OP-ED: Learning a lesson, one POTUS at a time
George W. Bush recently made a point of saying, about George Washington, that the first president of the United States, “by relinquishing power rather than holding onto it … ensured America wouldn’t become a monarchy, or worse.”
Bush’s words were taken as a swipe at President Donald Trump, whose appreciation of himself and appetite for power, is well-known. (During King Charles’ recent visit to Washington, D.C., the White House posted a photo of the British monarch and Trump under the heading “Two Kings.”
Whether Bush was specifically targeting Trump remains up in the air. What’s certain is that Bush, the 43rd president, was providing a lesson about Washington for a series of essays designed to highlight U.S. presidential history during this year’s 250th anniversary of the nation’s independence.
“In Pursuit” is a non-profit public history project led by Colleen Shogan, a Westmoreland County native who served as the 12th archivist of the United States until she was fired in February 2025, shortly after Trump took office for a second time.
As Shogan explained to historian Lauren Hall during a Substack podcast last week, the “In Pursuit” essays about the presidents, and some first ladies, are designed both to inform and to illuminate.
Each short essay (about 1,250 words in length) incorporates a lesson that Americans might use to judge national affairs as well to use in their daily lives.
The lesson of the Bush essay – “For a leader, humility is the ultimate strength.”
“Our first leader,” Bush wrote, “helped define not only the character of the presidency, but the character of the country. Washington modeled what it means to put the good of the country over self-interest and selfish ambition.”
Washington’s “humility” and restraint in office established a standard for future presidents, Bush posited.
New (and free) “In Pursuit” essays are released weekly on the Internet. The series will conclude in December with essays about Barack and Michelle Obama. Presidents Biden and Trump are not part of the lineup to be spotlighted.
George W. and Laura Bush, the Obamas, and Bill and Hillary Clinton are subjects as well as essay authors. President Obama will write about Abraham Lincoln the week of June 1. President Clinton will take up Teddy Roosevelt in August. Michelle Obama will write about Jackie Kennedy while Laura Bush will showcase Lady Bird Johnson. Hillary Clinton’s essay will focus on Eleanor Roosevelt.
The remaining essays are handled by historians, biographers, documentarians and newshounds, including the great Patricia O’Toole (on Woodrow Wilson), Robert Costa (on Warren Harding), and Ken Burns and Geoff Ward (on Franklin Roosevelt).
Close to Labor Day, Shogan will provide a study of Grace Coolidge.
A graduate of Norwin High School, Shogan earned a doctorate from Yale. Later, she worked for the Library of Congress and the White House Historical Association. Shogan was nominated for the NARA post by President Biden in August 2022.
She weathered several controversies at the National Archives. Democrats lambasted her decision not to certify passage of the Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution. Later on, liberal critics accused her of running interference for the Trump administration’s anti-woke crusade.
Her dismissal by President Trump remains something of a mystery. She was not NARA chief when the agency complained to the Justice Department that the exiled Trump had kept certain classified documents after leaving Washington in 2021. Following a raid, the documents were discovered by the FBI at Trump’s Florida estate.
Regarding the timing and rationale of her dismissal, Shogan told Lauren Hall that she was still waiting for an explanation.
“In Pursuit” is a worthy second act for Shogan. As the person in charge, she has pledged neutrality regarding the assessments of presidential performance. She wants to foster Americans’ engagement in the country’s past, both its upside and downside. She correctly believes that there are valuable lessons to be learned.
Richard Robbins lives in Uniontown. He can be reached at dick.l.robbins@gmail.com.