John Adams

President Vs. President In Presidential Elections: 14 Times and 20 Presidents

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On George Washington’s actual birthday, 280 years ago (1732), it is appropriate to ask how many times has there been a Presidential election in which two Presidents opposed each other?

The answer is 14 times, and a total of 20 Presidents have competed against a fellow Oval Office occupant, present or future!

Here are the details:

Presidential Elections of 1796 and 1800–John Adams vs Thomas Jefferson, with Adams first winning, and then Jefferson.

Presidential Elections Of 1824 and 1828–John Quincy Adams vs Andrew Jackson, with Adams first winning (even though behind Jackson in popular votes), and then Jackson.

Presidential Elections of 1836 and 1840–Martin Van Buren vs William Henry Harrison, with Van Buren first winning, and then Harrison.

Presidential Elections of 1888 and 1892–Benjamin Harrison vs Grover Cleveland, with Harrison first winning (even though behind Cleveland in popular votes), and then Cleveland.

Presidential Election Of 1912–the only time three Presidents, past, present and future, ran against each other, with Woodrow Wilson defeating President William Howard Taft and former President Theodore Roosevelt (running on a third party line, the Progressive Party).

Presidential Election of 1932–Herbert Hoover vs Franklin D. Roosevelt, with FDR winning.

Presidential Election of 1960–John F. Kennedy vs Richard Nixon, with JFK winning, but Nixon later winning the Presidency in 1968.

Presidential Election of 1976–Jimmy Carter vs Gerald Ford, with Carter defeating President Ford.

Presidential Election of 1980–President Jimmy Carter vs Ronald Reagan, with Reagan defeating President Carter.

Presidential Election Of 1992–President George H. W. Bush vs Bill Clinton, with Clinton defeating President Bush.

Of these 20 Presidents, only Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton–a total of five–never lost to their Presidential competitor, although it could be pointed out that FDR lost the Vice Presidency in 1920, a race that Warren G. Harding won for the White House, and that Ronald Reagan lost the Republican nomination for President to Gerald Ford in 1976!

So another trivia contest for those who are interested!

The Ten Most Important Presidential Elections In American History

Ronald 6 Comments

With Presidents Day coming on Monday, this is a good time to reflect on the 56 Presidential elections that this country has had, and to judge which ten are the most significant, path breaking elections.

Of course, there can be debate and disputes as to the judgment of this author and blogger, but here goes, in chronological order.

Presidential Election of 1789–the selection by the Electoral College of our first President, George Washington, the absolutely right choice for the beginning of our nation under the Constitution, as Washington set important precedents for the future, and had no ambition to grab power long term.

Presidential Election Of 1800–the first time we had an opposition party come to power with grace, and without violence, setting a standard for the future, as Thomas Jefferson defeated John Adams, and the dispute between him and Vice President Aaron Burr, who claimed a tie in the Electoral College, was settled peacefully as well, and caused a modifying of the Electoral College process.

The Presidential Election of 1828–the first one decided by popular vote synchronizing with the electoral vote, and giving the country a so called “Common Man” in the Presidency, Andrew Jackson, representing city workers and frontiersmen alike.

Presidential Election of 1860–leading to the election of Abraham Lincoln, who set out to preserve the Union at all costs, and wielded power in a controversial, but thoughtfully considered way, through four years of the Civil War.

Presidential Election Of 1912–the triumph of progressivism, the recognition that government’s role had been changed irrevocably in a country that had been transformed from an agricultural to an industrial nation, had tripled in population since the Civil War, had become a multi ethnic nation, and had recognized the need for the regulation of capitalism in the public good, as well as political reforms and social justice. And it was the most exciting election, as three Presidents, past (Teddy Roosevelt), present (William Howard Taft), and future (Woodrow Wilson) competed against each other.

Presidential Election Of 1932–the triumph of Franklin D. Roosevelt at the worst moments of the Great Depression, offering hope and action (the New Deal) to revive the spirits of the nation, and have the American people believe in the future. Without his victory, there might have been social revolution and bloodshed on a large scale.

Presidential Election of 1960–witnessing the first Catholic President elected (John F. Kennedy) and the promotion of idealism and a new beginning in the advancement of social justice and political reform.

Presidential Election Of 1964–the victory of liberalism with the election of Lyndon B. Johnson, and the defeat of Barry Goldwater and conservatism, therefore insuring the continuation of the New Deal, and the evolution of the Great Society.

Presidential Election Of 1980–seeing the triumph of conservatism under Ronald Reagan, with some modifications of the New Deal and Great Society, and great speeches, but not the conservative “heaven” that many imagine it was, but making Reagan a national icon like Washington, Lincoln and FDR.

Presidential Election Of 2008–witnessing the first African American President (Barack Obama), and his work to provide health care reform, preserve the New Deal and Great Society, and overcome the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression.

