Ulysses S. Grant

Calvin Coolidge Became the 30th President A Century Ago!

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Precisely a century ago, Vice President Calvin Coolidge succeeded to the Presidency upon the death of President Warren G. Harding.

Coolidge would be shocked to see how the Presidency has been transformed since his time, as he was a believer in a limited Presidency, and is seen as the most conservative President of the 20th century, with the possible exception of Ronald Reagan, who greatly admired him.

Coolidge would have been opposed to the New Deal of Franklin D. Roosevelt, and the Great Society of Lyndon B. Johnson, based on his conservative, small government philosophy.

But he also would have been greatly disturbed by the corruption of Richard Nixon and Donald Trump, as his administration moved to prosecute the corruption of his predecessor, who had sadly presided over the most political corruption since Ulysses S. Grant.

It has often been said that Calvin Coolidge would have fit in better in the 19th century, with John Quincy Adams fitting in better a century later in Coolidge’s place!

We can also say he most certainly would not have fitted well in the succession of Republican Chief Executives, particularly Nixon and Trump!

Centennial Of Warren G. Harding’s Death, And Accession Of Calvin Coolidge Coming Up On August 2-3!

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The centennial of the death of President Warren G. Harding is arriving on Wednesday, August 2, with Harding passing away of natural causes in San Francisco, shocking the nation, as Harding was on the way to finishing a Western tour, which had included visiting the territory of Alaska.

The swearing in of President Calvin Coolidge took place in the early morning hours on August 3, with Coolidge being sworn in at his father’s homestead in Vermont, where Coolidge was visiting, and with his father, a local justice of the peace, swearing in his son, before he returned to Washington DC, and was again sworn in later in the day.

This was the sixth time a President had died in office, and was the second time that the Vice President who succeeded to the Presidency went on to win a full term of office in 1924, following Theodore Roosevelt, who succeeded the assasinated William McKinley in 1901, and went on to win a full term in 1904.

Harding is regarded by scholars as a failed President, with massive scandals occurring, similar to those of a half century earlier under President Ulysses S. Grant in the 1870s. While he had some successes, he is ranked in the bottom five of all Presidents, in the same category as Andrew Johnson, James Buchanan, Donald Trump, and Franklin Pierce.

Calvin Coolidge is perceived as higher in ranking, generally at the top of the bottom third of Presidents, but shortly after he left office, the Great Depression occurred, and his administration is perceived as having had major negative impact on the economy which led to the Crash on Wall Street seven months after his retirement.

Certainly, the Presidency is seen as having declined in the 1920s, after the Progressive Era of Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and Woodrow Wilson, and seeing rising fortunes after Herbert Hoover, with the coming to the Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1932 Presidential election.

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

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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!

Ulysses S. Grant “Arrested” While President, So Trump Would NOT Be The First!

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In the midst of the hoopla around Donald Trump, that he might soon face arrest, the historical reality is that he would not be the first President to be arrested.

Ulysses S. Grant, the 18th President (1869-1877) was arrested in the nation’s capital in 1872 for speeding his horse and carriage.

A black police officer, William West, who had fought in the Civil War, was the police officer who arrested Grant, and his horse and carriage were impounded, and Grant had to walk back to the White House, and pay a small fine!

There were other incidents of Grant racing his horse and carriage, and with additional fines.

Of course, the possible arrest and prosecution of Donald Trump on various issues and matters is far greater and more significant than Grant’s racing issues with his horses and carriage one hundred fifty years ago!

Interesting Survey Of People Honored By US Monuments, From The Washington Post

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The Washington Post has published an interesting survey of people honored by US Monuments, and there are many surprises in the survey.

Eleven Presidents are in the top 50 figures represented in memorials, with George Washington and Abraham Lincoln being the top two of the fifty listed.

Also listed at number 9 is John F. Kennedy; number 10 is Thomas Jefferson; and number 11 is Ulysses S. Grant.

Andrew Jackson is number 15, a three way tie with Theodore Roosevelt and William McKinley.

Dwight D. Eisenhower and Franklin D. Roosevelt tie at 32nd.

Finally, James A. Garfield is in a four way tie at number 47 with three non Presidents.

Interestingly, NOT on the list are such Presidents as Woodrow Wilson, Harry Truman, Lyndon B. Johnson, or Ronald Reagan.

Some religious figures, native Americans, and African Americans (Martin Luther King (4th), Harriet Tubman (24th), Frederick Douglass (29th)) are also represented, as are a number of individuals who are not at all related to American history, including Christopher Columbus, most notably in third place with 149!

Confederate leaders are also represented, including Robert E. Lee, Jefferson Davis, and Stonewall Jackson.

Other well known Americans include the following: Benjamin Franklin at number 8; Alexander Hamilton tied with two others at number 26; and Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall in a six way tie at number 41.

Possibility That Neither Donald Trump Nor Joe Biden Will Be On Presidential Ballot In 2024

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The possibility now exists that neither Donald Trump nor Joe Biden will be on the Presidential ballot in 2024.

There are good reasons for this scenario.

Joe Biden would be 82 a few weeks after the Presidential Election of 2024, and Donald Trump would be past 78 and a half at the time of the inauguration, making both of them the oldest Presidential contenders in American history.

