This episode, amateur historian Thom Woodley digs into the life and politics of John Sidney McCain, Jr. - Arizona Senator and two-time Republican candidate for president, who lost the 2008 race to Barack Obama.By Thom Woodley

Every episode, comic historian Thom Woodley dives deep into a loser of the US presidential elections. This time, it's John Kerry, Senator, Secretary of State, war veteran and protestor, surf rocker, and the only Democrat since 1988 to lose the popular vote (and even THAT's questionable!) What if President Kerry had inherited the Iraq War and Operat…

This is the (lightly comedic) history podcast where we talk about the losers of presidential races. In this one, we're discussing ALL your favorite losers of the 6th period of American history (1968-2004), including: Hubert HUMPHREY! George WALLACE! Robert F. KENNEDY! Eugene MCCARTHY! Nelson ROCKEFELLER! Charlene MITCHELL! George MCGOVERN! Shirley …

Welcome to FAIL TO THE CHIEF, the podcast where we rate and rank the losers of presidential history. I’m kicking this podcast off again, and starting with the beginning of the 21st century. [If you want to hear about the losers of the 20th century, and the 19th and the 18th, go ahead and listen to the archives OR, you can buy my book: Volume 1 (180…

Hey hey! We're BACK after a 2-year hiatus, to talk about the upcoming 2024 election, and wrap out the remaining losers. And what better occasion than the UNPRECEDENTED DROPPING OUT of our sitting Commander in Chief of the Fall presidential race. Well, actually? It's not that unprecedented. We have elections like 1968, 1952, and others like 1924 and…

By Thom Woodley

Sad to hear of Bob Dole's passing this week. In honor of the man, here is the Bob Dole chapter from my book Fail to the Chief Vol. 2 (available on Amazon!)By Thom Woodley

Fail to the Chief THE BOOK? Yes indeed. Also? Ross Perot. In lo-fi style. Because you've been waiting. Order the book today: https://www.amazon.com/Fail-Chief-1788-1928-Thom-Woodley/dp/1736697706/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=fail+to+the+chief&qid=1631577684&sr=8-1By Thom Woodley

Thom Woodley takes you on a tour of presidential losers of the past. In this episode, the George Bush vs. Michael Dukakis election of 1988.By Thom Woodley

Thom Woodley digs into the losers of presidential history - in this case, the independent candidacy of former Republican Congressman John B. Anderson (IL-16), who lost to Ronald Reagan but might have been the architect of a much better future.By Thom Woodley

Thom Woodley takes you through the history of the disastrous 1972 presidential campaign of liberal icon and Nixon opponent, George McGovern.By Thom Woodley

Thom Woodley discusses the losers of presidential history - this year, the big Democratic loser of the chaotic year of 1968, Vice President Hubert Humphrey, who lost to Richard Nixon in the midst of the Vietnam War.By Thom Woodley

Rerelease of a 2015 Episode. Just in time for MLK Day, it's our episode on George Wallace, the 3rd party candidate in the 1968 election. Why wasn't he elected president? And how would he have been in office?By Thom Woodley

In this episode, we explore ALL of the losers of the 5th Period in American Politics (1932-1968), Alf Landon, Wendell Willkie, Thomas Dewey, Adlai Stevenson, Strom Thurmond, Henry Wallace and Barry Goldwater, and find out where they rank among the losers of all American history. We also talk about some notable other losers of the era: Henry Breckin…

Amateur historian host Thom Woodley re-releases his 2016 episode on Barry Goldwater, the very conservative-libertarian Republican losing candidate of the 1964 Lyndon Johnson presidential election.By Thom Woodley

This is a repost as there was an error the first time I posted! Comic historian Thom Woodley digs into the record of Adlai Stevenson II, Governor of Illinois and two-time nominee of the Democratic party, who lost big to Dwight Eisenhower.

Join comic historian Thom Woodley as we talk about Henry Wallace, former Vice President and the 1948 candidate of the Progressive Party... and also maybe, just maybe, a secret Soviet asset.By Thom Woodley

Comic historian Thom Woodley (@thomwoodley) takes you on a tour through the rogues gallery of presidential candidates who didn't quite make it. This episode, Lewis Cass (Democrat, 1848), who lost to Zachary Taylor.By Thom Woodley

Thom Woodley takes you on a tour of the 1948 presidential election, in which 3rd party Democrat Strom Thurmond runs on a platform of segregationist views - and later goes on to rebuild the Republican party in his image.By Thom Woodley

Re-release of this 2015 episode; comic historian Thom Woodley takes you through the 1844 election where historical great Henry Clay was defeated by dark horse James K. Polk.By Thom Woodley

Comic historian Thom Woodley investigates the losers of presidential history - this time Thomas E. Dewey, two time Republican nominee, the gangbusting man on the wedding cake who lost to FDR and Harry Truman.

Thom rereleases his episode on presidential loser Daniel Webster, the only man to turn down two separate vice-presidential offers (either of which would have led to his becoming president).By Thom Woodley

Every episode, comic historian Thom Woodley dissects one of the losers of presidential elections. This time, the discussion is on Wendell Willkie, a proto-Trump figure: businessman who never served in office, former Democrat, famous for speaking on a controversial issue. What would have happened had a completely nonexperienced man had beaten FDR an…

Every episode, Thom Woodley delves into a different Loser of American presidential elections. Enjoy this re-release of diehard conservative (and possible Nesferatu) Hugh Lawson White of Tennessee, one of 1836's Way Too Many Whig candidates.By Thom Woodley

in this episode, Thom Woodley discusses the very boring Kansas governor Alf Landon and his landslide loss to Franklin D. Roosevelt.By Thom Woodley

It's July 4th, 2019, and Thom is going to quickly recap the 4th period of American history (from McKinley in 1896 through Hoover in 1928), and its presidential losers: William Jennings Bryan, Alton Parker, Eugene Debs, Charles Evans Hughes, James Cox, John W. Davis, Robert La Follette, Burton Wheeler, and Al Smith. In addition he discusses some mig…

Thom Woodley dives into the groundbreaking third party candidacy of William Wirt and the Anti-Masonic party in this rerelease of a 2015 episode.

