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President John F. Kennedy

Tuesday

Sept. 11 Revealed The Importance And Limits Of The President's Daily Briefing

The President's Daily Briefing is the top-secret intelligence report the CIA presents to the president every weekday. The book shown here is for a briefing delivered to President George W. Bush in 2002. Damian Dovarganes/AP hide caption

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Damian Dovarganes/AP

National Security

Sept. 11 Revealed The Importance And Limits Of The President's Daily Briefing

While Washington is sleeping, a team at CIA headquarters is making the final edits to a leather-bound book with the country's most sensitive intelligence secrets — the President's Daily Briefing.

Sept. 11 Revealed The Importance And Limits Of The President's Daily Briefing

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Friday

Fathers Of Our Country: How U.S. Presidents Exercised Moral Leadership In Crisis

President John F. Kennedy makes a nationwide televised broadcast on civil rights in the White House, June 11, 1963. Americans often look to presidents for moral clarity in critical moments. Charles Gorry/AP hide caption

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Charles Gorry/AP

Politics

Fathers Of Our Country: How U.S. Presidents Exercised Moral Leadership In Crisis

NPR's Audie Cornish talks to Barbara Perry, a presidential historian at the University of Virginia, about how presidents have exercised moral leadership in critical moments.

Fathers Of Our Country: How U.S. Presidents Exercised Moral Leadership In Crisis

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Monday

Friday

Wednesday

Obama's Shift On Syria: A Show Of Strength Or Fear?

President Obama walks along the West Wing Colonnade toward the Oval Office ahead of Tuesday night's speech on Syria. Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP hide caption

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Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP

It's All Politics

Obama's Shift On Syria: A Show Of Strength Or Fear?

In the face of congressional and popular resistance to his call for retaliation against Syria, the president had a conversion on the missile flight path to Damascus. But what constitutes presidential wisdom and strength in today's global politics? It may have less to do with traditional notions of strength and more to do with vision and adaptability.