Presidents 1-44 Review

By: Victoria Vansant, Mairéad Pettit, and Amelia Ritchie

#1 George Washington

First term:1789-1793; Second term: 1793-1797– VP: John Adams (1789-1797)– Federalist

• Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War

• Proclamation of Neutrality of 1793• Signed Jay’s Treaty (gave up US’s right to neutrality on the

seas)

• Suppressed Whiskey Rebellion of 1794 (he sent troops to make Pennsylvania farmers pay their taxes)

#2 John Adams

Term: 1797-1801– VP: Thomas Jefferson (1797-1801)

• Jefferson and Adams ran against each other in the election. Adams got the most votes and Jefferson got the 2nd most votes.

– Federalist• XYZ Affair (French Minister Talleyrand sent 3 men to the US to

get money to resolve things)

• Alien and Sedition Acts (limited immigration and free speech because there was fear about a war with France)

• “midnight appointments” (Adam’s last night in office)

– Marbury v. Madison: Judicial Review

#3 Thomas Jefferson

First term: 1801-1805; Second term: 1805-1809– VP: Aaron Burr (1801-1805); George Clinton (1805-1809)– Anti-Federalist

• Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions (Jefferson and Madison argued that Alien and Sedition Acts were unconstitutional)

• Louisiana Purchase – Sent Lewis and Clark on their expedition

• Embargo Act of 1807 – US stopped foreign trade– Britain and France were at war– It hurt the US most

#4 James Madison

First term: 1809-1813; Second term: 1813-1817– VP: George Clinton (1809-(died in 1812)); Elbridge Gerry(1812-

(died in 1814))

• Father of the Constitution• Federalist Papers (written with John Jay & Alexander

Hamilton to sway the people to ratify the new Constitution)

• President during the War of 1812• Non-Intercourse Act (NO trade with France or Great Britain)– Macon’s Bill No. 2 (whichever country stopped harassing

US ships first would be favored)

#5 James Monroe

First term: 1817-1821; Second term: 1821-1825– VP: Daniel D. Tompkins (1817-1825)– Anti-Federalist

• “Era of Good Feelings”– US experienced first economic depression

• Adams-Onis Treaty (1819): Spain gave Florida to US after Andrew Jackson invaded Florida against orders

• Missouri Compromise (1820): admitted Missouri into the Union as a slave state and Maine as a free state

• Monroe Doctrine (1823): a warning to European powers about expansion and intervention into the western hemisphere

#6 John Q. Adams

Term: 1825-1829– VP: John C. Calhoun (1825-1829)– 1st Minority President– Republican

• Corrupt Bargain between him and Henry Clay• Supported internal improvements– Cumberland Road/National Road-1st major improved

highways in the US• “tariff of abominations” to protect domestic

manufacturing

#7 Andrew Jackson

First term: 1829-1833; Second term: 1833-1837– VP: John C. Calhoun (1829-(resigned in 1832)); Martin Van Buren (1833-1837)– “Old Hickory” was Democratic-Republican

• Kitchen Cabinet: his group of advisors• Spoils System: rewarding political supporters with public

office• Nullification Crisis: South Carolina felt that they could ignore

or nullify a tariff issued by the government– 1833 a compromise tariff was issued

• BANK WAR; he vetoed Second Bank of the US– Jackson believed it favored the wealthy– Specie Circular: required land purchases to be in gold or silver

Andrew Jackson Cont…

• Indian Removal Act (1830): moved all Indian tribes west of the Mississippi – Mainly affected the Five Civilized Tribes– Trail of Tears: Indians died on the march

#8 Martin Van BurenTerm: 1837-1841

– VP: Richard M. Johnson (1837-1841)

• Panic of 1837 – rampant speculation and get-rich-quickism

• Aroostook War (1839)– Conflict on the Maine/Canadian(British controlled) border where there was

no boundary– Settled before any real fighting began

• Alamo• US citizens kept moving to Texas with their slaves• Mexico emancipated all their slaves in 1830

• Texas wanted statehood after gaining independence from Spain– If admitted it would be slave state so the North opposed

#9 William Harrison

Term: 1841 – VP: John Tyler (1841) (He became president after Harrison

died)

• He was only president for 32 days before dying of pneumonia (probably contracted while giving inaugural speech)

#10 John Tyler

Term: 1841-1845– VP: none

• His entire cabinet, except his Secretary of State Daniel Webster, resigned

– Democrat

• Ended the Aroostook War by setting a boundary between Maine and Canada and all the way west to Oregon

