Free Republic

In the American imagination, the founding era shimmers as the golden age of political discourse, a time when philosopher-kings strode the public stage, dispensing wisdom with gentle civility. We prefer to believe that these courtly figures, with their powdered hair and buckled shoes, showed impeccable manners in their political dealings. The appeal of this image seems obvious at a time when many Americans lament the partisan venom and character assassination that have permeated the political process. Unfortunately, this anodyne image of the early republic can be quite misleading. However hard it may be to picture the founders resorting to rough-and-tumble...

Theory of a founding father's African ancestry Friday, July 23, 2004                                              By LAWRENCE AARONAS MUCH as I thought I knew about Alexander Hamilton, the first treasury secretary, nobody ever told me he was black. Yes. You heard it here first, folks.And you'll think about it from now on every time you take out a $10 bill.Hamilton biographer Ron Chernow is the latest one to explore the theory.I was totally blown away by that information when a friend casually mentioned Hamilton's link to two significant anniversaries - the 250th anniversary of Columbia University, originally Kings College where he was schooled, and...

Can you believe it's only been a year since alleged comedian Michelle Wolf killed the White House Correspondents' Dinner? And I don't mean "killed" as in "performed really well, in a stand-up comedy sense." I mean "killed" as in "destroyed a decades-old tradition." Wolf stunk up the place so bad in 2018 that the White House Correspondents' Association decided not to have comedians host the event anymore. This year it was hosted by a guy named Ron Chernow, who is some sort of historian, apparently. Not even Jay Leno botched the job that badly. Take a bow, Michelle!* And yet...

Washington (AFP) - The White House correspondents' dinner will break with tradition next year and forgo a comedian as its featured speaker, opting instead for a historian best known for his biographies of Alexander Hamilton and two former US presidents. The decision came after stand-up Michelle Wolf delivered a controversial star turn this year -- mercilessly sending up White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders, who was seated on the dais with her. So on April 27, 2019, the guest speech at the black tie gala will come from historian and biographer Ron Chernow, who is best known for his book...