@mitchellrb58.bsky.social
@mitchellrb58.bsky.social
Retired Washington Post news service editor, proud husband and father, Methodist, award-winning author, blogger, birdwatcher, Nats fan. Heroes: Ulysses S. Grant, Eugene Debs, Ida B. Wells, Winston Churchill, William Jennings Bryan, Ron Santo, Gale Sayers.
Pinned
I'm the author of the forthcoming "The Partisans: James G. Blaine, Roscoe Conkling, and the Politics of Rivalry and Revenge in the Gilded Age," from Edinborough Press
President Trump returns to his default setting on Ukraine: prioritizing the interests of Vladimir Putin #ukraine #nato
On the verge of giving Putin what he wants
President Trump returns to his default setting on Ukraine: deference to Vladimir Putin with little regard for the interests of the embattled government in Kyiv.
open.substack.com
November 22, 2025 at 1:02 PM
The basic question: Why did I write The Partisans? Lots of reasons, but one is the expressive and colorful language of politics in the Gilded Age #booksky #Blaine #Conkling #ushistory youtube.com/shorts/v1Ma6...
Why I wrote The Partisans
YouTube video by The Partisans
youtube.com
November 18, 2025 at 3:23 PM
The basic question: Why did I write The Partisans? Lots of reasons, but one is the expressive and colorful language of politics in the Gilded Age #booksky #Blaine #Conkling #ushistory youtube.com/shorts/v1Ma6...
Missing Todd Snider this morning and thinking about what his music meant to me: #music #toddsnider
Todd Snider: Much more than an "alright guy"
We lost a unique storyteller and talent with the passing of alt-country and folk musician Todd Snider.
robertbmitchell.substack.com
November 16, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Missing Todd Snider this morning and thinking about what his music meant to me: #music #toddsnider
Coined by #Blaine, applied to supporters of #Conkling, invoked by an assassin, the Gilded Age term "Stalwart" has a tortured history. #BookSky #podcasts #ushistory #Maine #NewYork
The strange history of "Stalwart"
open.spotify.com
November 12, 2025 at 11:11 AM
"Death By Lightning" is fun but largely fictional #Netflix #ushistory #podcasts #jamesgarfield #blaine #conkling #gildedage robertbmitchell.substack.com/p/music-figh...
"Music! Fighting! Sausages!" "Death by Lightning" is fun, but largely fictional
The Netflix series about the assassination of President James A. Garfield succeeds as entertainment. As history it leaves much to be desired.
robertbmitchell.substack.com
November 9, 2025 at 6:21 AM
"Death By Lightning" is fun but largely fictional #Netflix #ushistory #podcasts #jamesgarfield #blaine #conkling #gildedage robertbmitchell.substack.com/p/music-figh...
#Blaine, #Conkling, and the assassination of James A. #Garfield #netflix #deathbylightning #ushistory #booksky #podcasts
July 2, 1881
YouTube video by The Partisans
youtube.com
November 4, 2025 at 3:15 PM
#Blaine, #Conkling, and the assassination of James A. #Garfield #netflix #deathbylightning #ushistory #booksky #podcasts
As Netflix enters my wheelhouse with a series on James A. Garfield, I decided to nerd out and offer my assessment of the president tragically gunned down by assassin Charles Guiteau. #UShistory #JamesAGarfield #podcasts #Netflix open.substack.com/pub/robertbm...
The Garfield I have come to know
Fascination with the slain Gilded Age president, building for years, is likely to reach new heights with the release of a four-part Netflix series next month.
open.substack.com
October 29, 2025 at 11:21 AM
As Netflix enters my wheelhouse with a series on James A. Garfield, I decided to nerd out and offer my assessment of the president tragically gunned down by assassin Charles Guiteau. #UShistory #JamesAGarfield #podcasts #Netflix open.substack.com/pub/robertbm...
