John Tyler

Trump Lusting For Greenland A Threat To NATO And International Law And Stability, And Must Be Vigorously Opposed!

Donald Trump, clearly imperialist oriented, as John Tyler, James K. Polk, and William McKinley were in the 19th century, is lusting for the United States to take over control of Greenland, which has been a territory controlled by Denmark for the past three centuries.

Greenland, primarily ice covered, and having only about 57,000 people, has been an area utilized for defense by both NATO and the United States, but now, Donald Trump is threatening military action if Denmark is unwilling to give up control of Greenland and allowing the purchase of that vast land of significant natural resources, including oil, gas, and rare earth minerals.

The thought that Trump would be reckless enough to destroy the NATO alliance is horrifying, and would only encourage further aggression by Vladimir Putin in Ukraine and neighboring nations that once were part of the Soviet Empire before 1989.

It would also encourage Chinese aggression against Taiwan, and also endanger Japan and South Korea.

The NATO alliance of 80 years would be eviscerated, and six major European nations—Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Poland—have issued a joint statement condemning any threat to Denmark and its Greenland territory.

However, Stephen Miller, a key Trump advisor, has made it clear that the Trump administration intends to gain control of Greenland, in a threatening and aggressive manner, in an interview on CNN with Jake Tapper.

America is faced with a leader who has become drunk with power and ego, and is ready to upend the international order, that was stabilized after World War II, and has promoted defensive alliances that have succeeded in avoiding another world war for 80 years.

Donald Trump is promoting an international crisis that is totally unnecessary, as Greenland has already had an American military base, and Denmark is not against further American presence, but they are not willing to have America have direct control by purchase, and are outraged, rightfully, by threats of military force, which would destroy NATO!

Trump Advocating “Sphere Of Influence”, Threatening Cuba, Colombia, Mexico, And Greenland!

Donald Trump is rapidly emerging as an old style American imperialist, in the mold of John Tyler, James K. Polk, and William McKinley, as he advocates that the United States is entitled to a “sphere of influence”, controlling and dominating the Western Hemisphere, including Latin America and Canada.

After the intervention in Venezuela, and the capture of the President and First Lady, bringing them to the US for prosecution on drug and weapons charges, he is now threatening action against Cuba, Colombia, Mexico, and Denmark’s control of Greenland.

In so doing, he is creating a crisis atmosphere, that the Monroe Doctrine, now renamed the “DONroe Doctrine”, allows America to dominate and dictate the future of the nations of the Western Hemisphere.

And he is clearly willing to threaten Denmark, a NATO ally, over Greenland, so the possibility of war between the US and its NATO allies is not beyond possibility, as horrifying as that is!

And what Trump is doing is encouraging Russia in its war against Ukraine, with Trump clearly willing to abandon Ukraine, who he has been extremely tough on in his dealings with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

And this also will encourage China to move ahead on attacking Taiwan, which it insists is part of the rights of China to control that island nation.

China’s aggressive nature is also a theoretical threat to South Korea and Japan as well.

With the new year 2026 just having begun, a major international crisis is looming, due to Donald Trump’s maniacal goals!

Past Presidential Disputes Never Anything Like Trump With His Predecessors!

Donald Trump’s incessant attacks on many of his predecessors in the White House is unparalleled in American history!

Trump has attacked over the years not only Barack Obama, but also Joe Biden, Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter, and both Presidents Bush in vehement and outrageous ways.

In the past, there were cases of “bad blood” between Presidents, but nothing on the scale of what Trump has done.

John Adams and Thomas Jefferson had strong criticism of each other, as well as Andrew Jackson and John Quincy Adams, and neither Adams attended the inauguration of his successor. But later, Adams and Jefferson revived their former friendship, with extensive letter correspondence over the last 14 years of their lives.

John Tyler, Franklin Pierce and James Buchanan were unhappy with Abraham Lincoln’s policies during the Civil War.

Andrew Johnson had issues with his successor, Ulysses S. Grant, and refused to attend Grant’s inauguration.

Theodore Roosevelt fought bitterly against his own annointed successor, William Howard Taft, and challenged him in 1912, and both TR and Wilson were at odds very often with Woodrow Wilson.

Herbert Hoover was very bitter in his loss to Franklin D. Rooosevelt, and during the terms that FDR was in office, probably more vehement than any other situation other than Trump, and FDR never invited Hoover to visit the White House.

Harry Truman was critical of Dwight D. Eisenhower to some extent, and he and Richard Nixon were dire enemies, until Nixon brought the Truman piano in the White House to the Truman Library in 1969.

Jimmy Carter tended to be critical of other Presidents, but in the case of Gerald Ford, they became the best of friends after both had left office. Carter remained a strong critic, but in a dignified manner, of George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump.

Despite past rivalries, both Bush Presidents and Bill Clinton became good friends in later years, and the same for Barack Obama and the two Bushes.

It is extremely inappropriate for the members of the “Presidents Club” to be lambasting others in that group, and it was refreshing that Carter and Ford became friends, and that the Bushes and Clinton were cooperative, as well as Obama with the Bushes.

