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The Presidents

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Christmas with the Kennedys

The White House celebrates many holiday traditions, some of which are historic and others more recent. New arrivals to the Executive Mansion bring unique familial rituals that they are often blended with time-tested White House and presidential customs. During the holiday season, the president and first lady participate in public traditions such as receiving a tree for the Blue Room,

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The History of the Pardon Power

Article II, Section 2 of the United States Constitution states that the President has the authority to “grant Reprieves and Pardons for Offenses against the United States, except in Cases of Impeachment.” The United States Supreme Court has interpreted this power as “plenary,” meaning that is considerably broad and not generally subject to congressional modification.1 In both Ex parte Garland (1866) and United S

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Harriet Lane

Most Americans have never heard of Harriet Lane, but at the time of her uncle James Buchanan’s presidency, she was the White House hostess, a friend to Queen Victoria, namesake to “societies, ships of war, [and] neck-ties,” “First Lady of the Land,” and a national celebrity.1 How, then, have Americans forgotten her?

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Things That Go Bump in the Blue Room

Most White House ghost stories revolve around long-deceased presidents or first ladies, such as Abigail Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Dolley Madison, Andrew Jackson, and Abraham Lincoln. Some are more tangential to the White House, such as Anna Surratt, the daughter of Lincoln assassination conspirator Mary Surratt. But legends featuring spooks and specters aren’t restricted to nineteenth-century stories that have been re