The author welcomes discussion and debate on this post!

One Term Presidencies: Seven Significant Leaders Not Appreciated

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Tomorrow marks one year to the inauguration of the next President of the United States, and the question arises whether Barack Obama will become another one term President.

Historically, those who have been one term Presidents and lost re-election have tended to go down in history as “losers”, “failures”, and as “insignificant” in American history.

But nothing could be further from the truth. Consider the following cases:

John Adams–one of the most significant Founding Fathers in the Revolution and Federalist Eras, but defeated by Thomas Jefferson in the first political party struggle.

John Quincy Adams–brilliant in diplomacy before his Presidency as one of our greatest Secretaries of State, and exceptional as a Congressman for nearly 18 years after his Presidency, fighting against the evil of slavery, but losing to Andrew Jackson.

William Howard Taft–much underrated President who also served later as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, but losing to Woodrow Wilson, and even ending up behind his promoter, Theodore Roosevelt, who ran on a third party line, the Progressive Party, the greatest third party performance in American history.

Herbert Hoover–acknowledged as great humanitarian as aide to Woodrow Wilson during World War I, and as Secretary of Commerce under Warren G. Harding and Calvin Coolidge, but paralyzed by the Great Depression and slow to react to the massive crisis it presented.

Jimmy Carter–Despite major accomplishments in office, particularly in foreign policy, lost reelection to Ronald Reagan because of the Iranian hostage crisis, but pursued commitment to fighting disease and promoted diplomacy and free elections after his Presidency, and won the Nobel Peace Prize.

George H. W. Bush–very talented as Ambassador to China, United Nations Ambassador, and head of the Central Intelligence Agency before his Presidency, but despite his victory in the Gulf War, he was defeated due to the economic recession and the third party candidacy of Ross Perot, and lost to Bill Clinton.

Another one term President who chose NOT to run for re-election, of course, had a very successful term of office. James K. Polk gained the Oregon Treaty with Great Britain, giving America the Pacific Northwest states, and waged war with Mexico, gaining California and the Southwest states. Worn out by his labors, he chose not to run, and died 103 days after retirement, the shortest retirement period of any President in American history.

So the whole concept that one term Presidents do not matter is shown to be totally incorrect.

The “Learned” Presidents: Men Of Great Intellect!

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In today’s America, we see glorification of presidential candidates who comes across as lacking in knowledge and insights, people who represent ignorance of history and science, who are seen as the “average American”, as if that is what we need in the White House! What else explains Sarah Palin, Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Rick Santorum and others who are constantly displaying their lack of intellect?

In the past, we had our share of ignorant Presidents, but we also had a great number of “learned” Presidents, one out of three, who made the office proud with their intellect and insights. It did not, of course, guarantee success in all of their activities as President, but we could feel satisfied that we had brilliant men who represented a model of what America should strive for: intellectual curiosity and inquiry and desire for learning, something looked down upon today, a very regrettable development.

So who are the “learned” Presidents?

John Adams
Thomas Jefferson
James Madison
John Quincy Adams
James Garfield (more potentially, because of assassination within months of taking the oath of office)
Theodore Roosevelt
William Howard Taft
Woodrow Wilson
Herbert Hoover
Richard Nixon
Jimmy Carter
Bill Clinton
Barack Obama

The debate about the connection between intellect and success will go on, as it is well known that there is considerable debate about the effectiveness and success of Madison, Taft, Hoover, Nixon, and Carter, at the least. And many would debate Wilson and Clinton as well.

But this list demonstrates, if nothing else, that we have some “scholars” in the White House, and that we should want the “best and the brightest” in the Oval Office, to set a model for the nation and its future!

The 87th Birthday of Jimmy Carter: A Look Back At His Much Maligned Presidency!

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Today is the 87th birthday of former President Jimmy Carter, and it is proper to send good wishes to him!

By reaching the age of 87, and in good health, Carter becomes the seventh President to reach that advanced age, with former President George H. W. Bush having reached that pinnacle on June 12 of this year.

Other than the first Bush, only Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan (both 93), John Adams and Herbert Hoover (both 90) and Harry Truman (88) have lived longer.

Jimmy Carter has also had a longer retirement after his Presidency than anyone except Herbert Hoover, and will pass him in longevity in retirement in less than a year, on September 8, 2012.

Jimmy Carter has been much ridiculed, lambasted, and condemned by his critics, and this post is not an attempt to deny the weaknesses and mistakes of his Presidency. Carter has learned how to accept the reality that he is shown little respect for his virtues and accomplishments, with a lot of it due to his defeat for reelection in 1980 by the charismatic Ronald Reagan, who is often now seen as a deity in many circles. There is the reality that IF a President loses reelection, his reputation in history suffers dramatically, no matter what he had achieved in office.

