Ringling Votes

Offers tongue-in-cheek insight into American democracy with coverage of such topics as the republican qualities of ancient Rome, the antics of our nation's founders, and the ludicrous nature of today's media.

Based on the author's extraordinary personal collection of presidential election memorabilia, Campaigning for President tells the colorful story of how presidents (and their losing rivals) have wooed voters since America was founded. These objects—from posters and paper dresses to ice-cream bars, sunglasses, and (of course) buttons—form a fascinating, moving, sometimes funny, sometimes outrageous physical record of the past.

An unprecedented look back at a century of presidential races from the photo archives of The New York Times. Over the course of the century The New York Times has reported American presidential campaigns and how they have evolved-from William McKinley's historic "front porch" campaign to the media and money-powered campaigns of today. Here, The Times has delved into its impressive archives to shape a unique picture of the race for the White House from 1900 to the historic election of 2000.

Politicians are omnipresent in our society. How they present themselves depends on historical context as well as on the prevailing form of government and cultural environment. Vital components of political work are image building, political advertising, election campaigns, and self-representation, but also the tearing down of one’s opponent. The exchange between politicians and the people is marked by a complex disparity. While politicians seek to rally broad sectors of the population behind their programs, they only engage sporadically in a genuine exchange with individuals. This publication illuminates historical roots, epoch-making election campaigns, recurrent patterns in political public relations, and defining figures such as Lenin, Che Guevara, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Yulia Tymoshenko.

How Congress Works and Why You Should Care is a concise introduction to the functions and vital role of the U.S. Congress by eminent former Congressman Lee H. Hamilton. Drawing on 34 years as a U.S. Representative, Hamilton explains how Congress reflects the diversity of the American people, serves as a forum for finding consensus, and provides balance within the federal government. Addressing widespread public misperceptions, he outlines areas where Congress can work better and ways for citizens to become more engaged in public affairs through their representatives in Washington.

"If political advertising did not exist, we would have to invent it," writes Katherine Hall Jamieson in her widely praised study, Packaging the Presidency. Jamieson expands her authoritative analysis of political advertising, looking at the media campaigns of American presidents from the early days of the republic to the successful 1992 Clinton campaign. Chronicling the evolution of the campaign ad from political songs and slogans through handbill and newspaper cartoon to radio and television coverage, an argument emerges that is subtle but persuasive: though often equivocal, and even downright sleazy, political advertising is vital in reminding voters of the choices at the heart of democracy.

Known for its lively, clear prose as well as its scholarly research, A People's History of the United States is the only volume to tell America's story from the point of view of -- and in the words of -- America's women, factory workers, African Americans, Native Americans, working poor, and immigrant laborers.

Presents over 300 entries related to the United States presidency, including biographies of every president, election coverage and analysis, presidential policies and platforms, and presidential relations.

An oversized collection of the most striking and thought-providing presidential campaign posters throughout American history—perfect for political junkies and history buffs alike. Every poster is backed with colorful historical commentary and additional artwork.

"Based on the exhibtion "Running for Office: Candidates, Campaigns, and the Cartoons of Clifford Berryman," presented at the National Archives, Washington, DC, in the Lawrence F. O'Brien Gallery from February 8, 2008 to August 1, 2008"

"Hundreds of artists and designers expressed support for the Obama candidacy by designing posters and submitting them to designforobama.org for free download. This selection of the very best curated by Spike Lee and Aaron Perry-Zucker is a visual document of the most inspirational U.S. presidential campaign in living history."

"A gripping first-hand account from inside the halls of Congress as Donald Trump and his enablers betrayed the American people and the Constitution--leading to the violent attack on our Capitol on January 6th, 2021--by the House Republican leader who dared to stand up to it. In the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election, Donald Trump and many around him, including certain other elected Republican officials, intentionally breached their oath to the they ignored the rulings of dozens of courts, plotted to overturn a lawful election, and provoked a violent attack on our Capitol. Liz Cheney, one of the few Republican officials to take a stand against these efforts, witnessed the attack first-hand, and then helped lead the Congressional Select Committee investigation into how it happened. In Oath and Honor, she tells the story of this perilous moment in our history, those who helped Trump spread the stolen election lie, those whose actions preserved our constitutional framework, and the risks we still face."

"This is the first study of the portraits Barack Obama (2018) and Michelle Obama (2018), their reception, and their significance. The book includes essays by historians examining the influence of the paintings and what they reveal about contemporary portraiture, particularly in relation to American and African American history and culture. The book also features interviews with the artists, transcripts of the remarks made by the Obamas at the unveiling, and a selection of images, including behind-the-scenes photography by Pete Souza, the official photographer for the Obamas, made during the portrait sittings."

"As a friend, advisor, and attorney general to his brother, John F. Kennedy, Bobby Kennedy stood at the heart of Washington politics. He is remembered today as a compassionate, articulate, and optimistic mana friend to the poor, an avid civil rights advocate, a champion for peace. World-renowned photojournalist Harry Bensons images capture unprecedented intimate family outings and outdoor adventures with friends alongside every moment of Kennedys brief but unforgettable presidential run, from his announcement of his candidacy on St. Patricks Day, 1968, and the fervor and excitement of his days on the campaign trail, all the way through his shocking assassination in Los Angeles and the long, sweltering funeral procession to Arlington Cemetery."

"Eisner Award-winning cartoonist Shannon Wheeler tackles the 140-character president. For the first time, Donald Trump's most revealing tweets are collected, curated, and transformed into razor-sharp cartoons, offering a subversive and illuminating glimpse into the mind of the most divisive political figure of our time. Whether you love him or hate him, this take on Trump will help you come to grips with the man and his ideas thanks to Wheeler's signature mix of slapstick and sophistication."

The 2021 Capitol Hill Riot marked a watershed moment when the 'old world' of factbased systems of representation was briefly overwhelmed by the emerging hyper-individual politics of aestheticized emotion. In The Trump Effect in Contemporary Art and Visual Culture, Kit Messham-Muir and Uroš Cvoro analyse the aesthetics that have emerged at the core of 21st-century politics, and which erupted at the US Capitol in January 2021.

"For the first time, Hillary Rodham Clinton reveals what she was thinking and feeling during one of the most controversial and unpredictable presidential elections in history. Now free from the constraints of running, Hillary takes you inside the intense personal experience of becoming the first woman nominated for president by a major party in an election marked by rage, sexism, exhilarating highs and infuriating lows, stranger-than-fiction twists, Russian interference, and an opponent who broke all the rules."

"The Democratic presidential candidate, popular senator, and respected economist traces the first year of the Trump administration and what Sanders and his followers are doing to reinforce the progressive movement."

This documentary exposes gaping holes in the security of America's electronic voting system. Takes a nonpartisn, clear-eyed look at the secrecy, cronyism, and incompetence of elections in present-day America as it captures a citizen's movement intent on taking back elections and democracy itself.

The dramatized story of Alice Paul and Lucy Burns, leaders of the suffragist women who fought for the passage of the 19th Amendment. They broke from the mainstream women's rights movement to create a more activist wing, daring to push the boundaries to secure women's voting rights in 1920.