The Founder Who Built the Plumbing
John Adams was neither flashy nor rich, and posterity mostly left him out. The republic still runs on the parts he built.
Essays and notes
History, self-government, and the pleasures that slow a life down.
Writing by a Washington hand of three decades who reads the founders for fun and wants to learn to sail.
Recent essays
When the Lame Duck Ran Three Months
The original congressional calendar built in a lame-duck session every two years. A 1922 power play led to the Twentieth Amendment, and the end-of-year deadlines still shape what gets done.
The One Lever That Still Needs Your Hand
Everything else in self-government can be delegated to professionals. Voting cannot.
About
Luke Rose writes about American history, the habits of self-government, and the pleasures that slow a life down: a used bookstore, a long meal, a cigar. He spent nearly three decades in Washington, first on Capitol Hill and then advising companies on Congress and federal policy. The founders he once read for work he now reads for fun, and John Adams has overtaken Jefferson as his favorite. His other shelves hold the history of music, hard science fiction, and children's books, and he aspires to share his love of all three through print, stage, screen, or even the embarrassing podcast. He lives in Northern Virginia, prefers to be near the ocean, and is finally getting around to learning to sail, fly-fish, and appreciate classical music.
Write to me
Editors, readers, and old friends are welcome.