But while there is much controversy over Carter’s Presidency, on his birthday, it is worth it to point out his major successes in office.

1. Carter was able to negotiate the impossible–an agreement between Egypt and Israel, the Camp David Accords, which brought peace, recognition, and security for Israel for the past third of a century.

2. Carter also negotiated the Panama Canal Treaty, much berated at the time, and causing loss of seats for the Democrats and assisting the conservative takeover, but in retrospect, one realizes that the treaty was not harmful and against our national security, but actually helped to improve relations with Latin America, and is now seen as non controversial a third of a century later.

3. Carter’s promotion of human rights as a major foreign policy goal was ridiculed by conservatives and Ronald Reagan, but later it turned out that future Presidents, all of them, utilized the concept in some form as part of their foreign policy goals.

4. Carter made us aware of the energy crisis, and the need to expand energy resources beyond oil, and while it has not been pursued as he emphasized by later Presidents, it is clear that Carter was correct in his emphasis on alternative sources of energy being essential for America’s future.

5. Jimmy Carter had the best one term environmental record of any President, greatly expanding national parks and forest land, and focusing on the environment as an issue in a very admirable manner.

6. Carter appointed more minorities to appointed positions than any President before him, and fully backed affirmative action, which became a controversy during his Presidency due to the Bakke case.

7. Three new cabinet agencies were started during his Presidency, although now under attack by conservatives in 2011–Department of Education, Department of Health and Human Services, and Department of Energy.

8. Carter presided over the smallest increase in the national debt during his administration, attempting to have very tightly negotiated budgets, although all were with deficits.

9. Carter issued an executive order on his first day in office, granting amnesty to Vietnam draft evaders, which however caused a rift with military supporters who opposed this courageous act.

10. Carter negotiated the SALT 2 (Strategic Arms Limitation) Treaty with Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev, which was never ratified by the US Senate because of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, but its details were obeyed by both sides despite the rejection of the agreement in the Senate.

It would be easy to list the faults and shortcomings of Jimmy Carter, and as the years go by, and eventually Carter passes from the scene, there will be much more research done on him and his Presidency. When that happens, it is likely that a reassessment of Carter in a much more sympathetic manner, will occur.

For now, Mr. President, Happy Birthday and many more!

213th Anniversary Of Infamous Sedition Act Of 1798: First Violation Of Civil Liberties In American History!

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On this day in 1798, the Congress passed and President John Adams signed the Sedition Act, curtailing freedom of speech under the First Amendment, leading to prosecution of journalists and political critics, including a sitting member of Congress.

Repealed under Thomas Jefferson, this Sedition Act remains a black mark on American history as the first violation by the US government against the First Amendment, unfortunately followed by other such violations, including the Sedition Act of 1918 under President Woodrow Wilson, and the USA Patriot Act under President George W. Bush in 2001.

This does not include other violations of civil liberties under numerous Presidents, including Abraham Lincoln in the Civil War, Franklin D. Roosevelt in the Second World War, and Harry Truman in the Cold War era, among others.

This anniversary is a reminder that the battle for the First Amendment remains one that must be continually fought!

Michele Bachmann As A “Serious” Candidate For President?

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Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann has emerged as a “serious” candidate for the Republican nomination for President in 2012, based on her performance in the New Hampshire Republican Presidential debate two weeks ago.

With a weak GOP field, with no one else at this point inspiring, Bachmann comes across as charismatic, attractive, and with recognition that she really is NOT another Sarah Palin, but rather is a woman with real credentials as an attorney and an actual public record to assess.

Bachmann is very appealing to social conservatives, the Tea Party crowd, and fiscal conservatives, and she comes across to the average American as someone to watch.

But despite the above statements about Bachmann, she also comes across as highly ignorant in so many ways, and with views on social and economic issues that are literally scary!

Her ignorance has been shown in many ways, including a couple of months ago when she was referring to Lexington and Concord from the American Revolution being in New Hampshire, rather than Massachusetts.

Now, just yesterday and this morning, Bachmann has referred to her birthplace–Waterloo, Iowa– as the birthplace of John Wayne, the actor, rather than the birthplace of John Wayne Gacy, the serial killer!

She has also referred to John Quincy Adams, the sixth American President, as having been deeply involved in the American Revolutionary era, even though Adams was only NINE years old in the year of the Declaration of Independence, and 14 when the war ended, although at that young age, he did accompany his father, John Adams, to the peace negotiations in Paris for the Revolutionary War!

Bachmann is one gaffe after another, and while it is understandable that anyone can make mistakes, Bachmann has a history of showing ignorance often, and her view of economic, social and world issues is literally terrifying to thoughtful people!

