The American Presidency with Bill Clinton

Racism has been a persistent issue in America since its founding. When racial tensions erupt, some presidents have advanced the nation toward a more perfect union, while others have thwarted its progress. This episode asks: How can Presidential action help us achieve a more perfect union?

The presidents who have made the most impact have imagined what we could be, not just what we are. Through their rhetoric, their leadership, or their sheer force of personality, these presidents have issued a call to action, daring us to join them in their vision for a better future. How have their visionary goals shaped our country, and the world?

This hour will explore how some U.S. Presidents have exerted power over the economy through various measures - taxation, imports and exports, law making -- and the effects those actions had on the lives of American citizens. How can Presidential action create greater opportunity for the people?

The United States was born in the flames of violence and rebellion. Extremism has always been a part of who we are as a nation. In this hour, we focus on multiple flashpoints in our nation’s history, and the ways in which our Presidents have reacted to extinguish – and sometimes, to fan – the flames of extremism. What can we learn about extremism from our past – and how to avoid it in the future?

Our Constitution starts with the words “We The People.” Every U.S. President has faced the question of who, exactly, is included in this soaring phrase. This hour examines Presidential decision-making in the face of the turning points for many citizens who have been left out of our story – the enslaved, Indigenous Americans, women, immigrants.

This hour traces the rise of America’s place on the world stage. Becoming a superpower has altered not just our own fate, but that of the world as well. But with great power comes great responsibility. How well have we exercised our own power?