American Politics

The former prisoner of war, who died Saturday, told Terry Gross: "My experiences have made me so appreciative of the opportunities that I've been given." Originally broadcast in 2000 and 2005.

Former first lady Barbara Bush died Tuesday after a series of hospitalizations. She was the wife of former President George H.W. Bush and the mother of former President George W. Bush.

Auth worked at the Philadelphia Inquirer for 41 years. He died Sunday at the age of 72. In 1988, Auth talked with Terry Gross about how the Reagan era marked a turning point for political cartoonists.

Jeffords died Monday at the age of 80. In 2001, the moderate Republican decided to switch to an independent, tipping control to the Democrats. At the time, he explained his decision to Terry Gross.

Boggs moved to Washington in 1941, when her husband was elected to Congress. After his plane disappeared on a campaign trip through Alaska, she ran for his seat and won, becoming the first woman elected to Congress from her state.

As Deputy Director of President George W. Bush's Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives, Kuo hoped to be a force inside the White House advocating for the poor. He left after two years, disillusioned and believing he had been used solely to recruit evangelical voters. Kuo, who died Friday at 44, talked to Fresh Air in 2006.

Anthony Lewis, the New York Times columnist and reporter who covered the Supreme Court in the late 1950s and early 1960s, died Monday. Fresh Air remembers him by listening back to a 1991 interview in which Lewis talks about the responsibilities of a columnist and the importance of a correctly-spelled name.

We listen back to excerpts of interviews with the acerbic writer, who died Tuesday at 86. Vidal authored the historical novels Burr and Lincoln, wrote plays and provocative essays, ran for office twice — and lost — and frequently appeared on TV talk shows.

Stevens, who died Tuesday, was appointed by President Ford and served on the court for 35 years before retiring in 2010. He spoke to Fresh Air in 2011 about his memoir, Five Chiefs.

Sargent Shriver, the founding director of the Peace Corps and the architect of President Johnson's War on Poverty, died on Tuesday. He was 95. Shriver spoke to Terry Gross in 1995 about his role in the War on Poverty.