Experts in the News

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NPR

In His Inaugural Address, Biden Seeks To Move Past 'American Carnage'

Presidential historian Russell Riley said 1968-69 was a somewhat comparable time, when Richard Nixon — who had campaigned on a wave of resentment — took office after the country was riven by riots, antiwar protests and the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy. "It was a country that was torn apart, and Nixon understood that his chief mission was healing," said Riley, from the University of Virginia's Miller Center. "That's not a word that's usually associated with Nixon because of what happened in subsequent years, but certainly in January of 1969, that was something that was pre-eminent in his mind."
Russell Riley
The Hill

Threats transform capital into military zone ahead of inauguration

“At a time when we need a celebration as best can be had under COVID; at a time when we need to unify; at time when we need to say to the world ‘We are a beacon of democracy and a shining city on a hill,’ our own hill, Capitol Hill is an armed fortress,” said Barbara Perry, director of presidential studies at the University of Virginia's Miller Center.
Barbara Perry
Bloomberg

Trump's Legacy According to Historians

What will be President Trump’s legacy? Here’s how Trump’s time in the Oval Office will be remembered according to historians @dsallentess @ProfWillHowell @BarbaraPerryUVA @ruthbenghiat.
Barbara Perry
The Guardian

History-maker Kamala Harris will wield real power as vice-president

Jennifer Lawless, a politics professor at the University of Virginia, said Harris’s pivotal role in the Senate will mean she “is going to be cast in a very different light than previous vice-presidents” and will make her crucial in terms of putting forward a legislative agenda.
Jennifer Lawless
The Guardian

What next for Trump's trusty New Zealander?

Kathryn Dunn Tenpas, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution tracking turnover in the Trump administration, said it was rare for White House staff to see through all four years of any presidency, with the turbulence under Trump making Liddell “even more of an exception”. According to her analysis, the longest-serving Trump staffers were insiders such as Ivanka; “those who tell the president what he wants to hear”, such as Peter Navarro and Mark Meadows; and “those who oversee non-controversial issues”. “If you can stay out of the limelight, keep your head low and avoid making enemies, you have a good chance of hanging around.”
Kathryn Dunn Tenpas
Newsweek

Ex-FBI Director Comey Concerned Over Trump Getting Intelligence Briefings After He Leaves Office

Marc Selverstone, a professor in presidential studies at the University of Virginia's Miller Center, confirmed to Newsweek that former presidents do continue to receive briefings after holding office, but it is usually upon their request. Selverstone added that "the privilege also comes at the discretion of the sitting president," although he noted that no modern president has countermanded that privilege.
Marc Selverstone