What makes a good president? With Historian Doug Brinkley.
The Bill Press Pod
BP Pods
4.7 • 601 Ratings
🗓️ 9 April 2024
⏱️ 41 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this episode, Bill introduces a new series on the Bill Press Pod that will explore the history of American presidents and what qualities make a good president. He is joined by Douglas Brinkley, a leading presidential historian. He is CNN's official Presidential Historian, a professor at Rice University and the author of 20 books. They discuss the characteristics of a presidential candidate and the importance of messaging and communication. They also discuss the significance of vice-presidential nominees and the impact of past presidents on the current choice between Joe Biden and Donald Trump. Brinkley emphasizes the need for a president who can unite the country and address the challenges of the world today. The conversation concludes with a discussion on the different visions of America represented by Biden and Trump.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hello, good friends. So glad to see you today on the Bill Press pod. And because today, |
| 0:12.0 | we launched a whole new series on our podcast. This year again, of course, we get to cast the most |
| 0:18.4 | important of all of our votes, our vote for the next president |
| 0:22.0 | of the United States. And this year, 2024, we may cast the most important presidential |
| 0:28.0 | vote of our lives, the choice between Joe Biden and Donald Trump. In making that choice, |
| 0:34.6 | we thought it would be instructive and helpful to look back at the history |
| 0:38.5 | of American presidents. We've had 47 of them so far and ask a few important questions, |
| 0:44.6 | like what makes a good president? How important is experience? How about character? What factors |
| 0:50.7 | should we weigh in deciding whether somebody's up for the job? |
| 0:55.1 | So for the next four weeks, we're going to take a deep dive into the American presidency to ask, |
| 1:01.3 | what can we learn from those who've held the job so far that will help us make our decision in 2024? |
| 1:09.3 | Now, look, I realize that most of you have already made up your mind, those of you |
| 1:14.2 | regular listeners to the Bill Press pod. I certainly have made up my mind, but I still think |
| 1:19.2 | it's important to put today's choice in presidential perspective for a couple of reasons. |
| 1:24.9 | One, to remind us what's at stake, to remind us how bad it was |
| 1:29.8 | under Trump and how unthinkable it would be for him to get back in the Oval Office. And two, |
| 1:36.2 | so we can tell our friends, don't take this for granted. Don't dismiss the idea that there could |
| 1:41.9 | be a disaster this year. We've got to work our asses off to make sure Trump doesn't get back near the Oval Office. |
| 1:50.5 | So as our guide over the next four weeks, we're really lucky to be joined by Douglas Brinkley, |
| 1:55.9 | one of America's leading presidential historians. |
| 1:59.1 | He's a history commentator for CNN, history professor at Rice University, |
| 2:04.5 | and by my count, he's the author of over 20 books, including biographies of Teddy Roosevelt, |
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