Local Presidents Questions

1. Local Presidents Questions Junior/Senior Divisions #1-24

2. 7-17 #1 (6 points) Although I was a slaveholder, I said that slavery was an evil institution. My political position was that individual states should determine whether slavery should exist within their borders. In my will, I left all my slaves to my wife and, upon her death, to be freed. But she lived more than 30 years after my death. So my will was overridden by the Emancipation Proclamation. (4 points) I didn’t get along with my successor, who was my lead general in Mexico. I also didn’t trust his second in command, Winfield Scott (pictured). Both men belonged to the opposition party, and I suspected that they wanted to capitalize on their military success to run for president. (2 points) As it turned out, I didn’t run for reelection because of poor health. Many historians consider me one of the best presi-dents because I fulfilled all my campaign promises. I was the first president to have “Hail to the Chief” played when I entered a room. Some say my wife Sarah started this tradition because I was short. The music would tell people I had arrived even if they couldn’t see me through the crowd.

3. 1-11 #2 (6 points) I drafted my native state’s Statute for Religious Free-dom which the legislature enacted into law nine years later. In my writings, I was strongly influenced by John Locke, an English author of the 17th century. He argued against the divine right of kings and believed in natural law – that power should reside ulti-mately in the people. (4 points) During my first term as president, James T. Callender wrote in a Rich-mond newspaper that I had fathered several children by one of my slaves, Sally Hemings. My political opponents adopted the story and published it in newspapers in a number of states. I never made any public response to Callender’s attacks. (2 points) My popularity took a hit in my second term when I signed the Embargo Act. This law tried to keep the U.S. completely out of the conflict between Great Britain and France. It forbade foreign trade with either country. While banning trade was unpopular, it did lead to the creation of more textile mills and other industries in the U.S. I lifted the embargo shortly before leaving the White House. Our conflicts with Great Britain would finally come to a head during my succes-sor’s administration.

4. 1-11 #3 (6 points) A major financial crisis broke out during my second term as president. Also, the people of the Missouri Territory applied for admission to the Union as a slave state but were rejected by Congress. An amended bill for gradually elimi-nating slavery in Missouri started two years of bitter debate in Congress. (4 points) During my presidency, Lucretia Mott moved to Philadelphia and became known for her speeches against slavery. Congress demanded high subsidies for internal improvements. I vetoed theCumberland Road Bill, which provided for yearly improvements to the road, because I believed it to be unconstitutional for the government to get involved in a matter that belonged to the states. (2 points) In foreign affairs, I proclaimed the policy that bears my name. I responded to the threat that govern-ments in Europe might try to aid Spain in winning back her former Latin American colonies. I did not begin to formally recognize the young sister republics until later. I wished to avoid trouble with Spain until it had ceded Florida to the U.S.

5. #4 14-24 (6 points) Perhaps one of the biggest political challenges I faced in my admini-stration was the so called “Battle of the Riders.” Democrats captured control of both houses of Congress in mid-term elections. The Democrats, in an effort to strengthen their chances in later elections, began adding riders – pieces of legislation that “ride” to passage on another bill - to necessary appropriations bills. The Democrats’ riders targeted federal election enforcement laws that pre-vented fraud and voter intimidation. Determined not to give in, I vetoed the bills with the riders, citing that every citizen has the right “to cast one un-intimidated ballot and to have his ballot honestly counted.” (4 points) My goal was to “depoliticize the civil service” without “destroy[ing] Republican party organizations.” Braving the political climate, I issued anexecutive order that forbade federal office holders from taking part in party politics and protected them from receiving party contributions. (2 points) As president, I won praise for my honesty, inde-pendence, and integrity. But all anyone wants to talk about is my election victory over Samuel Tilden. So I’m labeled as the president who entered the White House because of a back room deal that gave my party all the disputed votes in three Southern states.

