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Investigating American Presidents

Season 1
Twelve eye-opening episodes guide you through the ins and outs of presidential investigations, using past events as a lens through which to make sense of current (and future) ones. You’ll examine the legal framework that informs how Congress and the courts handle charges of abuse of power. You’ll also dive into the investigations of presidents including Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton.
201812 episodesTV-PG

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Episodes

  1. S1 E1 - American Presidents and the Rule of Law
    November 29, 2018
    36min
    TV-PG
    After exploring the roots of the presidency and presidential power as outlined in the Constitution, consider the advantages and disadvantages a president has during an investigation. Then, Professor Rosenzweig explains why this subject is essential knowledge for any American citizen. #History
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  2. S1 E2 - Presidential Investigations through History
    November 29, 2018
    34min
    TV-PG
    Presidential crises and abuses of power aren't just features of modern times. Early executive scandals have had significant long-term effects that resonate down the corridors of time. Learn how we're still dealing with the fallout of famous investigations into abuses of presidential power, including Ulysses S. Grant's Whiskey Ring and Warren G. Harding's Teapot Dome scandal.
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  3. S1 E3 - Separation of Powers and the Presidency
    November 29, 2018
    34min
    TV-PG
    Today, legislative and judicial oversight of the presidency are a permanent part of American government and critical to limiting and restraining the possibility of executive abuse. In this episode, learn how our system of checks and balances came to exist - with, among other things, a close look at the landmark judicial review case, Marbury v. Madison.
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  4. S1 E4 - Watergate and the Special Prosecutor
    November 29, 2018
    34min
    TV-PG
    The names of the Watergate burglars are mostly forgotten - but the consequences of their arrest brought down President Richard Nixon. Topics in this episode include two important Supreme Court cases that shaped a president's power to dismiss personnel, as well as the Independent Counsel Act, which established a truly independent form of investigative authority.
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  5. S1 E5 - Rise and Fall of the Independent Counsel
    November 29, 2018
    33min
    TV-PG
    After the Nixon presidency, Congress and the American public became convinced that an independent investigator function was essential. Twenty years later, they let that function expire. Follow the swing from the Nixon era to the independent counsel of the Reagan and Clinton eras back to the special counsel leading the investigation of Russian election hacking and the 2016 Trump campaign.
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  6. S1 E6 - Can a Sitting President Be Indicted?
    November 29, 2018
    34min
    TV-PG
    Assume for a moment that there exists convincing evidence of a president's criminality. What does that do to the country's management? Is it legal to indict a sitting president? Or does the president in question just "get away" with it? Ponder these and other intriguing questions about whether or not a president is in a class of his/her own when it comes to indictments.
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  7. S1 E7 - Presidential Use and Abuse of Privileges
    November 29, 2018
    32min
    TV-PG
    Depending on where you sit, testimonial privileges are either barriers to the truth or limitations on the disclosure of sensitive information. Using the Whitewater and Lewinsky scandals that swirled around President Bill Clinton and his lawyer, Bruce Lindsey, in the late 1990s, explore the topics of attorney-client privilege and executive privilege.
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  8. S1 E8 - Presidents, Prosecutors, and Public Opinion
    November 29, 2018
    33min
    TV-PG
    The most significant confrontation between a president and a president's investigators happens not in a court of law but in the court of public opinion. Often, the "storyline" is the deciding factor in how an investigation will be seen by future historians. Examine four different tactics used by President Bill Clinton and his team that helped them achieve a public relations victory.
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  9. S1 E9 - The Pardon Power and Its Limits
    November 29, 2018
    31min
    TV-PG
    Investigate the use of presidential pardons. Start by looking at two general types of pardons in American history: the "justice and mercy" pardon and the "peacefulness" pardon. Then, focus on key questions about the presidential pardon power: Can American presidents pardon co-conspirators for crimes they've committed, thereby frustrating an investigation? Can they pardon themselves?
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  10. S1 E10 - Presidential Lies and Cover-Ups
    November 29, 2018
    29min
    TV-PG
    Presidential lies can undermine our belief in the fairness of our system of government and our faith in its legitimacy. In this episode, focus on how the president isn't special when it comes to certain matters of law and evidence (lying under oath, obstruction of justice, and grand jury subpoenas) - as well as some key caveats to this view.
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  11. S1 E11 - The Value of Investigative Reports
    November 29, 2018
    32min
    TV-PG
    Even if formally cleared of wrongdoing, a president or a presidential aide may live with the stigma of investigation forever thanks to an independent counsel's report. First, explore why many investigations typically happen behind closed doors. Then, turn to how the rules are different for presidents and their senior staff (and whether or not that's a good idea).
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  12. S1 E12 - The Law and Politics of Impeachment
    November 29, 2018
    36min
    TV-PG
    Conclude this series with a study of the "nuclear option" in presidential investigations: impeachment. Learn why impeachment is inevitably as much a political event as a legal one - and why, when a presidency is on the line, public opinion is at least as powerful a determinant of the outcome as the laws that are on the books.
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  13. Investigating American Presidents
    November 29, 2018
    2min
    TV-PG
    Twelve eye-opening episodes guide you through the ins and outs of presidential investigations, using past events as a lens through which to make sense of current (and future) ones. You’ll examine the legal framework that informs how Congress and the courts handle charges of abuse of power. You’ll also dive into the investigations of presidents including Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton.

Details

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Subtitles
None available
Producers
The Great Courses
Cast
Paul Rosenzweig
Studio
The Great Courses
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