On this encore episode of Now & Then, originally aired in June 2021 amid a Republican filibuster of an independent commission investigating January 6th, Heather and Joanne discuss the history of congressional commissions, from the investigation of the 1856 caning of Massachusetts Senator Charles Sumner, to the 1871 Ku Klux Klan hearings, to 1954 back-and-forth between Senator Joseph McCarthy and the Army.
We’ll be back with a new episode next Tuesday!
Join CAFE Insider to listen to “Backstage,” where Heather and Joanne chat each week about the anecdotes and ideas that formed the episode. Head to: cafe.com/history
For more historical analysis of current events, sign up for the free weekly CAFE Brief newsletter, featuring Time Machine, a weekly article that dives into an historical event inspired by each episode of Now & Then: cafe.com/brief
For references & supplemental materials, head to: cafe.com/now-and-then/encore-investigating-democracy
Now & Then is presented by CAFE and the Vox Media Podcast Network.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The Rise of Bully Politics
Speakers of the House: Velvet Gloves and Iron Fists
Split Party Politics
Government Debt Roulette
New York, New York
Abortion: Whose Choice?
Climate Control
Attacking and Defending Voting Rights
Afghanistan & American Styles of War
Treason(ish)
A Backstage Peek
Projecting America at the Olympics
The Human Toll of Infrastructure
Culture Wars
Judging the Supreme Court
Creating Federal Holidays, July 4th to Juneteenth
Corrupting the Commonwealth
QAnon, Cults, and Cutlery
Battling Over Critical Race Theory
Investigating Democracy
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Irish Songs with Ken Murray
History Obscura
Historycal: Words that Shaped the World
The Rest Is History
Rachel Maddow Presents: Ultra