Out of curiousity, how do you know all of this? Do you just thoroughly research the people as they are mentioned, or are you already familiar with most of them? You seem to have an unmatched knowledge of American political history--is it a part of your career?
Heh, no, I'm a rank amateur compared to Michael Barone. I just do this as a hobby, as I'm not sure how I could ever make $$ off of it. I'm well-versed enough on the basics of many of these folks, but usually when I write up something, I double check dates or figures to make sure there aren't errors. I used Stafford's passing as an opportunity to talk about the unsung giant, Mrs. Bailey.
She deserves a lot more respect and attention for her contributions. I left out in my prior post that she had links from Charles Evans Hughes clear up to Ronald Reagan, an astonishing legacy (Hughes, as Chief Justice, approved her to argue before the U.S. Supreme Court in 1931, one source saying she was the first woman to do so; and she was personally feted by Reagan in the '70s for her contributions to the GOP and Conservatism). Had she been born a generation later, Mrs. Bailey would've been material for the Supreme Court or the Presidency (she was certainly worthy even in her own time !).