrated mirage in 1849, to the outgrowth of an overwhelmed canal in the early twentieth-century Imperial Valley, this is the unlikely tale of the dreamers; government officials; a consortium of six construction companies, blandly called “Six Companies; Frank “Hurry Up Crow; and the 21,000 workers—over 100 of whom will wind up dead—who defied the odds and pushed engineering to new heights to “make the desert bloom.” ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This is a conversation to kick off the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution. Retired U.S. Army Major General and history buff, Bill Rapp, drops some knowledge on how the colonies weren't exactly gung-ho for a full-blown revolution before April 1775. Turns out, they were mostly ticked off and feeling rebellious in response to intolerable British policies. But a tense situation and an itchy trigger finger set it off. The episode covers the action-packed Battles of Lexington and Concord, George Washington taking charge of the Continental Army, the intense Battle of Bunker Hill (which was actually fought on Breed's Hill), and the clever move at Dorchester Heights that sent the British packing from Boston. William “Bill” Rapp is a retired Major General of the United States Army with 33 years of distinguished service which included combat deployments in three wars, two Defense Service Medals, two Bronze Star Medals, Master Parachutist and Ranger tabs. He was not only a respected Army officer, but also a leadership developer who served as Commandant of the Army War College and Commandant of Cadets at the US Military Academy at West Point.  In over 42 months in combat, Bill led an airborne engineer company in the first Gulf War, commanded a 3,000-soldier brigade in the Iraq War, served as General Petraeus' personal assistant during the Iraq Surge, and commanded over 17,000 troops supplying all resource needs of the 160,000 U.S. and international force in Afghanistan in 2011-12. He also served as the Army's senior liaison to the U.S. Congress. Bill holds a PhD in Political Science from Stanford University and is the author of the book about the Boston Campaign of the American Revolutionary War titled Accomplishing the Impossible: Leadership That Launched Revolutionary Change. He now consults and teaches on leadership and is working on his second book on Sioux and Cheyenne leadership at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A discussion of the recent HTDS narrative episodes on FDR and the New Deal. Think of it as a book club for additional insights into these latest chapters of the HTDS chronological story of America. Professor Greg Jackson is joined by Professor Lindsey Cormack to discuss the government's response to the Great Depression and the legacy of the New Deal. They explore the causes of the Depression, the government's initial missteps, and the eventual successes of programs like the CCC. The episode also features an interview between Professor Cormack and historian Neil Maher, who wrote a book about the CCC. They discuss the history of the CCC, its impact on the environment and the economy, and its legacy today.   Lindsey Cormack is an Associate Professor of Political Science at Stevens Institute of Technology and the former Director of the Diplomacy Lab. She is the creator of DCInbox, a comprehensive digital archive of Congress-to-constituent e-newsletters, and the author of How to Raise a Citizen (And Why It’s Up to You to Do It) and Congress and U.S. Veterans: From the GI Bill to the VA Crisis.  Neil M. Maher is a Professor of History and Master Teacher in the Federated History Department at the New Jersey Institute of Technology and Rutgers University-Newark.  He is an award-winning author, instructor, and public speaker interested in the environmental and political history of the United States. Maher’s scholarship and teaching explore how the natural environment has mediated power relationships between people over time.  His most recent books include Apollo in the Age of Aquarius (Harvard University Press, 2017) and Nature’s New Deal: The Civilian Conservation Corps and the Roots of the American Environmental Movement. ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the podcast? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“No matter how great and good a man may be, executive aggrandizement is not safe for democracy.” This is the story of Franklin’s second term and his battle with the Supreme Court.  It’s no secret that SCOTUS hasn’t really been ruling in the New Deal’s favor. But with such an overwhelming victory at the polls, Franklin feels confident that he can circumvent that by upping the number of judges from nine to fifteen and appointing people who see the vision. But what does the public make of it? What does Congress think? Is this court-packing plan a timely reform? Or is it a blatant disregard for the constitutional concept of checks and balances?  It’s incredibly polarizing, so much so that members of Congress are willing to argue, filibuster, and even die over the bill. Literally.  ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“I saw and approached the hungry and desperate mother, as if drawn by a magnet.” This is the story of FDR’s first term after facing down the initial emergency.  100 days down, about 1,300 more to go—for this term at least. After the whirlwind of new bills and “alphabet agencies” (AAA, CCC, etc.), the nation is adjusting to and examining FDR’s New Deal. As they do, the NIRA is upsetting both ends of the spectrum: company owners don’t love the Blue Eagle and regulations while workers are frustrated that their employers aren’t eager to see unionization in accordance with section 7(a).  Meanwhile, back at the farm, devastating dust storms like “Black Sunday” are hammering the Great Plains and forcing many to flee to other states. Some migrants end up in California, where unionized dock workers and police are duking it out in San Francisco's “Bloody Thursday.” The president tries to set an example as a “Good Neighbor” in the Caribbean even as people erect signs that read, “Okie, go back. We don’t want you.”  More time and a “Second” New Deal that is more progressive and Keynesian raises more serious questions: Is this really the correct economic course for recovery? And are some of these presidential actions even Constitutional? But despite the detractors, the decisive 1936 election proves that FDR is here to stay.  ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“[We] had forgotten to be Republicans or Democrats. We were just a bunch of men trying to save the banking system.” This is the story of FDR’s first 100 days in office.  In early 1933, banks foreclose on thousands upon thousands of homes and farms every month. The banks have little choice–they too are failing! Meanwhile, unemployment is hovering near 25%. It’s a catastrophe. Capitalism itself and the American way of life appears to be on the precipice.  Enter President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who calls an immediate “banking holiday” and an emergency session of Congress to face the hydra of crises sweeping the nation. During this 99-day congressional session that runs almost analogous to FDR’s first 100 days in the White House, they’ll pass 15 major pieces of legislation that create new organizations, regulations, and more with the hopes of getting the American people back on their feet.  But how exactly, does Franklin navigate the divergent views, difficult personalities, and competing priorities to get this mountain of legislation through? That is precisely our story. _____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

“First of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself-–nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.” This is the story of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s journey to the White House. Even as a young boy, Franklin admires his fifth cousin Theodore Roosevelt and wants to follow in his footsteps. He seems to have a knack for it too. He attends the same schools. He serves in many of the same political positions. Even his failures only seemed to build his prestige. Ever congenial and likable, Franklin appears to have the world on a string. Then the challenges arrive. Franklin’s affair rocks his and Eleanor’s marriage. Polio robs him of his physical strength, vigor, and ability to walk. As an independently wealthy Roosevelt, he has every excuse to fade into the background.  But that isn’t who Franklin is. As Governor of New York, he’s as aggressive in fighting off the Great Depression as he is in fighting off the challenges of polio. Is he onto something? Is his “New Deal” what the nation needs? That’s a question for the American people to decide in 1932 as he runs for the White House. Our gratitude to the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Presidential Library & Museum for its rich collection of speeches and other writings. Learn more at FDRlibrary.org. ____ Connect with us on HTDSpodcast.com and go deep into episode bibliographies and book recommendations join discussions in our Facebook community get news and discounts from The HTDS Gazette  come see a live show get HTDS merch or become an HTDS premium member for bonus episodes and other perks. HTDS is part of Audacy media network. Interested in advertising on the History That Doesn't Suck? Contact Audacyinc.com To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices