The Preamble

The Preamble

George Washington’s Lesson in the Shadow of a Gun

Alexis Coe's avatar
Alexis Coe
Sep 11, 2025
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Yesterday in Utah, Charlie Kirk began to answer a question on gun violence when he was silenced by it. A single round cut short a public debate and turned it into a political assassination.

Charlie Kirk speaks at Utah Valley University before being fatally shot.

As a scholar of George Washington, I often turn to him in moments like this, not in hopes of f…

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Alexis Coe's avatar
A guest post by
Alexis Coe
Presidential historian, American History Columnist @NYT, senior fellow at New America, and New York Times Bestselling author of (almost!) three books. Lives in a one stoplight village in the Hudson Valley, often in DC and NYC.
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