Being a “true believer” motivated by evangelical Christianity makes one believe that Bachmann, were she to win the nomination of her party and the election, would be a total tragedy to American traditions and history, and a barrier to American progress!

In Times Of Disillusionment About Government, Something To Be Proud Of!

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In this time, when disillusionment about our national government is at its peak, it is nice to stop and reflect about something government does that we can all be proud of!

One might ask: What can that possibly be? The answer is today is the 211th anniversary of the creation of the Library of Congress, our national library in Washington, DC, which holds our most significant national treasures, along with the Smithsonian Institution and the National Archives!

Approved under John Adams for its first appropriation, the Thomas Jefferson personal library became the basis of much of the early library holdings.

Despite two major fires in the War of 1812 by the British and in the 1850s by pure coincidence, the library continued to grow, and is considered the largest library in the world, as well as the national library of the United States, containing the manuscript collections of most of the Presidents through Calvin Coolidge, as well as thousands of other famous Americans in all fields of endeavor.

Additionally, more than 17 million books are contained within the Library, which has three major buildings, and includes all published monographs in the nation, as well as many from overseas, with all published books having a Library of Congress number.

Also, there are millions of maps, photographs, audio and video recordings, prints, and drawings within the various departments of the Library of Congress, and the Congressional Research Service does heavy duty work for all members of the legislative branch.

Some of the best days of the author’s life were spent years ago doing research in the Library of Congress, spending many months researching for eight hours a day for the book he published, with the hours going by very quickly, often forgetting lunch, being fascinated by the documents and manuscripts one was holding in his own hand!

The quest for knowledge goes on, and it is the best part of what American government does, and as one thinks about the problems and crises of the past, it gives one hope that somehow we will deal with the future as we coped with the past!

In any case, knowledge is power, and one must NEVER forget that!

A Revelation: The Founding Fathers Supported National Health Care For The Merchant Marine Sailors In 1798!

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The claim by Tea Party activists and Republicans and conservatives that the Constitution does not allow national health care has been shown to be incorrect by the revelation that in 1798, the Founding Fathers passed legislation through Congress, signed by President John Adams, that provided for mandatory health care coverage on merchant marine sailors, paid for by a one percent tax on their incomes, in order to protect their health from illness and injuries, and therefore providing enough of a work force for the all important activity of foreign commerce!

Federal maritime hospitals were built in all the major American ports to provide medical services, and they were financed by the mandatory health care tax on the sailors!

Eventually, the service was expanded to cover commerce and ships on the Mississippi River and the Ohio River. Over time, it became the Public Health Service, which is still in existence today!

What the US government did in the 1790s is the method used by all European democratic governments today to insure that all citizens have health care, including the mandated taxes for their own good, to insure health care, rather than wait for an emergency and then deny health care to millions, or do it expensively at the cost of all taxpayers in emergency rooms!

So it turns out that the Founding Fathers were indeed “socialists” in the sense they mandated that people in the merchant marine had to take responsibility for their own health care and contribute to the cost through mandated taxes!

The author wishes to acknowledge that this tidbit of information came to him through the discovery on line of this revelation by his son, David Feinman, a true “chip off the old block” in so many ways! 🙂 Thanks, Dave! 🙂

Total Ignorance About American History: Michele Bachmann, Pat Buchanan And Other Republicans! :(

Ronald 2 Comments

Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann is demonstrating her total ignorance of American history and the history of her Republican party, based on the text of her speech to be delivered tonight after President Obama’s State of the Union Address!

She says slavery was ended by the Founding Fathers, showing she is unaware of the role of her Republican Party, Abraham Lincoln, and the Civil War in ending slavery. She is, as always, demonstrating her total lack of knowledge of the American past and the American Constitution, joining many other Republicans, including Sarah Palin, in this regard! 🙁

But now, Pat Buchanan, former challenger for the Presidency against George HW Bush in 1992, and running for President as a third party party candidate in 2000, has also demonstrated his lack of knowledge, by asserting there were more slaves in the Union states that had slaves (Maryland, Delaware, Kentucky, Missouri) than in any of the Confederate States that broke away from the Union! He also said incorrectly that George Washington freed his slaves after his wife died, but the reality is that his wife outlived him by over two years! 🙁

The ignorance and lack of knowledge of these and other Republican leaders is shocking and reprehensible! 🙁

The Founding Fathers (Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Madison, Hamilton, Franklin) and the statesmen of the pre Civil War era (Daniel Webster, Henry Clay, Stephen Douglas, William Seward, Charles Sumner, Abraham Lincoln) would be shocked and mortified if they came back today and witnessed the TOTAL STUPIDITY AND IGNORANCE of many GOP leaders, and Republicans of the Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, and Dwight D. Eisenhower era would also be ashamed of what their party has become: a party without legitimacy, ethics, character, and morality! 🙁