• NO to Bank of the United States– Henry Clay the “Great Compromiser” and leader of the

Whigs wanted a new US Bank• He signed a resolution that annexed Texas in 1845

#11 James Polk

Term: 1845-1849– VP: George M. Dallas (1845-1849)

• Oregon territory– Boundary set at 49th parallel– US received Washington & Oregon – Great Britain got Vancouver

• Mexican-American War lasted 1846-1848• Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo (1848): ended war with Mexico &

fixed the border at the Rio Grande– US gained CA & NV

• Manifest Destiny: US was destined by God to spread empire across North America (EXPANSIONISM)

#12 Zachary Taylor

Term: 1849-1850 (He died 16 months into office in 1850)– VP: Millard Fillmore (1849-1850) ( He became president following

Taylor’s death)

• Mexican-American war hero; Whig• Free Soil Party: anti-slavery men in the North

(distrusted Taylor) – No slavery into new territories

• California Gold Rush (1849)• Clayton-Bulwer Treaty: (in affect until 1901)– US & Britain agreed that canals across Central America were

to be neutral & no colonization

#13 Millard Fillmore

Term: 1850-1853 (became president after Taylor died)– VP: none– Know-Nothing Party

• Compromise of 1850- helped delay Civil War, but neither North or South liked it– NO more slave trading in D.C

– Fugitive Slave Act: required federal government to help return runaway slaves

– CA admitted a FREE state– Utah & New Mexico opened to popular sovereignty– Texas compensated for giving up claims in the west

#14 Franklin Pierce

Term: 1853-1857– VP: William R. D. King (died in 1853)– Democrat (Whigs had become divided)

• Gadsden Purchase (1853): US bought Arizona and New Mexico• Kansas-Nebraska Act(1854): popular sovereignty in these

territories• Ostend Manifesto (1854): (published in NY Herald): US would

take aggressive action if Spain was not willing to give up Cuba

• Bleeding Kansas(1856): Congressman Brooks beat Senator Charles Sumner with his cane– Sumner was an abolitionist who had insulted southerners

#15 James Buchanan

Term: 1857-1861– VP: John C. Breckinridge (1857-1861)– Democrat

• Dred Scott v. Stanford: slaves were considered property– Buchanan believed this gave slavery constitutionality

• Panic of 1857: caused by gold-fueled inflation, overspeculation, and excess grain production

– Tariff of 1857: lowered duties on imports in response to high Treasury surplus & pressure from Southern farmers

• Confederate States of America formed in 1860– A result of Lincoln’s election

# 16 Abraham Lincoln

• President from 1861-1865– VP: Hannibal Hamlin (1861-1865); Andrew Johnson (1865)– Republican

• Lincoln-Douglas Debates– 7 debates between Lincoln and Stephen Douglas– Disagreed over slavery

• Civil War– Emancipated slaves– Suspended civil liberties during the war

• Habeas Corpus

• Admitted West Virginia and Nevada to the Union• Assassinated April 1895

– John Wilkes Booth

# 17 Andrew Johnson

• President from1865-1869– VP: NONE– Democrat

• Became President after Lincoln’s death• Reconstruction

– Continued with Lincoln’s vision– Very lenient on southerners– Wanted to allowed Southerners to swear an oath of allegiance to

become citizens again– Clashed with those who wanted “Radical Reconstruction”– Vetoed many Reconstruction bills, such as the Civil Rights Bill

• First President to be impeached while in office– Senate voted to not remove him from office by one vote

# 18 Ulysses S. Grant

• President from 1869-1877– VP: Schuyler Colfax (1869-1873); Henry Wilson

(1873-1875); NONE (1875-1877)– Republican

• Military hero in Civil War– Accepted Lee’s surrender at Appomattox

• Continued Radical Reconstruction– Passed the Civil Rights Act– 15th Amendment—granted blacks the right to vote

• Scandals– Black Friday

• Jay Gould and James Fisk tried to corner the gold market, drove up price of gold

