#14: Steven Levingston - "Barack and Joe"

Our series on the presidency begins with two biographical episodes of the major-party candidates.

For our episode on Joe Biden, we interviewed Steven Levingston, the author of, "Barack and Joe."

As opposed to analyzing every step of his political career, Levingston's book examined Biden through his relationship with the man who selected him to be vice president in 2008. Levingston explains how they go from being very different types of senators (one young and reserved, the other older and loquacious), to rivals in the presidential race, to forming a careful friendship and then forming a bond that both have called familial. What does his relationship with President Obama reveal about his character and his approach to governing? How did viral pictures and videos impact the perception of their partnership?Levingston explores Biden's wounds and how Obama helped him through unimaginable loss. He also discusses what type of president Biden would be and his lifelong battle to attain America's highest office.

Steven Levingston is available on Twitter @SteveLevingston

Axelbank Reports History and Today is available on Twitter and Instagram @axelbankhistory

Here is a schedule of release dates for episodes as part of our series on the presidency:

***September 29th: James Poniewozik - "Audience of One: Donald Trump, Television and the Fracturing of America"

***September 29th: Steven Levingston - "Barack and Joe: The Making of an Extraordinary Partnership"

***October 6th: Stephen Knott - "The Lost Soul of the American Presidency: The Decline into Demagoguery and the Prospects for Renewal"

***October 13th: Lindsay Chervinsky - "The Cabinet: George Washington and the Creation of an American Institution"

***October 20th: A.J. Baime - "Dewey Defeats Truman: The 1948 Election and the Battle for America's Soul"

***October 27th: Jeremi Suri - "The Impossible Presidency: The Rise and Fall of America's Highest Office"

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