U.S. Government and Politics

Explore the history of how the National Park Service came to be and which presidents helped protect areas like Yosemite and Yellowstone.

Learn more about the history and purpose behind everyone's least favorite activity: paying taxes.

The connection between Republicans and elephants stuck with the publication of a political cartoon in the 1870s.

What power does the U.S. Constitution grant the president over laws passed by Congress? Learn more about the purpose of veto power and how presidents have used it.

Executive orders date back to George Washington. Learn more about their history, how and why they are created, and how they work.

Income tax is seen as a part of American life, but this wasn't always the case. Why did Uncle Sam start taking a slice out of citizens' pockets'

What are the origins of the judicial branch of the U.S. government? What powers does the Supreme Court have, and what are its most notable rulings?

What are the powers of the executive branch of the U.S. government? Who can be president in the United States? And what exactly goes into electing the person who sits in the Oval Office?

Where does the term "Gerrymandering" come from, and how long has it been a part of U.S. politics?

Host David Eisenbach tells the story of the technological advancements in the way people have voted throughout history of American democracy.

Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan previously served on the other side of the bench as the 45th Solicitor General of the United States under the Obama administration.

With 17.5 miles of corridors and a total floor area of 6.6 million square feet, the Pentagon is a military complex like no other.

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) sets out on an initiative to develop nonsurgical neuro technology.

Before it became a dirty word, socialism was relatively popular in the United States. So, what happened?

What was America's first capital city? The answer might surprise you.

Filibustering is a long and strange tradition, and its record-setting moment came to deny a large portion of Americans their constitutional rights.

Historian Matthew Pinkser explains the series of debates that would eventually help Abraham Lincoln become a stronger national candidate for president.

George Stephanopoulos shares the secrets behind America's swing states.

Since their inceptions, the FBI and the CIA have been two separate entities, but did you know that these two organizations were almost combined in one agency, run by none other than J. Edgar Hoover?

The White House is meant to reflect its occupant, and when a new president comes to town, things have to be changed very quickly. But what goes into the peaceful transfer of power? And how do workers turn the White House over in the blink of an eye?

How did the legislative branch of the U.S. government come to be? How does Congress work? And how does a bill get passed?

Learn more about the "meddlesome priest" to which former FBI director James Comey referred in his Senate testimony on June 8, 2017.

What is a filibuster? What role could a filibuster play in the upcoming SCOTUS nomination showdown in the Senate?

No mission is too difficult for Delta Force, an elite unit of highly skilled warriors called upon for the most dangerous operations and critical moments.

This Day In History brings us back to June 13th, 1966. Learn how the Miranda warning came to be for policeman across the United States. You have the right to remain silent was never used before this date and a huge court case changed this. Check out how the Miranda warning came out in a kidnapping with a man named Miranda. You won't want to miss this interesting clip.

Learn all about how a Supreme Court nominee gets confirmed to the highest authority in the U.S.

Find out the history behind the nastiest campaigns in history.

Discover 10 of the biggest comebacks in military history, from the Battle of Saratoga to the English defeating the Spanish Armada.

See what’s to come in the new documentary special, Mission to Honor: A 250th Salute to American Veterans, premiering Wed., Nov. 11 at 10/9c and streaming the next day.

From the campaign for women's suffrage to the fight for racial justice today, learn about some of the largest protest movements in American history, in this episode of History By the Decade.