In my moments of despair over the current political climate
and the Trump presidency, I have found it helpful to pore over the history of
our republic and its tenuous grip on political stability. In particular, the history of presidential
politics and the ragtag assortment of characters who ascended to the highest
office gives me some optimism for our odds of surviving the current inhabitant.
Here are some statistics:
We have had 45 presidents. Seven
died in office – four by assassination and three by illness. Poor William Henry Harrison only lasted a
month before he expired! Five of our
presidents were not elected at all, but ended up in office after either a death
or a resignation and didn’t generate enough enthusiasm to be elected for an
additional term.
Most of our 15 two term presidents were at the two ends of
our presidential history – five of the first seven presidents were two term,
and four of the last five. There was a
period from 1837 (end of Jackson’s terms) to 1912 (75 years!!) where only two
presidents, Lincoln and Grant, were elected twice to office. We all know what happened to Lincoln, and
Grant’s presidency was so marred by scandal that it has become a symbol of
corrupt government.
That 75 year period is characterized by three major themes –
(1) conflict over slavery and the civil war, (2) reconstruction, and (3) the
gilded age with its associated corruption and avarice. It is no wonder that every president was sent
packing after a single term in those turbulent times, which comprise a third of
our history!
Many of our presidents ended up as nominees by the slimmest
of margins in back room shenanigans that make Trump’s election almost look
respectable. These men, with a few
notable exceptions, were by and large not impressive characters. And the vitriol of the political processes
that placed them in office rival the worst of our current partisanship.
Even during the golden age of our founders – Washington,
Adams, Jefferson, Madison and Monroe – the sniping and slander of the political
process was astonishing. Duels were
fought and reputations destroyed as men sought to defame and discredit one
another over often very abstract differences in political philosophy. Jefferson and Adams didn’t speak to one
another for decades. Burr and Hamilton
dueled and neither fared well (Hamilton died from the duel and Burr was
disgraced and spent the rest of his life in rather strange escapades).
Donald Trump is not the first misfit to sit in the oval
office, though he might be at the very top in terms of the extent of his idiosyncrasies
and paranoia. Will he destroy the
republic? I believe it is doubtful. We have had worse overall circumstances than
the ones we face now. We can survive a
term of Donald Trump. even if it does make our skin crawl!
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