– Credit Mobilier• Company sold stocks cheaply to Congress members in

order to cover up stealing money from Union Pacific Railroad

– Whiskey Ring• Distillers and federal agents were keeping the money

from liquor taxes

• Was still elected for a second term

# 19 Rutherford B. Hayes

• President from 1877-1881– VP: William A. Wheeler– Republican

• Lost popular vote, but won electoral vote due to invalid ballots

• Compromise of 1877– Ended military occupation of the south

• Reformed Civil Service appointments– Attempted to end the spoils system

• Returned country to the gold standard– Removed greenbacks from circulation

# 20 James Garfield

• President in 1881– VP: Chester A. Arthur– Republican

• Only President for about 6 months, before he was shot and died of blood poisoning

• Main action was continuing investigations into mail route contracts despite the implication of members of his own party

# 21 Chester Arthur

• President from 1881-1885– VP: NONE– Republican

• President because of Garfield’s death• Chinese Exclusion Act– Halted Chinese immigration for 10 years

• Pendleton Civil Service Act– Ended the spoils system in the American

Government

# 22, 24 Grover Cleveland

• President from 1885-1889, and 1893-1897– VP: Adlai E. Stevenson (1893-1897); Thomas A. Hendricks

(1885); NONE (1885-1889)– Democrat

• Presidential Succession Act– Set up the succession through the President’s cabinet

• Interstate Commerce Act– Regulated interstate railroad rates– First Federal regulatory agency

• Dawes Severalty Act– Granted citizenship and reservation land to native

Americans willing to give up tribal allegiance

• Withdrew a treaty annexing Hawai’i• Panic of 1893– Government did not help as they did not think

they had constitutional power• Repealed Sherman Silver Purchase Act– Silver was purchased by government and was

redeemable in notes for either silver or gold• Pullman Strike– Ordered Federal troops to stop the strike and

arrest Eugene Debs

# 23 Benjamin Harrison

• President from 1889-1893– VP: Levi P. Morton– Republican

• Ran against Cleveland• Dependent and Disability Pensions Act – Provided money for veterans and their families if disabled

while in service• Sherman Anti-Trust Act– Tried to stop the abuse of trusts and monopolies

• Sherman Silver Purchase Act– Silver was purchased by government and was redeemable in

notes for either silver or gold

# 25 William McKinley• President from 1897-1901

– VP: Garret A. Hobart (1897-1899); NONE (1899-1901); Theodore Roosevelt (1901)

– Republican• Opposed William Jennings Bryan

– “Cross of Gold” speech• Annexed Hawai’i• Spanish-American War

– US Battleship Maine explosion• Open Door Policy

– Equal trade in China• Gold Standard Act

– Officially placed US on gold standard• Assassinated in 1901

# 26 Theodore Roosevelt

• President from 1901-1909– VP: NONE (1901-1905); Charles W. Fairbanks (1905-1909)– Republican; Progressive(Bull Moose)

• Panama Canal• Roosevelt Corollary

– It was the responsibility of America to respond with force to enforce the Monroe Doctrine

– “Big Stick” Diplomacy• Trust-Buster

– “Square Deal”• Meat Inspection and the Pure Food and Drug Act

– Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle• Conservation Efforts• Gentleman’s Agreement

– Slowed immigration of laborers from Japan to US

# 27 William Howard Taft• President from 1909-1913

– VP: James S. Sherman (1909-1912); NONE (1912-1913)– Republican

• Opposed William Jennings Bryan– Campaign focused more on personality than issues

• Continued Roosevelt’s “trust-busting”– Brought down Standard Oil

• Dollar Diplomacy– The use of the military and diplomacy to promote US

business interests• Payne-Aldrich Tariff Act

– Lowered tariff rates

# 28 Woodrow Wilson

• President from 1913-1921– VP: Thomas R. Marshall– Democrat

• Opposed by both William Howard Taft and Theodore Roosevelt (Bull Moose)– Split Republican party, Easy win for Wilson

• Was an isolationist– Major campaign promise, “He Kept Us Out Of The War”

• Underwood Tariff– Lowered rates– Also created the first federal income tax

• Federal Reserve Act– Federal Reserve system to help deal with economic

highs and lows• Clayton Anti-Trust Act– Allowed strikes, pickets, etc.

