A professor challenged the Smithsonian. Security shut the gallery. As President Donald Trump seeks to reshape its museums and other cultural institutions, wall text has become a battleground and documentation a form of resistance.

you should definitely judge this book by its cover archive.org/details/usse...

you should definitely judge this book by its cover archive.org/details/usse...

"The spirit of his manifesto is truculent, sanguinary, demoniac; he 'clothes himself with curses as with a garment;' and he does not scruple to assert the most atrocious falsehoods with regard to the aims and impulses of the Federal Government." The NY Tribune on Jeff Davis's 1861 annual message

"The spirit of his manifesto is truculent, sanguinary, demoniac; he 'clothes himself with curses as with a garment;' and he does not scruple to assert the most atrocious falsehoods with regard to the aims and impulses of the Federal Government." The NY Tribune on Jeff Davis's 1861 annual message

This sounds unbelievable but its true: since Bezos acquired The Post, his wealth has grown tenfold and the Post has been cut in half. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/the-trust-...

the other half asked chatbots whether they should admit to using AI, and the chatbots said no

Hannibal but in a universe where Kash Patel is in charge of the FBI

Well, the DOJ has done it: they have filed a lawsuit against the University of California over antisemitism. The complaint contains some falsehoods. But as someone who teaches and writes about Title VII, I'm equally struck by what the complaint doesn't say. A few thoughts— 🧵

If people want to know how the internet is reacting, can't they just ... read the internet?

Tom Hanks to Play Abraham Lincoln in ‘Lincoln in the Bardo’ Movie Adaptation

It shouldn’t be hard to condemn Andrew Jackson’s enslavement of hundreds of people. But in Middle Tennessee, he’s still a saint. Hats off to the folks at the Hermitage who are doing to the right, hard work.

but how much could he bench press

The Capitol, juxtaposed abolitionist image of the slave trade Lewis Hine photograph of alley dwellings

I am so tired of it, but it does look pretty

The Capitol, juxtaposed abolitionist image of the slave trade Lewis Hine photograph of alley dwellings

Among the critical points @jgienapp.bsky.social reiterates here is that many early Americans were anti-legalists, but even early lawyers saw the Constitution as different from ordinary law, requiring "a different interpretive style and conceptual toolkit." An important (& highly entertaining) read!

One more time— with the right date. March 30, 2026!

ah, yes, the blizzard of 1888 - the storm that killed Roscoe Conkling

I asked a certain law prof last week if he did archival work, to which he mockingly responded that my question was “deeply unserious.” One reason why you cannot database search your way through English records? Nothing is spelled the same. Trust not someone who takes mere weeks to do this work.

ah, yes, the blizzard of 1888 - the storm that killed Roscoe Conkling

"How American immigration became law enforcement": a 15-minute @vox.com video explainer. "The rights that were won for Americans in the past are vulnerable. We have to fight to retain them." @iehs.bsky.social @unlawfulentries.bsky.social @hcrichardson.bsky.social ⬇️⬇️⬇️ www.youtube.com/watch?v=kJHg...

it says something about the current state of the Washington Post that when the editorial board wants to explain a controversy over DC's public golf courses, they link to ... the NYT's Athletic

Stephen Budiansky reviews Fitzhugh Brundage's new book, A Fate Worse than Hell: American Prisoners of the Civil War (gift link)

Sure, Donald Trump may eliminate access to DC's public golf courses for everyone but the uber wealthy. But that's not the right reason to be mad, you simpering fools.

Footnotes are where the super friends assemble.

Sure, Donald Trump may eliminate access to DC's public golf courses for everyone but the uber wealthy. But that's not the right reason to be mad, you simpering fools.

"I'll handle this man, gentleman - I speak fluent jive"

Scratching my head over whether this is a worse understanding of the Supreme Court or of the Declaration of Independence

Bibliothèque de l’École polytechnique, 1921 vergue.com/post/328/Bib...

Frederick Douglass died #otd in 1895, at his home in Washington DC. Just a few hours earlier, he attended the meeting of the National Council of Women - another reminder that he remained broadly committed to equal rights, until literally his dying day.

feels like we are back at "we are figuring out how to put disinfectant and light in your body, it will work right away"

what my brain says while writing historiography in an article:

The Kavanaugh Tax :)

Trump is saying again in his presser that tariffs bring billions and billions "into the country." Actually that money is paid by Americans to the federal government. Tariffs are domestic taxes. www.cato.org/blog/white-h...

dunno about you, my Trump press conference bingo card includes: "We were at our richest from 1870 to 1913" "we are the hottest country in the world" "lemme tell you about the ballroom and the arch"

An America confident in its future does not fear its past. www.americanprogress.org/article/the-...

I think it often is, in spite of everything. There are so many grad students out there doing amazing and interesting work while they watch all the doors ahead of them close.

Frederick Douglass died #otd in 1895, at his home in Washington DC. Just a few hours earlier, he attended the meeting of the National Council of Women - another reminder that he remained broadly committed to equal rights, until literally his dying day.

I once had a 2 hour conversation on originalism with Akhil. He & I may not always agree on originalism but this is one of the cases where “original intent” is actually incredibly clear. Everyone understood what they meant. Both those for & opposed to passing the Amendment agreed on its meaning.

Akhil Amar on birthright citizenship: ”Unless and until our Constitution is amended, our government is simply not allowed to punish innocent babies guaranteed full and equal citizenship by the Constitution itself.” www.nytimes.com/2026/02/20/o...

An Idaho town voted to remove Juneteenth as a city holiday and restore Columbus Day." "Post Falls Mayor Randy Westlund said he believes Columbus Day is a better holiday honoring 'American heritage.' "

welp, gonna have something new to talk to my students about on our Pennsylvania Avenue walking tour next week

Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, crying uncontrollably over this news, dry heaving at the thought of a young person using (gags) public transportation

rewrite of Article I just dropped

Three military veterans and a historic preservationist sued the Trump administration over President Trump’s planned 250-foot triumphal arch, arguing that the structure would disrupt the experience of visiting Arlington National Cemetery.

According to a local PBS station in Philly, workers are returning the panels about George Washington and slavery that were recently removed from President’s House Site on Philadelphia’s Independence Mall. This is great news. #NationalParks

Hey! Scholars! If you're using someone's work in your class, sometimes it's nice to email them and tell them, because then they might feel good about their research instead of entirely crushed by the academic humanities' ongoing descent into the grave

welp, gonna have something new to talk to my students about on our Pennsylvania Avenue walking tour next week