But then, Donald Trump has destroyed the idea of camaraderie among the small, select group who have the opportunity to be President of the United States.

The Negativism About Kamala Harris As Potential President Is Unwarranted!

The propaganda being spewed against Vice President Kamala Harris as a potential successor to Joe Biden at some point in the next five years is totally unwarranted.

Vice Presidents, historically, have been panned as not acceptable alternatives, but that is simply political propaganda by the other side of the political spectrum.

John Tyler was the first Vice President to suffer from ridicule and criticism, when William Henry Harrison died after one month in office in 1841, and he was called “His Accidency” by critics who refused to accept that his succession to the Presidency was legitimate.

There was great trepidation when Harry Truman succeeded to the Presidency after the death of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1945, but Truman, despite bitter attacks, is now regarded as one of the top six Presidents.

No one wanted to imagine Lyndon B. Johnson as President in 1960, but he succeeded John F. Kennedy in 1963, and ended up being the best domestic President since FDR.

Gerald Ford is seen as having saved the nation by his leadership after the Watergate Scandal led to the resignation of Richard Nixon in 1974.

Kamala Harris has excellent credentials in her career of being San Francisco District Attorney from 2004-2011; California Attorney General from 2011-2017; US Senator from 2017-2021; and now Vice President for the past three plus years.

She has been a strong support for President Joe Biden, and is clearly more competent and experienced than many earlier Vice Presidents have been, including Spiro Agnew, Dan Quayle, and Mike Pence were.

Most of the opposition is sexist and racist against Harris, and it is disgusting that the right wing issues vicious attacks against her with no factual basis or justification.

If the need arose for Kamala Harris to become President, the nation would be in good hands, and would be well served!

APSA Presidential Greatness Poll 2024–The Bottom 10 Presidents

The American Political Science Association Presidential Greatness Poll 2024 makes clear that Donald Trump is the absolute bottom of all 45 Presidents, below James Buchanan, Andrew Johnson, Franklin Pierce, William Henry Harrison, and Warren G. Harding, all with very low total scores, but Trump with a final score of 10.92 as compared to Buchanan’s 16.71, Johnson’s 21.56, Pierce’s 24.6, Harrison’s 26.01, and Harding with 27.76.

The other four at the bottom, numbers 36 to 39 in order, are Herbert Hoover, John Tyler, Zachary Taylor, and Millard Fillmore.

Notice that of these 10 Presidents at the bottom, four are the Presidents preceding Abraham Lincoln and one following him.

The others are Harding and Hoover from the 1920s; and one month President William Henry Harrison and his successor John Tyler in the early 1840s, when the Presidency came under attack due to the first Vice President succeeding the President due to death of the incumbent.

And then there is Donald Trump, who ranks last for those participants in the poll who are identified as Democrats, Independents, Liberals, and Moderates; and even for those who identify themselves as Republicans or Conservatives, Trump only rises to number 43, with Buchanan and Johnson rated below Trump by Republicans, and Buchanan and Pierce rated below Trump by Conservatives.

Also note that the only Presidents of this group who served a full term were Franklin Pierce, James Buchanan, Herbert Hoover, and Donald Trump.

Impeachment Power Being Abused, When It Should Be Rarely Utilized!

The reckless move toward impeachment of President Joe Biden, and or Attorney General Merrick Garland or Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas by the small margin Republican majority in the House of Representatives, is an issue that brings to attention that the impeachment power has been horribly abused, when it should be rarely utilized!

To impeach a cabinet officer is extremely rare, and basically is a no brainer, as it would not lead to conviction in the US Senate.

To impeach a President was always rare, with the only exceptions being Andrew Johnson and later Richard Nixon, although Nixon resigned the Presidency before the whole House of Representatives could vote to impeach him on the charges brought by the majority of the House Judiciary Committee.

The Bill Clinton impeachment was purely political, while the two impeachment cases against Donald Trump were totally justifiable, and the proposal to “expunge” the impeachments is preposterous, and will not take away the stain and the history of the reality of Trump’s abuses in office!

Attempts to impeach the following Presidents went nowhere:

John Tyler
James Buchanan
Ulysses S. Grant
Grover Cleveland
Herbert Hoover
Harry Truman
Lyndon B. Johnson
Ronald Reagan
George H W Bush
George W. Bush
Barack Obama

Unless a case is clear, as with Nixon and Trump, there is NO justification for abusing the impeachment power!

The Historic Nature Of March 4 In Presidential History

March 4 is an historic date in Presidential history, as it was the Inauguration Day for every President through the first Inauguration of Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933.

It also was the beginning of the government under the Constitution in 1789, as Congress met for the first time.

The inauguration date was changed late in 1933 by the 20th Amendment, and January 20 became the new Inauguration Day, starting in 1937.

Every Inauguration Day was the day for every President except George Washington at the first inauguration, which was delayed to April 30, 1789 by Washington’s delay in arriving to New York; and also the succession to the Presidency of John Tyler in 1841, Millard Fillmore in 1850, Andrew Johnson in 1865, Chester Alan Arthur in 1881, Theodore Roosevelt first term in 1901, and Calvin Coolidge first term in 1923.

