Welcome to Campaign Trails!
I’m an American historian who’s spent the last three decades researching, writing and teaching about some of the most important developments in the United States across the twentieth century — the rise of modern conservatism, the civil rights movement, religious nationalism, and a wide range of political activism from grassroots struggles to presidential campaigns.
I’ve spent much of the last decade trying to bring insights from my work to the general public to inform and illuminate our national conversation on the major political developments and social movements of our own time. While I’ve had some success on other social media outlets, I feel that Substack will allow me to strike the right balance between responding to developments in real time while also having the room and range to discuss them in the proper depth.
What can you expect here?
For starters, I’ll be issuing regular newsletters from Campaign Trails that are free to everyone. Some will offer present-day perspectives on major developments in the past; others will use the past to explain how we found our way to a particular moment in the present. These newsletters will come out every week, at the least, but I’ll certainly write more as events warrant. And I’ll be engaged with paid subscribers in the comments, responding to inquiries and trying to advance our understanding.
In addition to having access to the comments, paid subscribers will also have access to other semi-regular events. I’ll host Ask Me Anything style discussions that can be as free ranging as you’d like. During major events like the presidential debates and political conventions, I’ll also run live discussions here for us to engage in real time.
And for those who step up as founding subscribers, I’ll meet with you on quarterly Zoom calls to talk with you about the site and hear your suggestions for Campaign Trails, have Q&A sessions, and much more.
Thanks so much for being here, and thanks so much for your support!