6. 1-11 #5 (6 points) One of the laws passed by Congress during my administration made it a crime to publish “false, scandalous and malicious” writings against the U.S. government. Many, including my vice president, opposed this law and others as an invasion of state rights and a violation of individual freedoms. (4 points)During my administration, I referred to three agents, Jean Conrad Hottinger, Pierre Bellamy, and Lucien Hauteval, by three letters that still describe the unfortunate bribery incident they were involved in. (2 points) My vice president succeeded me and became the first president to live a full term in the White House.

7. 11-21 #6 (6 points) While I was president, the 15th Amendment to the Constitution was rati-fied. It granted the right to vote to all male citizens regardless of race. I also signed into law the Ku Klux Klan Act, which sought to reduce violence against blacks. (4 points) You want scandals? You got them in my ad-ministration. First there was “Black Friday,” also known as the “Gold Panic.” This was an attempt by Jay Gould and James Fisk to corner the price of gold. They gave a bribe of $10,000 to an assistant secretary of the treasury in exchange for inside information. They also tried to convince me to stop the Treasury Department from sell-ing gold. They didn’t tell me that their plan was to buy as much gold as they could and watch its value rise. But I didn’t agree to their proposal, and eventually their scheme collapsed. In the meantime, though, stock prices fell and many people lost a lot of money. (2 points) Another scandal was the Star route postal ring whereby people bribed postal clerks to be granted the contract to deliver mail in rural areas. But my worst embarrassment was called the Whiskey ring. Whiskey distillers bribed Treasury Department agents to help them avoid paying taxes.

8. 2-12 #7 (6 points) While I served as Secretary of State, I was the defendant in a case that is still studied in Constitutional Law classes. The president ordered me not to deliver the commissions of some of the judiciary appointments that his prede-cessor had made. So a man named William Marbury sued to have his commis-sion delivered. Chief Justice John Marshall ruled that the law allowing Marbury’s appointment was unconstitutional. (4 points) While I was president, William Henry Harrison negotiated the Treaty of Fort Wayne giving three million acres of Indian land to the U.S. His troops also defeated Tecumseh’s forces at the Battle of Tippecanoe. (2 points) Another future president, Andrew Jackson, led a group of militia and others against British forces in the Battle of New Orleans while my wife Dolley and I lived in the White House.

9. 1-11 #8 (6 points) While the American people held a high opinion of me, I often had a rocky relationship with Congress. This was illustrated when I approved a treaty named for my Secretary of State that tried to normalize relations with Great Britain. In return for pulling its troops out of forts across the West and providing compensation for seized merchant ships, the British were given favored-nation trade status. This provoked outrage from the party led by my former Secretary of State, who repeatedly accused me of treason. (4 points) I was the only prominent, slave-holding Founding Father to emancipate his slaves. “There is not a man living who wishes more sincerely than I do, to see a plan adopted for the abolition of slavery.” During my presidency, Sojourner Truth was born Isabella Baumfree into slavery in New York state. (2 points)I was the first president to receive 100 percent of the electoral votes.

10. 14-24 #9 (6 points) Soon after taking office, I faced the task of filling numerous government jobs. These were typically filled under thespoils system, but I said I would not fire anyone who was doing his job well and would not appoint anyone solely on the basis of party service. I also used my appointment powers to reduce the number of federal employees, as many departments had become bloated with political time-servers. During my first term in the White House, I signed into law the Inter-state Commerce Act, which created a commission to regulate railway rates. (4 points) Two scandals marred my public life. Both came to light during my first run for the presidency. Because I was the chief support of my mother and sisters, I hired a substitute to serve in my place in the Civil War. This was perfectly legal but brought me criticism when I ran for office. The other involved a child that I allegedly fathered out of wedlock while I served as sheriff of Erie County. (2 points) During my first successful presidential cam-paign, my supporters chanted: “Blaine! Blaine! James G. Blaine! Continental liar from the state of Maine!”