• World War I– Sinking of the Lusitania– Zimmerman note

• Germany trying to form an alliance with Mexico

– Entered the war in 1917• “Fourteen Points”– Established the moral reasons for WWI– Became the basis for German surrender

• Post-WWI– Instrumental in the Treaty of Versailles– League of Nations • Primarily Wilson’s idea• Won the 1919 Nobel Peace Prize for it• However, the US was never a member since the Senate

failed to ratify the covenant• Opposition came mainly from Henry Cabot Lodge

# 98 Warren G. Harding

• President from 1921-1923– VP: Calvin Coolidge– Republican

• Administration filled with scandals– Teapot Dome Scandal

• Secretary of the Interior Albert Fall sold the rights to national oil reserves to private companies

• Kept the US out of the League of Nations– US did not ratify the Treaty of Paris

• Considered one of the worst presidents in US history• Died of a heart attack two years into term

# 30 Calvin Coolidge

• President from 1923-1929– VP: NONE (1923-1925); Charles G. Dawes (1925-1929)– Republican

• President because of Harding’s death• Immigration Act of 1924 – Cut number of immigrants down to 150,000– Completely excluded Japanese immigrants

• Cut taxes in 1924 and 1926– Increased spending money lead to over speculation which

would eventually lead to the stock market crash

• Veteran’s Bonus—1924– Passed despite Coolidge’s veto– Provided veterans with insurance redeemable in

20 years• Vetoed (twice) farm relief bills to support farm

prices• Kellogg-Briand Pact– Fifteen countries agreed that war was not a viable

method for settling disputes

# 31 Herbert Hoover

• Republican, 1929-1933, 58% of the vote and 444 out of 531 votes.

• unprepared to take the necessary measures to help the unemployed

• took actions against groups like the Bonus Marchers• shanty’s were called hoovervilles

Herbert Hoover cont.

• Hawley-Smoot Tariff was enacted to help protect farmers and others from foreign competition. Unfortunately, other nations also enacted tariffs which meant that trade around the world slowed down

• He did not enact programs to help the unemployed but instead put some measures in place to help businesses.

#32 Franklin D. Roosevelt

• Democrat, 1933-1945, 12 years in office• 1st Term: 57% of the popular vote and 472 electors

versus Hoover's 59.• 2nd Term: victory with 523 electoral votes versus

Landon's 8.• 3rd Term: won with 449 out of 531 electoral votes. • 4th Term: 53% of the popular vote and winning 432

electoral votes versus 99 for Dewey.

FDR cont.

• Brain Trust to help him come up with effective public policy

• Terms as president were marked by bold moves to fight the Great Depression and World War II

• aggressive and unprecedented New Deal programs left a lasting mark on the American landscape

• New Deal: the set of programs and policies designed to promote economic recovery and social reform introduced during the 1930s by FDR

FDR cont.

• Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)• Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)• National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA)• Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)• Works Progress Administration (WPA)• Social Security Act • Lend-Lease Act of 1941

FDR cont.

• declared a four-day banking holiday• Roosevelt met with Churchill and Joseph Stalin

at Yalta where they promised concessions to Soviet Russia if the Soviets entered the war against Japan.

• FDR's leadership throughout World War II led to victory for the Allies even though Roosevelt died before the war ended.

#33 Harry S. Truman

• 1945-1953, Democrat, 49% of the popular vote and 303 of the possible 531 electoral votes.

• ordered two nuclear bombs- Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, and Nagasaki on August 9, 1945.

• Reasoning: speed up WWII, stop mainland fighting, and to send a message to the Soviet Union that U.S. wasn’t afraid of using a bomb

Truman cont.

• Used Marshall Plan • Truman's time in office was the Red Scare• Passed 22nd Amendment• Taft-Hartley Act• Fair Deal• Truman Doctrine• Berlin Airlift• NATO created

#34 Dwight D. Eisenhower

• Republican, 1953-1961, 55% popular vote and 442 electoral votes

• The campaign dealt with Communism and governmental waste.

• Presidential term was in a time of relative peace (despite the Korean Conflict) and prosperity.

• ensure that local schools were desegretated was an important step in the Civil Rights movement.

Eisenhower cont.• embargo on Cuba• Eisenhower Doctrine: asserted that America

had the right to aid any country threatened by Communist aggression.

• sent federal troops to Little Rock, Arkansas to safeguard black students enrolling in a previously all-white school.

• Berlin Wall erected 1961• U-2 spy plane incident

#35 John F. Kennedy

• Democratic, 1961-1963, won by only 118,574 votes. Received 303 electoral votes.

• were hailed as American royalty• More known as celebrity than president• Was assassinated November 22, 1963

JFK cont.

• Had trouble getting domestic policies through congress

• However, increased minimum wage, better Social Security benefits, and an urban renewal package passed.

• used executive orders and personal appeals to aid the Civil Rights movement

JFK cont.