In this episode, humorist historian Thom Woodley dives into Al Smith, Governor of New York, first Catholic nominee, a man who might have prevented the Depression even though he never even went to high school.By Thom Woodley

Re-release of episode from 2015/2016 about 'Fighting Bob' La Follette, champion of the Progressive Party and bigtime loser of 1924.By Thom Woodley

In this episode, Thom dives into one of the most forgotten presidential losers of all time, John W. Davis, 1924 Democratic dark horse nominee.By thom woodley

Thom rereleases part 1 of his all-time favorite loser, Henry Clay, the man who ran six times, was nominated thrice, saved the Union thrice, and probably almost destroyed it a few times too.By thom woodley

REISSUE of an episode that came out in the Summer of 2016! Back then I compared James Cox to John Kasich (since both were, you know, governors of Ohio ultimately defeated by men who really had little knowledge of what the president did). But could this short, feisty, intense little man have ALSO prevented the stock market crash and depression? List…

In this episode, Thom looks at one of the best presidential losers of all time, Charles Evans Hughes. He lost to Woodrow Wilson by only about six thousand votes, but it's all good - he went on to serve as both Secretary of State and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, so don't feel too bad.By Thom Woodley

When Socialist presidential candidate Eugene V. Debs was sentenced for speaking out against World War 1, on September 18, 2018, he gave a stirring speech in support of his beliefs and principles, and in execration of the Espionage Act and the government that had spawned it. I read it here, poorly and quickly, in the streets of NYC!…

Did you know that America had socialist candidates before Bernie Sanders? We sure did. In fact, union organizer Eugene Debs ran as the Socialist candidate in five elections - including one from a prison cell.By Thom Woodley

Thom Woodley explores the candidacy of Judge Alton B. Parker, the most forgotten of all losers - so forgotten that this democratic nominee has never even had a biography written about him.By Thom Woodley

Learn how the last Democratic-Republican nominee, Georgia's William Crawford, split the party apart and led to the rise of the two party system which ultimately bred hatred in the days leading to the Civil War.By Thom Woodley

Thom goes through the Top 5 and Bottom 5 Losers so far, and also discuss FAIL TO THE CHIEF... the book???By Thom Woodley

Thom reads the 1896 Democratic National Convention 'Cross of Gold' speech of William Jennings Bryan.By Thom Woodley

Thom Woodley discusses three-time democratic party loser William Jennings Bryan, and what the world would be like had this preacher-in-chief been elected.By Thom Woodley

Thom summarizes his rankings for the losers of the period of American history from 1860-1892: Stephen Douglas, John Breckinridge, John Bell, George McClellan, Horatio Seymour, Horace Greeley, Samuel Tilden, Winfield Scott Hancock, James Blaine and James Weaver. He also discusses some interesting 'nearly also-rans': William Seward, Salmon Chase, Cas…

In this rerelease, Thom dives into the election of 1816, the last mewling death cry of the Federalist Party and its standardbearer, Rufus King.By Thom Woodley

You've probably never heard of James B. Weaver, but he's the first successful populist (leftist) candidate in American history. His 1896 third party run won five states and helped to change the landscape of politics from then on. In this episode, Thom Woodley tells you about his life, his politics, and maybe, just maybe, you'll come out a 'b.weaver…

James G. Blaine combined the politicking of Paul Ryan, the NYC elitist foibles of Hillary Clinton, and the plutocratic corruption of Donald Trump. And he almost became president in 1884. Hear comic historian Thom Woodley go into what kept this scandal-ridden, political wunderkind out of the White House.…

When he ran for president in the midst of our most-forgotten major war, Dewitt Clinton was serving as both lieutenant governor of New York and Mayor of New York City - and he was both a Democratic-Republican and a Federalist. It was confusing times. How exactly did this canal-digging, city-building Magnus Apollo of a man lose to short, shriveled, s…

We're back, with a new episode the first Tuesday of every month! This episode, Thom explores the election of 1880, which Civil War hero Winfield Scott Hancock lost to political partisan James Garfield.By Thom Woodley

Thom Woodley dives into the history of Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, two-time federalist loser (1804 and 1808). New episodes coming the first tuesday of every month!

Special Re-Release! Thom Woodley dives deep into the life of the very first presidential loser (and star of the stage) Aaron Burr. Not just the bad guy in Hamilton... he very much played the bad guy in real life. But also the good guy! Because it's history and history is confusing. Enjoy and let us know by reaching out to us on @failtothechief on I…

Comic historian Thom Woodley dissects the back stories, politics and failures of the men who lost presidential elections. In this episode, epic 1876 loser Samuel Tilden, who had the election stolen right from under his beaklike nose.

Join comic historian Thom Woodley as he investigates the losers of presidential history. In this episode, Liberal Republican candidate and New York Tribune founder-editor Horace Greeley. He lost to Ulysses Grant, was a titan of media, and a journalistic icon, as well as a brilliant genius and possible lunatic. (History politics presidents worst com…