This video titled, "Winter Term 2001 Symposium: Inaugurating the Millennium," was held in McCrary Theatre in the Center for the Arts in Winter of 2001. Leo M. Lambert welcomed the guests with the following comments that included: welcome to Elon College; the first 100 days of the 21st century United States Presidency; Elon was one of few institutions that offered a Winter Term to focus on a single course or theme only; more than 3,600 of Elon's 4,100 students decided to enroll in the Winter Term course; in 2001 there were 40 special courses related to the theme of the Millenium; Winter Term was a time to study internationally, with 500 students studying in different countries; this symposium focused on the new president (George H. Bush) in this 2001 millenium; Chad, African was a little known country; Teresa LePors was thought of as Elon's Reference Librarian and not the Theresa LePore as the "butterfly ballot" (Theresa LePore was the former Supervisor of Elections for Palm Beach County, Florida. She was most notable as the person who designed the infamous butterfly ballot, used in the 2000 presidential election. This would lead the press to nickname her Madame Butterfly. Following the controversial results of the 2000 election, she lost her re-election bid in September 2004, and left office in January 2005); introduction of four panel members: Michael Richard Beschloss, William E. Leuchtenburg, and David Gergen; and the moderator was former journalist Sander Sandy Vanocur. 00:03:42 Vanocur began his moderating with a phrase, "A house in the country, simultaneous organism, and the first one-hundred days." Laughter was heard from the audience and continued with applause. The panelists discussed individual presidents: Leuchtenbury talked about President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR), Beschloss spoke about John Fitzgerald (Jack) Kennedy (JFK), and Gergen discussed Ronald Wilson Reagan. Vanocur stated, "None of the three presidents, except the possibility, of Reagan, faced the vast media in Washington, D.C. We now have a 24 hour day news cycle tape worm that must be fed." George Walker Bush, the 43rd United States President, was the first president confronted with a media culture of 24-hour cable coverage and the heat of the internet. The conditions of governing will be new to many politicians. Every Bush bubble will be magnified during a time of making a first impression." Vanocur stated, "One had to be a magician to deal with the media." In addition, Vanocur stated, "Covering the Washington D.C. political life was about making the 6:00pm evening news." 00:10:09 Leuchtenbury spoke of the first 100 days of a presidency. Comments from Leuchtenbury included: Roosevelt began his 1933 presidency with a fantastic inaugural address which began with a statement, "the only thing we have to fear is fear itself;" on inaugural day Roosevelt summoned the United States Congress emergency session and transformed the national government to an American society; Roosevelt sent 15 messages up to the Capital; and Congress enacted all 15 pieces of legislation laws within 15 days;" this was never seen in a United States Presidency in the first 100 days of a president being in office; why in 1933 does the magical phrase 100 days, have a special residence?; the answer was that in 1933, in an era when people still read European History, 100 days was a familiar phrase because of the comparison of Napoleon"s first 100 days in escaping France and a new history of the French throne being established; the first 100 days meant a success of a great historical moment that had transpired; and future presidents have been measured by Roosevelt's 1933 achievements. Only one United States President has come close to achieving Roosevelt's success, and that was President William Jefferson Clinton. In 1993, on the 100th day of the Clinton Administration, he found it challenging to account for his successes that came close to reflecting F.D. Roosevelt's story. The new president, George W. Bush, in 2000, will not be able to stand the 100th day comparison. 00:22:26 Beschloss's comments included: turn off the phone on the 29th of April for the president's 100 day report card; Beschloss role in the 1960 Kennedy and Richard Nixon presidential campaign; Beschloss was four years old in 1960 and Nixon was scheduled to be in a motorcade in Peoria, Illinois near his home and republican families were urged to hold their children up as Nixon passed by in the motorcade; during the Nixon campaign, Nixon would say, "Elect me president and your children will not grow up under communism;" Nixon was not elected in 1960, but in 1968; 32 years later, Beschloss had lunch with Nixon in his home located in Bears Nest - Park Ridge, New Jersey; during this time, Nixon was meeting with historians trying rehabilitate himself (due to Watergate) with one person at a time; Nixon had historians over for lunch and historians too young to have had positions of the Watergate situation; Beschloss informed Nixon of the 1960 motorcade story and Nixon immediately changed the subject; Beschloss said that people tend to look at presidents during the first 100 days; presidents are measured by their first 100 days and Beschloss said, "This is not a very good thing;" John F. Kennedy stated as the president in 1960, "If you elect me, you will have leadership and 100 days of exciting legislation (civil rights, social programs, and the democratic agenda);" once Kennedy was elected in 1960, every reporter waited to see if Kennedy measured up to the 100 days; in his augural address, Kennedy denounced "all of his campaign promises would not be completed in the first 100 or 1,000 days of his presidency, but let us begin;" Kennedy isolated individuals by saying, "We are in the worst hour of communism;" moon landing mission; Kennedy dealt with the Soviet Union Chair, Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev during the Cold War; missiles in Cuba; compared George H.W. Bush's and George W. Bush's 100 days; and Lyndon B. Johnson wanted to get the 1964 Civil Rights Bill passed and called friend, Minority Leader Everett Dirksen (R-IL) for assistance. 00:30:28 David Gergen's comments included: discussed the Bay of Pigs (The Bay of Pigs Invasion was a failed military invasion of Cuba undertaken by the CIA-sponsored paramilitary group Brigade 2506 on April 17, 1961); Gergen became familiar with Elon because he worked for David Stanton Coltrane. Coltrane told a story of dating an Elon College woman in 1918; Coltrane dated an Elon woman (Lela Hayworth from Asheboro, North Carolina who graduate Elon College in 1918) and the dean of women allowed Elon women to be available to visit gentlemen callers from 1pm - 5pm on Saturday afternoons only (Hayworth and Coltrane were married and lived a long life together and this is how Gergen heard of Elon); Gergen stated, "It is extremely important to use the first 100 days as a president to get off the ground running, and be successful in the first 100 days and the early months that follow and it is difficult to succeed;" only three presidents got off to a great 100 day start "Roosevelt, Johnson, and Reagan; Gergen (worked for President Reagan) planned a manual for Reagan's first 100 days; Reagan concluded that if a theme was going to be set-up, you have to have focus and the success grew out the mandate; the first 100 days was when the president can make his biggest mistakes; Reagan got off to a very good start " his power began to disappear after about 30 " 40 days into his presidency; on day 70 of the Reagan Administration, Reagan went to the Washington Hilton and was shot by John Hinckley, Jr. on March 30, 1981; Reagan began his short statements (from the hospital) when the nation was focused on Reagan surviving and not on his political agenda ( Reagan statement examples: Reagan told the George Washington Hospital doctors, "I hope you all are Republicans" sent Nancy Reagan a note, "Oh Honey, I forgot to duck" "All in all, I'd rather be in Philadelphia" (old W.C. field line); the country saw Reagan by himself in the lonely moment between life and death as a humorist; Hemmingway quote, "Grace under Pressure" those Reagan 24 to 36 hours were the turning point for the Reagan Presidency because he was elevated in a way that nobody had been; during the shooting, Reagan showed a sense of courage by taking a bullet and walking away with a smile that convinced people that he could get 7 bills through Congress by the end of August in 1981; the assignation attempt was the high point of his presidency; Gergen stated, "It is harder to govern in Washington, D.C. today (2001) than it was in 1981 "20 years later the environment is much more poisonous and Washington, D. C. is more partisan and the culture has deteriorated, and a youthful generation has come in who are less about progress." Some names included: William (Bill) Friday, Alexander Meigs (Al) Haig Jr., and James Addison (Jim) Baker III.