Worst Presidents: Zachary Taylor (1849-1850)
Sliding in at No. 10, Zachary Taylor was more a forgettable president than a failed one. And the reason is simple: The 12th president was probably the least politically attuned man to occupy the White House in American history, ignorant, one might say, to the point of innocence.
Born in Virginia and raised in Kentucky, he was a country boy and a fearless soldier who fought and commanded in major actions spanning the War of 1812 and the Mexican War. Jealous fellow generals mocked his lack of learning and polish—he seldom wore his uniform and was often mistaken for a farmer—but no less than Abraham Lincoln praised the steady judgment that enabled him to overcome unfavorable odds in numerous battles.
The Whigs saw a good thing when they picked him as their candidate in 1848. A slaveholder who defended the "peculiar institution" in the South, he opposed its extension into new states as vigorously as he objected to the idea of secession.
Some think his opposition to what became the Compromise of 1850—which began to undo the Missouri Compromise—might have precipitated the outbreak of the Civil War. If it had, Taylor would not have hesitated to take on the would-be seceders. And his war record might have given them pause.
But the test never came. He died after only a little more than a year in office.
Reader Comments
Some slave-owners wanted to free them but...
Some owners wanted to free slaves but gave reasons to keep them. What would the freed slaves do? If they stayed in slave states, they'd need to always have ID with them. Without money, where could they go? If one man freed them, his equally rich neighbor planters would kick him out of their circle & make it hard for him to get supplies. Some owners had children by slave women & kept them because of that. The whole system was so corrupt that if any owner admitted they were too lazy to do manual labor or even dress themselves, they would lose face. They used the Bible to keep slaves in line and for an alibi. It tells slaves to be good servants and not cause trouble. Some post-war books express regret over keeping slaves and list some reasons. Slavery weakened the Rebel States. As soon as Lincoln & his cabinet put blacks in uniform, with guns, they were an extremely important part of Union victory. The myth of Ham, being turned black by God to make it easier to identify all blacks for slavery, was extremely harmful. It was carried forward after the mythic Flood, with the curse of slavery on sons of Ham's black Ethiopian wife.
Disagree
You have to give the failed presidents some credit. Unlike the corrupt European countries at the time like France and Britain, They all had leaders and politicians who sought a seat of power for their own gain and not to lead there nation. I believe every failed president sought the presidency to lead there nation to the best of there ability and not for personal gain.
The decision how good or bad A particular U.S.President Performed Depands ---
I would rather say that all the U.S Presidents did their very best at their various terms of their Presidency.One thing that is usually easy,is to critie on what other people do or left undone.To govern is not as easy as one takes a can of pepesi and drink.It means taking simple,hard and sometimes difficult decisions that involves millions of people.In some cases it means taken away life of citizen(s).
All the Presidents came to that seat on different time and situations, such as war,economic crisis like recession etc Also,the World is changing, so also other things like population,enveronment, law, scince and technology.Based on this facts stated above,I come into conclusion that some President did better than the other but there may not be either the best or the worst in the true sense of it.
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