Finally, for those who aren’t yet convinced that the issues former presidents faced decades or even a century ago are relevant to those our current slate of presidential candidates are expounding on today, consider just a few:

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• Teddy Roosevelt’s term was plagued by a festering, seemingly unending insurgency in a far off land. When he was elected Vice President, his youth and qualifications were criticized, as the 42-year old had previously only served, briefly, as a state governor.
• Woodrow Wilson struggled with balancing civil rights and national security during wartime when some American minority groups were suspected of being sympathetic to U. S. enemies. Wilson chose national security over civil rights, backing warrantless searches, imprisonment of dissidents and suppression of the anti-war movement.
• Franklin Roosevelt faced the country’s greatest economic challenge as banks failed, Wall Street crashed, corporations went bust and millions of Americans went jobless. FDR created social security and backed massive government bail out programs.
• Harry Truman was considered by most Americans during his presidency as not qualified for the job, a “country bumpkin” whose approval ratings plummeted to the lowest on record. He stood up to North Korean aggression, but was less successful dealing with China.
• Jimmy Carter confronted a militant, anti-American Iran bent on reshaping the political environment of the Middle East.
• During Ronald Reagan’s presidency, he dealt with a nuclear-armed, aggressive-minded Russia, intent on expanding its spheres of influence.

How these former presidents dealt with issues that might have been lifted from today’s headlines are instructive and help put the challenges facing our presidential candidates today in their proper historical perspective – and may give them some valuable tips on how to handle them. PBS’ The Presidents Collection is “must see TV.”

Each DVD’s special features include a useful Teacher’s Guide.

Armchair General rates this DVD set FIVE STARS, our highest rating.

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