James K. Polk

Well, it's hard to resist a nice lob over the net. James K. Polk was a great American president. I am not sure, however, that my enthusiasm for him is as unqualified as it used to be.

First, his record. He kept all his campaign promises, which were highly specific. Chief among these was the expansion the US territory. Jefferson set the foundation of westward expansion, but Polk built the house that stretched from Atlantic to Pacific. The United States of America, continental empire, open to Asia and Europe, was created by Polk. Our destiny wasn't manifest so much as it was created by Polk. This achievement, when soberly considered, makes him one of the most important chief executives in American history. For if any man defined the importance of "energy in the executive", it was Polk. In an age when the President worked by himself with the assistance of a secretary (maybe two, if you were fighting the Civil War), Polk's drive to accomplish his goals led to an early death.

Now, for the qualifications. Since my earlier enthusiasm for Polk, I have read Ulysses Grant's Memoirs, and Grant has convinced me that the Mexican War was a Bad Thing. Moreover, I have become suspicious about Polk's motivations. Surely the acquisition of Texas, California, etc., was to have an outlet for the surplus slave population? It certainly couldn't have been to open the trade door to Japan.

So while no longer an ardent Polkite, I still think that it is an indisputable fact that Polk is one of the most important Presidents in American history. He shows, moreover (like Teddy Roosevelt, another workaholic), that the Presidency is what you make of it. Of course, making it might kill you.