11. 11-21 #10 (6 points) One of my most famous acts as president made William Lloyd Garrison extremely happy. Shortly after my presidency, he stopped publishing his newspaper Liberator after 35 years and 1,820 issues. (4 points) A minor scandal during my administration involved Secretary of War Simon Cameron, who resigned due to corrup-tion charges. Although we met in a Northern state, my wife hailed from the South. (2 points) One of my statements was, “I hold that, in contemplation of universal law and of the Constitution, the Union of these States is perpetual. Perpetuity is implied, if not expressed, in the fundamental law of all national governments.”

12. 10-20 #11 (6 points) While I was president, Mississippi and other Southern states enacted what were called “Black Codes.” These laws re-stricted the rights of African Americans to own property, conduct business, and move freely in public areas. I ran for reelection but didn’t lead on any of the ballots at my party’s national convention. Eventually, Horatio Seymour became the nominee. (4 points) The Republicans in Congress passed the Tenure of Office Act over my veto. The act restricted the president from relieving any member of his Cabinet without the agreement of the Senate. The person Congress had in mind when passing the law was my Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, who had been appointed by my predecessor. (2 points) When I removed Stanton from his position, the House of Representa-tives impeached me. But the Senate fell one vote short of convicting me. So I stayed in office.

13. #12 14-24 (6 points) I was considered incorruptible but not my campaign manager, Matt Quay. Quay commented once that there were a lot of men who approached “the gates of the penitentiary to make him (me) president.” (4 points) During my term, a number of populist groups met in St. Louis and formed the People’s Party that wanted among other things: an eight-hour work day and a federal income tax. Also Ellis Island opened as a new processing station for immigrants. My election changed the party in control of the Executive Branch of the Government. (2 points) It took eight ballots to nominate me to run for president. My slogan was “Grandfather’s Hat Fits.” My campaign matched my dull person-ality. I only made speeches to those who came to visit. Some called me the “human iceberg.”

14. #13 5-15 (6 points) I believed the United States would create an “empire for Liberty” from the Atlantic to the Pacific. I used a term coined by magazine editor John L O’Sullivan, “manifest destiny,” to justify taking new territories. Since Texas was annexed during my predecessor’s term, I set my sights on the Oregon Territory. (4 points) Women’s rights activist, Amelia Bloomer, introduced a new comfortable style of dress during my term which was considered scandalous. It featured loose-fitting trousers worn under a knee length skirt. These pants were known as bloomers. Also during my term, the women’s rights movement was founded at a convention in Seneca Falls, N.Y. (2 points) The Mexican War ended with the signing of the treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo in the last year of my presidency. During my campaign, I promised to serve only one term. I kept my promise and wrote in my diary on the last day of my term: “I am sure I will be a happier man in my retirement…” I died three months after my successor’s inauguration.

15. 11-21 #14 • (6 points) As president, I strengthened Federal authority over the New York Customs House, stronghold of Senator Roscoe Conkling, who was a dispenser of patronage in New York. When I submitted to the Senate a list of appointments including many of Conkling’s friends, I named Conkling’s archrival, William H. Robertson, to run the Customs House. Conkling contested the nomination, tried to persuade the Senate to block it, and appealed to the Republican caucus to compel its withdrawal. But I would not submit: “This ... will settle the question whether the president is registering clerk of the Senate or the Executive of the United States ... shall the principal port of entry ... be under the control of the administration or under the local control of a factional senator.” (4 points) I became the first man ever to be elected to the presidency straight from the House of Representatives and was, for a short period, a sitting represen-tative, senator-elect, and president-elect. After the election, Conkling began making demands of me as to appointments, and my vice president–elect sup-ported his longtime patron against his new boss. According to Ira Rutkow’s recent biography of me, I disliked my vice president and would not let him into my house. (2 points) I was the second president to be assassinated.

16. 1-24 Answers #11 James Polk #3 Thomas Jefferson #5 James Monroe #19 Rutherford B. Hayes #2 John Adams #18 Ulysses S. Grant #4 James Madison #1 George Washington #22/24 Grover Cleveland #16 Abraham Lincoln #17 Andrew Johnson #23 Benjamin Harrison #11 James Polk #20 James Garfield