In Chicago’s South Side, preparations are underway for the Barack Obama Presidential Library. Included will be a museum, artifacts, and office space. This, in Jackson Park, will enshrine the 44th President’s ‘legacy’, that which will testify to what he accomplished in office.
It seems that every Chief Executive wants to have some physical reminder of his legacy, which would be admired by future generations, for the time when he is long gone from the scene. Before the advent of Presidential museum, those occupying the Oval Office did leave a legacy, even if no building housed that which would evoke those time when the man was in office.
Today some commentators are speculating what the legacy of Joe Biden will be. Most assessments come after a man (sorry, ladies!) have spent at least four years as President. Those thoughts on how Biden will be remembered will differ depending on what party you adhere to.
But, since I taught history and civics for 38 years, and since I lived under most of the 21 Presidents listed — 14 of the 21 — my perspective will be just as valid as those paid to evaluate our leaders. We will begin with the 20th century.
First was William McKinley, a Republican. What he accomplished included the Spanish-American War, which netted us our present day territories of Guam and Puerto Rico. And, of course, he becomes part of the violent past by getting himself assassinated in 1901. That brought us to Theodore Roosevelt, another Republican. Memories of his tenure include a wide streak of environmentalism, trust busting and the ‘bully pulpit’. He also ran in 1912 on the Bull Moose ticket for President, becoming one of a handful of candidates on a third party ticket to earn Electoral College votes.
William Howard Taft, the third consecutive Republican leader, leaves little legacy. He was the largest man to hold the Presidency, and was more renowned in his day when he became Chief Justice of the Supreme Court after his defeat in 1912.
Woodrow Wilson, a Democrat the first Southerner to become President since the Civil War, then graced the national stage by winning that race in ’12, and he did leave a large footprint. Whether that print was good or bad is up to you. But his legacy included the federal income tax, regulation of business, World War 1 and the League of Nations (which the U. S. did not join).
Warren G. Harding, the 29th President, a Republican from Ohio, won in 1920, and his campaign coined a new word, normalcy, to signify his winning theme. He left memories of his extra marital affairs and scandals by his administration’s figures, and then died before becoming too tainted by them.
His Vice-President, Calvin Coolidge, another Republican, took over for Harding in 1923, won his own term in 1924, and left a legacy of prosperity and peace in the country. Known for his taciturn demeanor, he personified a leader who just let the nation grow by itself.
A successful engineer and well-known for his work in providing relief to European peoples who were devastated by the war, Herbert Hoover, a Republican from California via Iowa, won the office in 1928, only to be waylaid by the Great depression before his first year was over. Most of the causes of the economic disaster were not of his doing, but most Americans blamed him for their money problems.
That brought Franklin D. Roosevelt, a New York Democrat to the Presidency, running on a platform of a New Deal, with a campaign song of Happy Days Are Here Again. Because he spent over 12 years as our Chief Executive, his ‘legacy’ is both long and somewhat mixed. His program in the Depression put people to work, but only with the advent of another European War did the economy recover. Included in laws passed under his direction were Social Security, Labor Reform and agricultural adjustments to help farmers.
When war broke out in Europe, Roosevelt was finally forced into participating when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and Germany’s Hitler declared war on us. Sadly for him, he died less than a month before the Nazis surrendered.
FDR’s death brought the Missouri Democrat, Harry Truman, a product of the Pendergast political machine, to the Presidency. He will forever be known for his sign, ‘The buck stops here’ on his desk; as the man who ordered the atomic bombs dropped on Japan; for his whistle-stop campaign in 1948, defeating a heavily favored Republican; and before his retirement, getting the U. S. involved in what became known as the Korean War.
After 20 years of Democratic rule, the electorate turned to the Republican, Dwight Eisenhower, for leadership in the 1950s. He left behind the memory of peace and prosperity, respect for the office he held, but mostly his memory will be about leadership in World War 2, as top general in the fight against Germany.
In 1960, the U. S. elected the youngest man to win the office, the Massachusetts Democrat, John Kennedy. His term was cut short by assassination in 1963, but some images remain. Camelot was the name given to his tenure, but he also oversaw the Cuban Missile Crisis, civil rights agitation in the South, and the beginnings of the Vietnam War.
Big things were dreamed of by his successor, Lyndon Johnson. Elected in a landslide over the Republican, Barry Goldwater, Johnson managed to pass landmark legislation. Medicare and Civil Rights were among his legacy achievements. But more than that was his prosecution of the Vietnam War. He kept putting more and more troops into that Southeast Asian country, which eventually claimed over 58,000 American lives. It was called ‘Johnson’s War’ for good reason.
A contentious election in 1968 brought Richard Nixon, the Republican who had served eight years as Eisenhower’s Vice-President. Campaigning on ending the war in Vietnam, he managed to achieve that by 1973. He also ‘opened’ up China to trade with a visit to that nation, which led to the Chinese becoming more of an international player and power. However, a bungled burglary during the 1972 campaign has given Nixon’s legacy a darker hue. This led to the Watergate scandal, and the President’s resignation in August 1974.