The most historic March 4 inaugurations are considered to be Thomas Jefferson in 1801, Andrew Jackson in 1829, Abraham Lincoln both in 1861 and 1865, Woodrow Wilson in 1913, and Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933, and Lincoln’s Second Inauguration and FDR’s First Inauguration are considered to have been the times of the two greatest Inaugural Addresses!

Joe Biden The Sixth Vice President To Be Elected President

Joe Biden is the sixth Vice President to be elected President.

Four of the six were elected from the Vice Presidency:

John Adams after George Washington 1796
Thomas Jefferson after John Adams 1800
Martin Van Buren after Andrew Jackson 1836
George H. W. Bush after Ronald Reagan 1988

Richard Nixon was elected eight years after losing the Presidency in 1960, and was the first Vice President to be elected President in 132 years.

And now, Joe Biden was elected President four years after leaving the Vice Presidency, not attempting to run due to the death of his son, Beau Biden.

Many have speculated that had Beau Biden not passed away, that Joe Biden would have competed with Hillary Clinton for the 2016 nomination, and might have defeated her, and gone on to win over Donald Trump.

Sadly, if that had happened, the nation would have avoided the horrible tragedy of Donald Trump and the damage he has perpetrated.

But at least, now, Joe Biden can right much of the wrong of Donald Trump, and he will carry on the Barack Obama tradition!

Additionally, four of the nine Vice Presidents who succeeded to the Presidency due to the demise of the President, went on to be elected to a full term—Theodore Roosevelt in 1904, Calvin Coolidge in 1924, Harry Truman in 1948, and Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964.

The other five Vice Presidents who succeeded to the Presidency were not elected on their own—John Tyler, Millard Fillmore, Andrew Johnson, Chester Alan Arthur, and Gerald Ford, who succeeded Richard Nixon after his resignation, and was the only Vice President not elected to either the Vice Presidency or the Presidency, as he lost to Jimmy Carter for a full term in 1976.

Eleven Presidents With Compassion And Empathy, And Eleven Presidents Who Had Neither

Since today is Presidents Day, this author and blogger is posting two entries after the one yesterday, to commemorate the holiday.

So here is the second entry today, and the third and last entry to celebrate Presidents Day!

The most important traits that any President should have, but many do not, is compassion and empathy.

There are Presidents who have compassion and empathy as very clear parts of their personalities, and there are those who have absolutely no such compassion or empathy, making them uncaring and harsh in personality.

A list of eleven Presidents WITH compassion and empathy would include the following in chronological order:

John Quincy Adams

Abraham Lincoln

James A. Garfield

Theodore Roosevelt

Franklin D. Roosevelt

Harry Truman

John F. Kennedy

Lyndon B. Johnson

Jimmy Carter

Bill Clinton

Barack Obama

Those eleven Presidents who most lacked compassion and empathy chronologically would include:

John Adams

Thomas Jefferson

Andrew Jackson

John Tyler

Andrew Johnson

Woodrow Wilson

Herbert Hoover

Richard Nixon

Ronald Reagan

George W. Bush

Donald Trump

Debate and discussion on this and the earlier two entries is welcome!

Two Presidents (John Tyler And Richard Nixon)Who Could Have Faced Prosecution, And Then Donald Trump

Two past Presidents could have faced prosecution, and now, Donald Trump faces the likelihood of prosecution when he leaves the Presidency.

John Tyler, (1841-1845), gave up his US citizenship when he declared his loyalty to the Confederate States of America in 1861 at the beginning of the Civil War. He became a member of the Provisional Confederate Congress in that year, voted for secession at the Virginia Secession Convention, and was elected to the Confederate House of Representatives, but died in February 1862 before the opening session of that legislative body.

Had he lived through the Civil War, Tyler might have faced treason charges, and be forced to face trial and possible conviction and imprisonment. As it was, the US government did not officially recognize his passing, and the flag did not fly at half staff, as it has for every Presidential death and funeral, except for Tyler. He was buried with a Confederate flag, rather than an American flag, over his casket

Richard Nixon (1969-1974) was the second President who could have faced prosecution and possible conviction and imprisonment as someone who had obstructed justice and abused power, and engaged in massive corruption in office. The fact of his resignation in August 1974 did not bar that possibility, but his successor, President Gerald Ford pardoned him from any prosecution in September 1974, a factor in Ford’s failure to be elected to a full term in 1976.

The obstruction of justice and abuse of power of Nixon has been revived due to the tumult surrounding the possible impeachment moves by Democrats in the House of Representatives against Donald Trump. By comparison, many observers see Nixon as not as evil as Trump.

Donald Trump will likely face prosecution when he leaves office in 2021, although if he wins a second term, he would likely prevent such action by the statute of limitations on prosecution. Of course, he could also be pardoned from any prosecution by a future President, so one has to wonder if Trump will be held accountable for Russian collusion, obstruction of justice, and abuse of power, crimes seen by his critics as far worse than anything Nixon or Tyler did in the Presidency.