• Bay of Pigs- small force of Cuban exiles were to lead a revolt in Cuba but were captured instead.

• This stand off led to the dismantling of the missile silos in exchange for promises that the US would not invade Cuba.

#36 Lyndon B. Johnson

• 1963-1969, Democrat, won with 61% of the popular vote and 486 of the electoral votes.

• Escalated the war in Vietnam and eventually had to turn to peace when the U.S. was unable to achieve victory

Johnson cont.

• remembered for his Great Society• Medicare, Medicaid, the Civil Rights Act of

1964 and 1968 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 were passed

#37 Richard Nixon

• Republican, 1969-1974• 1st Term: 43% of the popular vote and 301

electoral votes. • 2nd Term: won with 61% of the vote and 520

electoral votes.

Nixon cont.

• In 1972, President Nixon traveled to China to try and encourage peace and more contact between the two nations.

• Environmental Protection Agency• Watergate Scandal: the break-in into the

Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C.

• Nixon resigned when he was faced with impeachment. He left office on August 9, 1974.

#38 Gerald Ford

• Republican, 1974-1977, took office when Nixon was impeached

• Ran for reelection but lost to Jimmy Carter

Ford cont.

• Offered clemency to those who evaded the draft during the Vietnam War if they would swear allegiance and perform two years of public service.

• Escaped two assassination attempts, both by women

#39 Jimmy Carter

• Democrat, 1977-1981, 50% of the popular vote and 297 out of 538 electoral votes

• Was president at a time when energy issues came to the forefront

Carter cont.

• Department of Energy was created• Three Mile Island incident resulted in

requiring regulations on Nuclear Energy plants• Invited Egyptian president Anwar Sadat and

Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin to Camp David for peace talks

• led to a formal peace treaty in 1979

Carter cont.• November 4, 1979, the U.S. embassy in Teheran, Iran

was seized and 60 Americans were taken hostage• Carter suspended oil imports from Iran and the UN

Security Council called for the release of the hostages• Ayatollah Khomeini agreed to release the hostages in

exchange for unfreezing Iranian assets in the U.S.• They were not released till Reagan was president• This incident was a major reason Carter didn’t

receive reelection

#40 Ronald Reagan

• 1981-1989, Republican• Campaign centered on inflation, the gasoline

shortage, and the Iran hostage situation.

Reagan Continued

• Adopted an economic policy whereby tax cuts were created to help increase savings, spending, and investment

• Inflation and employment went down• A huge Budget deficit was created• Berlin Wall speech• First/Only comprehensive nuclear arms

reduction treaty (IRBM)

Reagan cont.

• Major issue with second administration: Iran-Contra Scandal

• Reagan's administration had a growing relationship between the U.S. and the Soviet Union

#41 George H. W. Bush

• 1989-1993, Republican• Campaign was extremely negative and

centered around attacks instead of plans for the future

Bush cont.• Bush sent troops into Panama to depose

General Manuel Noriega who was involved in drug trafficking

• Desert Storm: remove Iraqi forces from Kuwait• Was required to sign a bill into law to raise taxes

to try and reduce the deficit• Signed into law a bail out plan paid for by

taxpayers• Formal end to Cold War/Fall of Berlin Wall 1989

Bill Clinton

• Democrat, 1993-2001• Campaign emphasized job creation, and that

he was more in touch with the common people opposed to George H. W. Bush

Clinton cont.

• First two term Democratic president since Franklin Roosevelt

• Family and Medical Leave Act• North American Free Trade Agreement that

allowed for unrestricted trade between Canada, the U.S., Chile, and Mexico.

• Monica Lewinsky affair: caused for Clinton’s impeachment

George W. Bush

• Republican, 2001-2009• 9-11 attacks by Al-Qaeda• Ordered the invasion of Afghanistan and the

overthrow of the Taliban

Bush cont.

• Declared war on Saddam Hussein and Iraq for the fear that they were hiding Weapons of Mass Destruction

• No Child Left Behind Act• Bush announced a new plan for NASA and

space exploration after Space Shuttle Columbia exploded

#44 Barack Obama

• Democrat, 2009-incumbent• First black president• Opposed Bush’s tax cuts, proposed tax hikes

on the wealthiest 5% of households

Obama cont.

• Plans for big public investments• Alternative energy• Infrastructure repair • Opened a new chapter in the history of race

relations• Opposed war in Iraq