All right, before I get started, I want to say thank you to Mark, a Verizon guy from Staten Island who finally got my studio up and running after several weeks of moving into a very historic old house. So thank you Mark and here we go.

We've all heard the phrase with great power comes great responsibility. Uncle

Ben said that to Peter Parker and Spider-Man, right?

Well, it turns out it was the basis for political philosophy in Rome, Greece,

medieval England, 18th century France, and a whole lot of other places, including the US.

So why in the heck has there been so much corruption in the world of politics?

I'm Patty Steele.

When power leads to the abuse of power, that's next on the backstory.

The backstory is back.

We're all wrapped up in politics these days and it's nerve-racking, right?

But it's nothing new. Political intrigue and corruption are as old as people's desires for power.

Royals living in unimaginable luxury led to the assassination or execution of

emperors, kings, and queens. Abuse of power has always been a no-no. Even the Bible says,

to those to whom much has been given, much will be demanded. Problem is, an awful lot of folks

got away with the abuse of that power and didn't have much demanded of them in return.

Now, here in the United States, presidents aren't just the heads of state, they also run the entire federal bureaucracy, so they have a huge

boatload of people that report to them. And when those people misbehave, the commander

and chief takes the heat, whether he was personally involved or not.

Andrew Johnson had the unlucky task of taking over the White House following the assassination

of America's greatest and most loved president, Abraham Lincoln.

But he was known for his abuse of power, infighting amongst his team, and financial

shadiness, all of which led to his impeachment.

...