Over the past few weeks, I’ve seen countless people share clips of this video: Glenn Beck “interviewing” a modernized, AI George Washington. This version of Washington looks like an aging tech bro—hair flowing, plain dark t-shirt, confidently poised in front of a podcast mic.

Obviously, the entire thing is the height of absurdity. Even setting aside how corny it all looks, Beck presents this AI GW, trained on god knows what material, as a definitive source for understanding how Washington would respond to modern challenges. Beck positions himself as just-asking-questions, despite the fact that this version of Washington was specifically designed to give him the answers he wants.

A few days ago, someone on Bluesky posted their own version of one a Beck/GW-AI interview, having Washington call for bringing back slavery, defending it as the only labor source that could really serve the nation. Lots of people reposted approvingly, appreciating the way it subverted Beck’s attempt to reproduce a venerable, modern Washington, putting his lifelong involvement with slavery front and center instead.

I think about my book anytime I see Washington lately (and for the past several years), but here it seems especially relevant. For more than two centuries, Americans of all backgrounds and political positions have selectively cited Washington to support their positions. In the fight over slavery, both proslavery and antislavery forces cherry-picked from Washington’s ambiguous legacy with the institution—he was at at once one of the nation’s most prolific enslavers and the architect of one of its largest private emancipations—to claim he supported their position. In the much longer fight for racial justice and equality, subsequent generations of Americans did similarly. Any time Americans have wanted to make claims about the nature of American society, especially its persistent failures to provide racial justice, Washington serves as a convenient tool.

Now, Glenn Beck (and surely others who will follow) seem to be dispensing with selectively quoting Washington and interpreting his legacy to make their points. Instead, he’s pretending as if he can take out the middle man, using AI to bring Washington’s words directly into the present. Beck, instead of having Washington’s words come out of his mouth in a way that supports his positions (already a dishonest way of doing history), instead flips it, making his words come out of the AI Washington.

Washington was a complicated figure. He held contradictory views at the same time, especially when it comes to slavery. Using AI to give this particular interpretation of Washington’s views the veneer of objective authority is absurd. It teaches us nothing. Thankfully, the reactions to it I’ve seen, even from outside the history field, are mostly ridicule.

But, if my book makes anything clear, it’s that we shouldn’t be surprised by this attempt. People have been manipulating Washington’s history, wielding his words like a cudgel in the political fights of the day, for more than 200 years. AI just offers a new, very costly way to do it.

My book comes out three weeks from today! If you haven’t already, I hope you’ll consider pre-ordering it and/or asking your local library to pick it up. Pre-orders really help build buzz, help other people find the book, and help build momentum. If I won’t see you in person at an event, I’d be happy to send you a signed bookplate to stick inside!

I’ve done a few podcast interviews recently talking about various aspects of the book:

More to come in the weeks ahead.

I also keep adding events to my website. To my great surprise, some of them are selling out, so please check out if I’ll be coming near you to talk about the book. I’d love to see you! Next event is in Cambridge, MA on March 30.

I also learned recently that the book will be getting an audio edition! No word on release date for that yet, but I’m excited to have it in audio format.

That’s all for now. 3 more weeks!