Though James Polk is one of our most unpopular presidents, historians rank him as one of the greatest presidents in America because, within a four year period he added California, new Mexico, Texas and most of the Oregon territory to the united states, greatly reduced tariffs, and oversaw the opening of the U.S. Naval Academy. Why if historians have Polk ranked as one of the greatest presidents, is he so unpopular? And how is he so much better then Theodore Roosevelt?
In addition to being ranked the greatest president, Polk was also the youngest, most successful presidential candidate up to that time. In essence, James Polk accomplished virtually all that he had pledged to the American people. He won a war, expanded the nation, cut tariffs, reestablished an independent treasury, and preserved an uneasy balance within the union. Polk was undeniably effective in his presidential efforts.
Despite his overwhelming accomplishments Polk is not cherished in the national memorial for a number of reasons. First, the Mexican War, while a military success, was debatable in its day. Many, including Whigs like Abraham Lincoln, painted it as an aggressive war waged to expand the political power of slavery. The history that followed gives way to those views. Secondly, we cannot avoid placing his tenure in the context of the Civil War that followed twelve years later. Territory gained from Mexico served to heighten national tensions regarding the expansion of slavery, thus paving the road
The most significant event of Polk’s administration was the Mexican War: a controversial event which fit neatly with Polk’s expansionist policies. During Polk’s term, the Oregon issue was settled, and for the first time the United States extended to the Pacific Ocean. Polk served only one term, but he is considered to have been one of the more aggressively productive men to have held office.
Throughout his 12-year presidency, Franklin Delano Roosevelt showed himself to be a politician of the highest caliber. He displayed a positive spirit, a widespread concern for the people, and an unmatched willpower in pushing through his most important policies and making them historic successes. To conclude, FDR was a remarkable and extremely successful president who is one of the most worthy to receive such an honor as being referred to as our best president
from 1845-1849. Today, Baucom-Huffman, a content developer for the Public Broadcasting Service, consistently ranks Polk as one of the greatest presidents of the United States, stating that he is most commonly known for his leadership during the Mexican-American War, and the influence he had on the president’s executive power as Commander-in-Chief (Baucom-Huffman).
This is probably the biggest reason why most people consider his presidency a failure, and why many other people don’t even know who he is. Although he didn’t make a big impact, have a party, or a good reputation, John Tyler still got a couple things done in office as chief executive. In 1841, Tyler signed the Pre-Emption Act, that boosted Western settlement because it allowed a person to stake a claim on 160 acres of land and buy it from the government. In 1842, Tyler’s administration signed the webster-ashburton treaty. This treaty ended the Seminole War and settled border issues between the United States and British North American colonies (this region later became Canada). In 1844, the United States signed the Treaty of Wanghia with China, which gave the Americans access to Asian ports. In March of 1845, John Tyler signed a bill that annexed Texas (Texas officially joined the union as the 29th state in December of 1845). John Tyler’s last action as president was on his final full day as president, signing a bill that established Florida as the 27th state. These seem like some pretty admirable achievements, so why was it not good enough for John Tyler to be considered a “famous” president? Why does John Tyler have a bad reputation as
James K. Polk was the eleventh President, from 1845 to 1849. James K. Polk had said in his inaugural address on March 4, 1845, “ The world has nothing to fear from military ambition in our government. “ He basically is saying that we as citizens and people in the world should not have any fear in military ambition from our government. Polk’s presidency reflected this statement by achieving his four main goals he set out to achieve during his presidency. The four main goals were to cut tariffs, reestablishing an independent U.S Treasury, securing the Oregon Territory, gaining the territories of California and New Mexico from Mexico. In ways that didn’t reflect the statement was that he caused war with Mexico for three years.
President Theodore Roosevelt was the outmost incredible president of our nation. He cared about every aspect of our country. He was remarkable, brilliant, and strong. He brought something different to the table of the presidential legacy. His personality, however was like no other, he was an impossible act to follow. He also was impetuous and did not hesitate to work around the regulations to get what he wanted.
There have been forty-four U.S. Presidents over the past two hundred and twenty four years. Some were very successful. Of those few historians, Abraham Lincoln was one of the greatest presidents that ever live. He is responsible for preserving the union, freeing the slaves, and enacting various new policies. Lincoln was a president that never gave up and put his people first. He was strong, confident and believes in his principles. Some of the presidents were least successful. Of those few historians, Herbert Hoover wasn’t very successful while he was in office. He was considered to be a terrible president because an awful thing occurred on his watch. Which was the Great Depression.
I also believe that he was a successful president because he accomplished many other things like writing the Declaration of Independence, he wrote The Virginia Statue for Religious Freedom, he advocated for free public
A final reason why the Mexican War was justified was that President Polk sent a message to the Senate to explain about going to war with Mexico. “I had ordered an efficient military force to take a position between the Nueces and Del Norte.” (Polk 325) This quote shows that the U.S. army marched and stayed between the Nueces and Del Norte to fight the Mexican soldiers. “Polk was a strong supporter of Manifest Destiny.” (Roden 317) This quote shows that Polk was in agreement in accepting and accomplishing the plan of God. Paraphrased information: Polk was elected in late 1844 and did not want just Texas, he also wants California, too. (Roden 317) This information shows that Texas isn’t the only state America should own. The United States had
After being out of school for such a while, I did not remember details of President Teddy Roosevelt’s accomplishments. He left a legacy of how important the people of the United States meant to him. He supported them and fought to better our nation. President Teddy Roosevelt was truly a
James K. Polk was the 11th presidents of the United states of America. His name is perhaps most closely associated with Manifest Destiny, because a year before he became the president, the Manifest destiny started the embody the governing philosophy of the Polk administration and its ardently expansionist aims. Polk’s campaigning methods is the leading cause to his victory of becoming the president of America. He campaigned on an expansionist platform, and vowed to not agree with the British on the dispute over the Oregon Territory's northern border. After Polk took office, the tension with Mexico over the annex of Texas continued to grow. In May 1846, Polk got his cabinet to approve of him to send a message of war against Mexico to Congress. In May 1847, president Polk had Nicholas P. Trist, the chief clerk in the state department, to Mexico with Gen. In spite of Polk's wish, Trist signed the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in early February 1848. This was the Treaty that ended the Mexican American War. Polk still was unhappy with the land he had just ceased- but polk had to settle with what the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo had got him: California, Nevada, Utah, most of New Mexico and Arizona, and the disputed
in the Mexican American war. While James Polk is considered to be a controversial figure in
As the 11th President of the United States he is best known for obtaining many western areas of land for the United states.
Polk was strongly in favor of expanding the United States to the Pacific. This opinion won him the election of 1844. That year Henry Clay, a well known and loved figure in American politics, ran and was expected to blow, little known, Polk of the charts. The only problem was Clay was nervous about territorial expansion. He did not want was with Mexico and was unsure of the constitutionality of expanding. Polk won because the majority of the public believed in Manifest Destiny.
War and saved the Union and efforts to abolish slavery. He is the only one during his time to be a