Jfk Library Forums

Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Jon Meacham discusses his new book, “His Truth Is Marching On: John Lewis and the Power of Hope” with Michelle Miller, co-host of CBS This Morning: Saturday and CBS News national correspondent. Explore more at jfklibrary.org/forums.

John Dickerson, correspondent for CBS’ 60 Minutes and contributing writer to The Atlantic, discusses his new book "The Hardest Job in the World: The American Presidency." Barbara Perry, professor and director of presidential studies at the University of Virginia's Miller Center, moderates. For more info, visit jfklibrary.org/forums.

Chris Wallace, longtime journalist and anchor of Fox News Sunday, discusses his new book, "Countdown 1945: The Extraordinary Story of the Atomic Bomb and the 116 Days That Changed the World," exploring the days leading up to the first use of the atomic bomb in wartime. David Martin, national security correspondent for CBS News, moderates.

Lucy Hornby, a fellow at the Nieman Center for Journalism and former Beijing deputy bureau chief for the Financial Times, and Yasheng Huang, MIT professor of international management, discuss US foreign policy challenges and opportunities with Anthony Saich, Harvard professor of international affairs and director of the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation. This program is co-presented with the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation. For more info, visit jfklibrary.org/forums.

Mary Sarah Bilder, Boston College professor of law; Edward B. Foley, Ohio State University professor of constitutional law; and Jesse Wegman, author of Let the People Pick the President: The Case for Abolishing the Electoral College, discuss the history of and contemporary challenges to the Electoral College. Jonathan Kaufman, Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and editor and Director of Northeastern University’s School of Journalism, moderates.  For more info on past and future forums, visit jfklibrary.org/forums. To watch video recordings of events, find the JFK Library channel on YouTube.  

EJ Dionne, Washington Post columnist and political commentator; Janet Hook, staff writer at The Los Angeles Times; and Ronald Brownstein, senior editor at The Atlantic, discuss implications of the novel coronavirus for the 2020 elections. Washington Post columnist Karen Tumulty moderates the panel. For more info on upcoming and past John F. Kennedy Library Forums, visit jfklibrary.org/forums. And check out the JFK Library YouTube channel for event video recordings.

Akhil Amar, professor of law and political science at Yale University, and Eric Foner, professor emeritus of history at Columbia University and author of "The Second Founding: How Civil War and Reconstruction Remade the Constitution," discuss constitutional changes and challenges throughout our nation’s history. Kenneth Mack, professor of law and history at Harvard University, moderates.   For more info, visit jfklibrary.org/forums.

Stacey Abrams, New York Times bestselling author, nonprofit CEO, former Georgia House Democratic Leader and 2018 Democratic nominee for Governor of Georgia, discusses her distinguished career and continuing work on voting rights and social issues with Jonathan Capehart, opinion writer for The Washington Post.

Mo Rocca, correspondent for CBS Sunday Morning and frequent panelist on NPR’s Wait, Wait…Don’t Tell Me!, discusses his new book, Mobituaries: Great Lives Worth Reliving, featuring remarkable lives of leaders, innovators, and artists worthy of greater attention. Rick Berke, co-founder and executive editor of STAT and former longtime reporter and editor at The New York Times, moderates.    

Roland Mesnier, White House executive pastry chef from 1979 - 2004, discusses his distinguished career and new book, Creating the Sweet World of White House Desserts: A Pastry Chef’s Secrets with Sheryl Julian, former food editor of The Boston Globe.   

Ash Carter, former Secretary of Defense and director of Harvard’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, discusses his distinguished career and new book, Inside the Five-Sided Box: Lessons from a Lifetime of Leadership in the Pentagon with David Martin, national security correspondent for CBS News.

Tatiana Schlossberg, author of Inconspicuous Consumption: The Environmental Impact You Don’t Know You Have, and Rachel Cleetus, climate and energy program policy director at the Union of Concerned Scientists, discuss the environmental impact inherent in our everyday choices with David Cash, dean of the McCormack Graduate School at the University of Massachusetts Boston.

Congresswoman Barbara Lee discusses her distinguished career and contemporary civil rights issues. Kenneth Mack, professor of law and history at Harvard University, moderates.

Senator Doug Jones, author of Bending Toward Justice: The Birmingham Church Bombing that Changed the Course of Civil Rights, and William Baxley, former Attorney General of Alabama, discuss the decades-long efforts to prosecute the 16th Street Baptist Church bombers. Margaret Burnham, professor and founder and director of the Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Project at Northeastern University, moderates.

Award-winning author Evan Thomas and his wife Oscie Thomas, an attorney and frequent collaborator on his books, discuss his new book First: Sandra Day O’Connor, drawn from exclusive interviews and first-time access to the archives of America’s first female Supreme Court justice. Barbara Perry, professor and director of presidential studies at the University of Virginia's Miller Center, moderates.

Gerard Baker, editor at large at The Wall Street Journal, Ambassador (Ret.) Nicholas Burns, Harvard professor of diplomacy and international relations, and Karen Donfried, president of the German Marshall Fund of the United States, discuss current developments in the Brexit process with Elaine Papoulias, executive director of the Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies.    

Former NASA astronaut Daniel Burbank, currently Senior Technical Fellow for Mission Systems at Collins Aerospace Systems, discussed his experience from more than two decades at NASA, including his time aboard the International Space Station.

NASA Engineer Su Curley, who works on crew survival spacesuits and hardware for the Orion Program, including the journey to Mars, discussed current spacesuit technology and showed visitors how suits are used for spacewalking.   You can watch a video of this event on the JFK Library website.

Dr. Lonnie Johnson, founder of Johnson Research and Development Co., Inc, and holder of over 100 patents, discussed his career in invention – from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab to inventing the Super Soaker®, the most popular water toy in history. You can watch a video of this event via the JFK Library's website.

Alan Price, Director of the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum welcomed guests to JFK Space Fest 2019 and introduced a video greeting from NASA astronauts Nick Hague and Christina Koch aboard the International Space Station (ISS).  Following this welcome and greeting, Dr. Franklin Chang Díaz, founder and CEO of the Ad Astra Rocket Company, discussed his research and career, including 25 years’ service as a NASA astronaut and a veteran of seven space shuttle flights. He is the author of Dream’s Journey and To Mars and Beyond, FAST! You can watch a video of this event via the JFK Library's website.