Gerald Ford then took over. This Michigan Republican had only served in the U. S. House (he was minority leader) and his two plus years produced very little. He survived two attempts on his life, and had the OPEC oil embargo to deal with. Although an accomplished athlete in his college years, he was seen as a bumbling, stumbling man.
Democrat Jimmy Carter of Georgia came next. Capitalizing on the Watergate scandal, he defeated Ford in 1976. Yet his presidency was marred by record high inflation, the Iran Hostage crisis and, in his words, a ‘national malaise’. But one shining moment came when he brokered a peace treaty between the Muslim nation of Egypt and Israel.
Those hostages, held in Tehran for 444 days, propelled Ronald Reagan, the California Republican governor for two terms (via Illinois) to the White House. His legacy included reviving the economy, giving hope to the nation again and facing down the Soviet Union, who then subsequently threw off communism.
Reagan’s Vice-President, George H. W. Bush, tried to continue the policies, but was largely unsuccessful. He will be remembered for his disastrous campaign statement, ‘Read my lips, no new taxes’, which promise he broke. But his ‘coalition of the willing ejected Iraq from Kuwait, a success not to be forgotten.
A little known Democratic governor of Arkansas, Bill Clinton, won the nomination and the election in 1992. During his tenure, we look back on many accusations of problems with women, an impeachment when he lied to the grand jury and the American people. He was charismatic, empathetic and presided over a roaring economy. But in neither of his runs for the Presidency did he get 50% of the popular vote. Clinton’s years also introduced his wife, Hillary, to the American public, and even then (as she would after her defeat in 2016 for the Presidency, she blamed any and all problems on various people. She coined the phrase a ‘vast right-wing conspiracy’ to describe those who opposed Bill and his proposals.
George W. Bush, Republican governor of Texas, ran for the White House in 2000. He won in a tightly contested contest with Al Gore, Clinton’s Vice President. The race was in doubt until finally the Supreme Court intervened and declared Florida’s recounts ended. His legacy included the September 11 attack on the World Trade Center, Pentagon and the abortive attempt at the White House. Under his leadership, the U. S. undertook wars in Afghanistan and Iraq to eradicate Islamic terrorists in those nations. Both wars took many American lives and much treasure. An honest look at both would conclude that the Iraq war was ill conceived and the eight years it lasted left an indelible black mark on the body politic. Afghanistan’s conflict is now concluding after almost 20 years, when the work of degrading the Taliban was done in just six weeks.
That Presidential Library, when finished, with celebrate the election of the first African -American to the Presidency. But his tenure was spotty, at best. Race relations were not improved by his actions and words. In addition, what became known as Obamacare was not the popular entitlement he had wanted. Setbacks such as the Benghazi attack, a very lackluster economy and a widening rift between liberals and conservatives will be remembered long after his is gone. One lasting image seared into many minds was his first overseas tour, which resulted in him bowing to other nations’ leaders, even those who were autocrats. I would bet those pictures never make it into his library’s museum!
2016 saw a seismic shift in politics on the national level. Donald Trump, who at one time was a pro-choice Democratic, ran in the Republican primaries and won. He had changed to become a pro-life champion. Under Trump, the economy reached record heights, with low unemployment and increased participation in the labor force by minorities and women. The nation became energy independent because of his policies, and many regulations were repealed, helping the economy roar ahead. Beginning a wall between Mexico and the U. S., along with other measures cut down drastically on illegal immigration along our southern border. Virulent opposition to him resulted in two failed impeachments. His support for the 2nd amendment was hailed by conservatives, and in foreign affairs, Trump managed to increase respect for the nation.
Hatred of Trump, even by some in the Republican Party, led to his defeat by Joe Biden. Now just nine months into President *s term, how his administration will be recalled is being discussed. In those short months, Biden has shut down energy exploration, including pipelines and drilling for new sources of oil and gas. Repealing Trump’s border policies has now resulted in more than 1.2 million illegals coming across our border with Mexico. Biden has proposed pro-choice legislation, even to allow federal dollars to pay for elective abortions. His proposed bills have added to the national debt, with more in the pipeline if he can get the Congress to pass and infrastructure bill for 1.2 trillion dollars, and a stimulus bill that will cost 3.5 trillion.
To make his legacy even darker, Biden decided to take our military out of Afghanistan for good, a policy most Americans wanted. However, the manner in which it was done allowed the Taliban to take over the entire country. We have thousands of citizens trapped inside that country and only one airport for evacuation since Biden allowed our major military base to be coopted by the Taliban. Credible reports have been made that our administration has even been asking (begging) the terrorists to allow our citizens to leave, along with those Afghans who helped us over the 20 years of the war. This crisis came because our President ignored advice on how to wind down our involvement, and scrapped a sound plan from the Trump administration.
If innocent American blood, and even the blood of our Afghan allies is shed. Many will place that on Biden’s hands. There are some who feel that he cannot escape this as a major part of his legacy. A ragtag group of guerrillas has ‘defeated’ the U. S. and we are running with our tails down. Questions about Joe Biden’s competency and his mental acuity abound, and they will be factored in to how history will assess our 46th President.