Donald Trump faces multiple lawsuits, and the strong potential for prosecution, both criminal and civil, which could harm any chance of him being the Republican nominee.

And there are many conservatives and Republicans who would want to be rid of the menace of Donald Trump.

Joe Biden’s age, and the hints of possible cognitive tests being bandied about by critics, makes it harder for him to consider a second term, along with all of the problems he is dealing with, which might undermine his future, particularly if the Democrats lose the House of Representatives, and even, potentially, the US Senate.

The feeling of a fresh start, and younger candidates is very appealing to many Americans.

If it turns out that neither Trump nor Biden, and even Vice Presidents Mike Pence and Kamala Harris, are passed by as alternatives, which could be a possibility, then we would have a scenario rarely seen in US history, of Presidential tickets that have neither the President nor Vice President having been nominated for either office.

The only elections since 1824 where no one nominated was ever on a Presidential ballot before being chosen are the following 12 elections out of a total of 50 elections:

1844 election of James K. Polk
1852 election of Franklin Pierce
1868 election of Ulysses S. Grant
1876 election of Rutherford B. Hayes
1880 election of James A. Garfield
1884 election of Grover Cleveland
1896 election of William McKinley
1920 election of Warren G. Harding
1928 election of Herbert Hoover
1952 election of Dwight D. Eisenhower
2008 election of Barack Obama
2016 election of Donald Trump

The Afghanistan Crisis Likely Insures A One Term Joe Biden Presidency

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Only about one of every three Presidents historically (14 of 44) through Inauguration Day 2021 has served two terms:

George Washington
Thomas Jefferson
James Madison
James Monroe
Andrew Jackson
Ulysses S. Grant
Grover Cleveland
Woodrow Wilson
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Ronald Reagan
Bill Clinton
George W. Bush
Barack Obama

Additionally, 7 others served more than one term, but not two complete terms:

Abraham Lincoln
William McKinley
Theodore Roosevelt
Calvin Coolidge
Harry Truman
Lyndon B. Johnson
Richard Nixon

And only Lincoln, McKinley, and Nixon were actually elected to two terms, so a total of 17 Presidents elected twice, while TR, Coolidge, Truman, and Johnson succeeded after deaths of their predecessor, and were only elected once to the Presidency.

So a total of 21 Presidents served more than four years, although Lincoln and McKinley for just a few months more, and Coolidge, Johnson and Nixon only months more than a year. So only TR and Truman were very close to two complete terms. Ultimately, 16 out of 44 basically served two terms.

Now we can add Joe Biden to the list of those who will not serve two terms or even be elected a second time, as with the Afghanistan debacle, it seems certain that he will not run again in 2024!

Barack Obama Turns 60, And Is Rated In Top Ten Of Presidents By C SPAN Historians’ Survey!

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Today is the 60th birthday of President Barack Obama, and this highly honored and successful President in many ways is able to celebrate his historical reputation.

Obama is the 5th youngest President at inauguration at age 47, with only Theodore Roosevelt (42), John F. Kennedy (43), Bill Clinton (46), and Ulysses S. Grant (46) younger than Obama was at the time of inauguration.

The C Span Historians’ Survey of 2021 rates Obama overall as Number 10, after having been Number 12 in the C Span Historians’ Survey of 2017!

The Civil War “Ended” 156 Years Ago Today, But Actually Has Never “Ended”!

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It has been 156 years since the Civil War ended officially, with General Robert E. Lee surrendering at Appomattox Court House in Virginia to General Ulysses S. Grant.

It took until the early 20th century for a sense of nationalism to lead to the construction of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC.

But the South never truly changed, and still has not even now in 2021.

They still promote racism, white supremacy, antisemitism, anti labor rights, nativism, and evoke hypocritical belief in their own version of Christianity.

For a century, it was the Democratic Party spewing forth these ugly views in the South, and now it is the Republican Party, since the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Of course, not all Southerners are oriented toward hate and narrow mindedness, and many Northerners have moved to the South and made the South become more cosmopolitan.

But rural Southerners still think they are in the Civil War Era, and are gaining the backing of the Republican Party in trying to limit the voting rights of people of color, and making even white workers to be subjected to limits on their ability to advance and move ahead!

Lawsuit Against Donald Trump And Rudy Giuliani And Right Wing Hate Groups Under Ku Klux Klan Act Of 1871

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A lawsuit against Donald Trump, Rudy Guiliani, and two right wing hate groups has been filed in court under the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871, passed to deal with domestic terrorism in the South during Reconstruction after the Civil War.

This law was passed and signed into law by President Ulysses S. Grant, and now, the NAACP and Homeland Security Committee Chairman Bennie Thompson of Mississippi is taking the fight to hold Trump, Guiliani and the terrorist groups in the Capitol Insurrection of January 6, 2021 accountable under criminal law.

So these two racist demagogues will face trial and prosecution for their inciting the attack that caused the death of seven people, including three Capitol Hill Officers, and caused great damage to the Capitol Building, the symbol of American democracy!

And every member of Congress who participated in the scam about a corrupt Presidential Election of 2020 must also face similar lawsuits and trials, including Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, who claims that there was no Insurrection on January 6, 2021. For trying to promote that fake news alone, Johnson should be punished with expulsion and a prison term, as a disgrace to his state and to the institution of the US Senate!