James G. Blaine and Roscoe Conkling kept headline writers and cartoonists busy during the Gilded Age youtube.com/shorts/TS8pf... #booksky #ushistory #maine #newyork #GildedAge #podcasts
New headlines and cartoons 2
YouTube video by The Partisans
youtube.com
October 15, 2025 at 8:57 PM
James G. Blaine and Roscoe Conkling kept headline writers and cartoonists busy during the Gilded Age youtube.com/shorts/TS8pf... #booksky #ushistory #maine #newyork #GildedAge #podcasts
I've jumped into the podcast pool with "A Strife of Interests," an audio version of my blog of the same name. The latest episode describes the origin of the feud between James G. Blaine of Maine and Roscoe Conkling of New York. #ushistory #maine #podcasts open.spotify.com/show/1YGsrvZ...
The feud
open.spotify.com
October 13, 2025 at 1:38 AM
I've jumped into the podcast pool with "A Strife of Interests," an audio version of my blog of the same name. The latest episode describes the origin of the feud between James G. Blaine of Maine and Roscoe Conkling of New York. #ushistory #maine #podcasts open.spotify.com/show/1YGsrvZ...
What reviewers are saying about "The Partisans" #podcasts #ushistory
October 10, 2025 at 1:06 PM
What reviewers are saying about "The Partisans" #podcasts #ushistory
It's been a good week for "The Partisans." The book debuted on Wednesday, and I got to talk about it on "Maine Calling." www.mainepublic.org/show/maine-c... The early reviews are positive #booksky #maine #ushistory #gildedage
October 4, 2025 at 10:50 AM
It's been a good week for "The Partisans." The book debuted on Wednesday, and I got to talk about it on "Maine Calling." www.mainepublic.org/show/maine-c... The early reviews are positive #booksky #maine #ushistory #gildedage
I'm going to be on "Maine Calling" this morning from 11 to noon Eastern Time to talk about James G. Blaine #maine #ushistory #booksky
James Blaine: Maine Statesman
Blaine rose to top national political roles in the 19th century, including Speaker of the House and Secretary of State. We learn about why he was so influential, and his ties to Maine.
www.mainepublic.org
October 1, 2025 at 1:05 PM
I'm going to be on "Maine Calling" this morning from 11 to noon Eastern Time to talk about James G. Blaine #maine #ushistory #booksky
Learning to love the anti-Bond
Jackson Lamb is the fictional spy for our time.
robertbmitchell.substack.com
September 30, 2025 at 12:19 PM
James G. Blaine advises James A. Garfield on how to deal with Republican factions: #booksky #maine #ushistory #gildedage #blaine
Blaine's unvarnished views on Republican factions
YouTube video by The Partisans
youtube.com
September 25, 2025 at 8:42 PM
James G. Blaine advises James A. Garfield on how to deal with Republican factions: #booksky #maine #ushistory #gildedage #blaine
Gilded Age politicians James G. Blaine and Roscoe Conkling practiced politics in dramatically different ways. One showed the way to the future #GildedAge #booksky #Blaine #Conkling #Maine #NewYork #ushistory
Blaine, Conkling, and power
The two very different Gilded Age Republican politicians practiced their craft in distinctive ways. One showed the way to the future. A cartoon from Puck shows Ulysses S. Grant, Roscoe Conkling, an…
kingoffrauds.wordpress.com
September 21, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Gilded Age politicians James G. Blaine and Roscoe Conkling practiced politics in dramatically different ways. One showed the way to the future #GildedAge #booksky #Blaine #Conkling #Maine #NewYork #ushistory
Some ideas for immunizing yourself from our poisonous politics #politics #wellbeing
Simple steps you can take to detox from our poisonous politics
Get involved in your community. Enjoy the outdoors. Sing. Above all, step away from the screens.
open.substack.com
September 18, 2025 at 11:35 AM
Some ideas for immunizing yourself from our poisonous politics #politics #wellbeing
Meet some of the varied and diverse Gilded Age personalities you will encounter in "The Partisans: James G. Blaine, Roscoe Conkling, and the Politics of Rivalry and Revenge in the Gilded Age: #booksky #ushistory #blaine #conkling #maine #newyork
The Partisans is now available for pre-order at Amazon.com.
