Richard Kreitner

richardkreitner

Richard Kreitner is a contributing writer and the author of Break It Up: Secession, Division, and the Secret History of America's Imperfect Union. His writings are at www.richardkreitner.com.

US history: Civil War: Emancipation Proclamation

Did the Constitution Pave the Way to Emancipation? Did the Constitution Pave the Way to Emancipation?

In his new book, The Crooked Path to Abolition, James Oakes argues that the Constitution was an antislavery document.

Oct 6, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Richard Kreitner

Now Is Not the Time for Unity

Now Is Not the Time for Unity Now Is Not the Time for Unity

If Joe Biden stakes his presidency on compromise and comity, his presidency will be a failure.

Jan 15, 2021 / Richard Kreitner

Young man looks at electoral map colored in with markers

American Democracy Was Never Supposed to Work American Democracy Was Never Supposed to Work

Without a practical plan for revising the Constitution, Democrats will be condemned to play by rigged rules.

Nov 17, 2020 / Richard Kreitner

Donald Trump pointing with Joe Biden in the background

What History Tells Us About Trump’s Implosion and Biden’s Opportunity What History Tells Us About Trump’s Implosion and Biden’s Opportunity

Political scientist Stephen Skowronek discusses whether a President Biden could become an era-shaping leader.

Oct 12, 2020 / Q&A / Richard Kreitner

The faces on Mt. Rushmore wearing surgical masks

When Confronting the Coronavirus, Federalism Is Part of the Problem When Confronting the Coronavirus, Federalism Is Part of the Problem

That some cities and states have stepped up to fill the gap left by Trump’s catastrophic failure is a matter of luck, not design.

Apr 1, 2020 / no-paywall / Richard Kreitner

The Most Interesting and Important Things We Published in 1968

The Most Interesting and Important Things We Published in 1968 The Most Interesting and Important Things We Published in 1968

The Nation’s coverage of a pivotal year.

Aug 2, 2018 / Feature / Richard Kreitner

The Nation 100th Anniversary cover

In Memoriam: Richard Clark Sterne, Historian of ‘The Nation’ In Memoriam: Richard Clark Sterne, Historian of ‘The Nation’

An avid Nation reader since boyhood, Sterne, who died at 91, wrote an early account of the magazine.

Jul 31, 2018 / Richard Kreitner

Resistance by Refusal: You’re Never Too Legit to Quit Resistance by Refusal: You’re Never Too Legit to Quit

In an interview, Jennet Kirkpatrick, the author of The Virtues of Exit, makes the case for giving up.

Jan 2, 2018 / Asked & Answered / Richard Kreitner

Letters Icon

Letters From the January 15-22, 2018, Issue Letters From the January 15-22, 2018, Issue

The long con…

Dec 28, 2017 / Letters / Our Readers and Richard Kreitner

1967 Constitutional Convention

A New York Constitutional Convention Would Be Good for Democracy A New York Constitutional Convention Would Be Good for Democracy

The case for a constitutional convention in New York State.

Nov 3, 2017 / Richard Kreitner

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