he talks with historian douglas brinkley about the president he has met and shares his insight on others like william taft, harry truman, and calvin coolidge. the new york historical society hosted this 90 minute event. [applause] >> good morning, thank you for being here. one public service announcement. we will be taking questions. when that happens, we ask you to just ask one question, tried to keep it brief, but also tell us your name. we will try to get as many people through the microphones as we can. two staff members will be on hand. we will be going back and forth and picking up people to ask questions. it is an absolute thrill for me to be here, because william leuchtenburg is a hero of mine. i did my doctorate in u.s. presidential diplomatic history, and his books were a seminal reading when i was coming through the ranks and getting my doctorate. i still now use and teach his books at my class in rice university on the american presidency. i found that one of his books about fdr, was just an absolute classic. you have not even considered understanding our modern times without