YouTube video by The Partisans
youtu.be
September 13, 2025 at 7:08 PM
The assassination of Charlie Kirk and the cancer of violence in American politics: my latest Substack #politics #charliekirk #trump
"Members of other political parties are not our enemies; they are our fellow citizens."
The assassination of Charlie Kirk brings into sharp relief the dangerous erosion of our capacity for civil debate and disagreement.
robertbmitchell.substack.com
September 11, 2025 at 8:29 PM
The assassination of Charlie Kirk and the cancer of violence in American politics: my latest Substack #politics #charliekirk #trump
The Partisans: James G. Blaine, Roscoe Conkling, and the Politics of Rivalry and Revenge in the Gilded Age is now available for pre-order at amazon.com #booksky #ushistory #maine #newyork
The Partisans: James G. Blaine, Roscoe Conkling, and the Politics of Rivalry and Revenge in the Gilded Age
The Partisans: James G. Blaine, Roscoe Conkling, and the Politics of Rivalry and Revenge in the Gilded Age [Robert B. Mitchell] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The Partisans: James G. Blaine, Roscoe Conkling, and the Politics of Rivalry and Revenge in the Gilded Age
a.co
September 10, 2025 at 2:54 PM
The Partisans: James G. Blaine, Roscoe Conkling, and the Politics of Rivalry and Revenge in the Gilded Age is now available for pre-order at amazon.com #booksky #ushistory #maine #newyork
News of another Confederate statue controversy prompts some thought about how we remember the Civil War #ushistory #civilwar
The Lost Cause, "one of the worst for which a people ever fought"
In considering public monuments to the Confederacy, we should remember the verdict of Ulysses S. Grant.
open.substack.com
September 3, 2025 at 1:34 PM
News of another Confederate statue controversy prompts some thought about how we remember the Civil War #ushistory #civilwar
My new book, The Partisans: James G. Blaine, Roscoe Conkling, and the Politics of Rivalry and Revenge in the Gilded Age, focuses on two of the most important politicians of the period. Conkling was an eloquent foe of slavery.#booksky #ushistory #newyork #conkling
Conkling and Slavery, April 17, 1860
YouTube video by The Partisans
youtube.com
September 1, 2025 at 8:35 PM
My new book, The Partisans: James G. Blaine, Roscoe Conkling, and the Politics of Rivalry and Revenge in the Gilded Age, focuses on two of the most important politicians of the period. Conkling was an eloquent foe of slavery.#booksky #ushistory #newyork #conkling
A spicebush swallowtail at Leopold's Reserve in Haymarket, Va.
August 26, 2025 at 12:48 AM
A spicebush swallowtail at Leopold's Reserve in Haymarket, Va.
The Cracker Barrel "controversy" and the politics of indignation are the subject of my latest Substack: open.substack.com/pub/robertbm...
Bottom of the barrel
With attacks on a restaurant chain, the right-wing "war on woke" takes another bizarre turn.
open.substack.com
August 25, 2025 at 5:32 PM
The Cracker Barrel "controversy" and the politics of indignation are the subject of my latest Substack: open.substack.com/pub/robertbm...
Some book news to share: "The Partisans" is scheduled for Oct. 1 publication. Here's my video about the bitter exchange between James G. #Blaine and Roscoe Conkling that ignited the feud that lasted for almost 20 years. #books #ushistory #maine #NewYork
July 28, 2025 at 6:12 PM
Some book news to share: "The Partisans" is scheduled for Oct. 1 publication. Here's my video about the bitter exchange between James G. #Blaine and Roscoe Conkling that ignited the feud that lasted for almost 20 years. #books #ushistory #maine #NewYork
Stories from scripture that challenge the nostrums of Christian nationalism. My latest Substack #umc
Building a new Jerusalem
How stories from the Hebrew Bible and Christian Scriptures directly challenge the theology of "Christian nationalism."
open.substack.com
July 13, 2025 at 11:41 AM
Stories from scripture that challenge the nostrums of Christian nationalism. My latest Substack #umc