Worst Presidents: Andrew Johnson (1865-1869)
Andrew Johnson has risen in scholarly dis-esteem since the publication of Arthur Schlesinger's 1948 poll probably because the post-Civil War Reconstruction has enjoyed a thorough scholarly face-lift, and Johnson is now scorned for having resisted Radical Republican policies aimed at securing the rights and well-being of the newly emancipated African-Americans.
Before he was president, historian Woodrow Wilson did a lastingly thorough job of sullying Reconstruction, depicting it as a vindictive program that hurt even repentant southerners while benefiting northern opportunists, the so-called Carpetbaggers, and cynical white southerners, or Scalawags, who exploited alliances with blacks for political gain.
A native North Carolinian of humble origins, Johnson worked as a tailor and eventually settled in Tennessee, where he entered politics as a populist Jackson Democrat. He was elected to several high offices, including U.S. senator.
Though no abolitionist, he was a staunch supporter of the Union and the only southerner to retain his seat in the Senate after secession. For his loyalty, Lincoln appointed him military governor of Tennessee, where he set about suppressing Confederates and championing black suffrage. (Tennessee became the first southern state to end slavery by state law.) Lincoln selected him as his running mate in 1864, and Johnson became the 17th president only a month after being sworn in as vice president.
Unfortunately, his subsequent battles with Radical Republicans in Congress over a host of Reconstruction measures revealed political ineptitude and an astonishing indifference toward the plight of the newly freed African-Americans. In addition to vetoing renewal of the Freedman's Bureau and the first civil rights bill, he encouraged opposition to the 14th Amendment.
An increasingly nasty power struggle—in which Congress wrongly attempted to strip him of certain constitutionally delegated powers—resulted in the first presidential impeachment and a near conviction. Failing to be renominated, he returned to Tennessee and was again elected to the U.S. Senate.
History's current verdict may prove to be overly harsh, but it is fair to say that Johnson did turn a blind eye to those southerners who tried to undo what the Civil War had accomplished.
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Andrew Johnson
Johnson continued the policies of Lincoln!
He ran a pardon mill for southerners in order to be consistent with Lincoln's philosophy of, "With charity for all and malice toward none." The idea was to be done with the war.
There was a revenge minded north at that time that sought to punish the south. This was represented by the Republican party at the time of the 1860s and 1870s.
In recent events the world put punitive, revenge minded, policies on Germany after World War One. It created an environment that was perfect for the creation of Hitler and World War Two. In contrast, the Marshall plan has brought Europe a lasting peace.
Johnson had the duty of moving the country forward after the civil war and to prevent a second uprising against the US Government. Lincoln won the war but Johnson had the difficult duty to win the peace. Recent events have demonstrated that it is easy to win the war, as people tend to unite behind a cause, but it is very difficult to win the peace.
Each administration faces different challenges and some terms are easier than others. Some Presidents are adored by the press, but in Johnson's case he was thouroughly hated by the northern press. The presidential term that began March 1865 and ended March 1869 was probably one of the most difficult terms ever faced by any President.
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