Roundup

No One Watches the Capitol Police Closely. No Wonder they Failed

by Rosa Brooks

"It’s hard to avoid the conclusion that racial bias made it difficult for Capitol Police officials to perceive the largely White crowds as the threat that they were."

Roundup Top Ten for January 8, 2021

The top opinion writing by historians or about history from around the web this week. 

Ted Cruz’s Proposed Election Commission Can Only Hurt the Country

by Stuart MacKay

The 1878 Potter Committee, set up by supporters of Samuel Tilden to prove corruption by the 1877 commission that awarded Rutherford Hayes the presidency, ultimately devolved into a farce. Trump supporters might wish to rethink the idea of such a commission, even if they continue to complain of "fraud" in the 2020 vote. 

The Deep Origins of Latino Support for Trump

by Geraldo Cadava

"In the White House, Joe Biden will have the opportunity to show Latinos that they’re important to the Democratic coalition. First, though, Democrats will have to acknowledge that a shift did, in fact, take place."

Some of us Saw this Coming — But we were Assured Donald Trump was No Big Deal

by Jim Sleeper

Trump's first act as President on Inauguration Day suggested his compulsion toward authoritarianism. 

Saying Goodbye to the Con-Man-in-Chief: Demining America After The Donald

by Tom Engelhardt

Jared Kusher and Ivanka Trump's investment in a climate-imperiled Florida island home for their post-White House digs is a bitter symbol of the combination of denialism and hubris inflicted on the nation and the planet by the Trump regime. 

Who was Jean-Jacques Dessalines and Why Does He Matter Now?

by Julia Gaffield

The anniversary of Haitian independence is occasion to rethink the legacy of the nation's first head of state, the uncompromising opponent of slavery and colonialism Jean-Jacques Dessalines. 

Stop Worrying About Upper-Class Suburbanites

by Lily Geismer and Matthew Lassiter

Two suburban historians argue that the changing demographics and political composition of American suburbs mean the Democrats' strategy of courting white moderates will foreclose building the ethnically and economically diverse coalition they need to win. 

A Confederate Flag at the Capitol Summons America's Demons

by Rhae Lynn Barnes and Keri Leigh Merritt

The presence of Confederate iconography in the Capitol building riots is no coincidence; Trumpers are following the playbook of the slaveocracy in crafting a Lost Cause narrative of grievance and betrayal. 

Remote Reflections: On Being Present as a Parent and Teacher

by Quincy T. Mills

"Midmorning, I take my research files to my son’s oversized desk and work alongside him, which prevents our screens from being barriers. My presence is useful for both of us." Reflections on the interconnections of parenting and research work under COVID.

Trump’s Neo-Fascism Takes America’s Racism to the Next Level

by Jason Stanley

The Republican Party has long embraced herrenvolk democracy, where participation is limited (as much as possible) to favored ethnic groups. But Trumpism is harnessing this system of racial rule to an authoritarian cult of personality.

Trump’s Supporters Think They’re Being Patriotic. And That’s The Problem

by Christine Adams

The September Massacres of 1792 finished the overthrow of the French monarchy and paved the way to the Reign of Terror; the significance of conspiracy theory, rumor, and identification of enemies of the people were echoed in Wednesday's Capitol riots (though with, as yet, less bloodshed). 

What Trump and His Mob Taught the World About America

by Anne Applebaum

"The images from Washington that are going out around the world are far more damaging to America’s reputation as a stable democracy than the images of young people protesting the Vietnam War several decades ago, and they are far more disturbing to outsiders than the riots and protests of last summer."

The 25th Amendment Should Not Be Invoked Lightly

by Brian Kalt

The speed with which presidential power transfers to the Vice President under the 25th Amendment is balanced by the relative ease with which the president can reclaim those powers. Is it an appropriate tool for removing Donald Trump from power (if not from office)? 

What Pro-Trump Insurrectionists Share — and Don’t — With the American Revolution

by Jordan E. Taylor

Wednesday's Capitol rioters believe they carry on the legacy of the revolution, but it's not in the way they think. The Declaration of Independence reflects the prevalence of conspiracy theories and fake news among the colonial rebels. 

Will the Democrats Win in Georgia?

by Jason Sokol

Eugene Talmadge served three terms as Georgia's governor through a combination of racism, attacks on government, and a state electoral system that grossly overrepresented rural whites. The January 5 runoff will test whether at least one of those dynamics has changed in Georgia politics. 

‘Cancel Culture’ is Not the Preserve of the Left. Just Ask Our Historians

by David Olusoga

British media has enthusiastically demonized historians whose work challenges myths of national glory by focusing on slavery and colonialism. 

How U.S. Pandemic Restrictions Became a Constitutional Battlefield

by John Fabian Witt and Kiki Manzur

Conservative attacks on COVID-related restrictions on social gatherings are rooted in a selective and false interpretation of the history of the application of the police power to support public health. 

We Can’t Let Our Elections Be This Vulnerable Again

by Richard L. Hasen

2020 is a warning: America needs to remove opportunities for political pressure, discretionary action, and deception in the counting and recording of votes. 

Democracy, History and the Presidential Records Act

by James Grossman and Richard Immerman

It's time to update the Presidential Records Act to clarify the kinds of materials that must be preserved and create real penalties for destroying them.