Some More Interesting Facts About Our Presidents!

Consecutive Executives

Since 1860 the Democrats have never put more than two consecutive presidents into the White House. The only times the Democrats have had two presidents in a row were when Franklin Roosevelt and Harry Truman served between 1933 and 1953, and when John Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson were in office from 1961 to 1969.

The Republicans have had better luck than their rivals. They hold the record for the most consecutive presidents, with four in a row: Ulysses Grant, Rutherford Hayes, James Garfield and Chester Arthur. Twice the GOP has had three consecutive presidents: William McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft; and Warren Harding, Calvin Coolidge and Herbert Hoover.

Thomas Jefferson was good at so many things. He was a brilliant political thinker, authors of the Declaration of Independence, diplomat, architect, inventor, scientific farmer, and musician. He founded the prestigious University of Virginia, created the decimal system of coinage for the U.S., and was an effective president and one of the great figures in American history. But he was not good at managing money. Jefferson enjoyed fine living and often outspent his income to support his lavish lifestyle.

Jefferson had done so much for his country that many around him tried to help with his financial problems. Congress overpaid Jefferson for his book collection, and members of the public, who often had much less than Jefferson, made contributions to his cause. But all this help was too little, too late. When he died in 1826, he had racked up more than $100,000 in debt. In today’s terms, that would be akin to approximately 1.5 million dollars! Jefferson’s family, stuck with his debt, had no choice but to sell his beloved Monticello to help settle the debt.

James Monroe was so broke when he left the White House that he had to move in with his daughter.

George Bush’s election took 35 days to figure out. But in 1876, it took four months to figure out which candidate - Rutherford B. Hayes or Samuel Tilden - was the winner. No slow vote counter, it was a dispute over the electoral votes of four states: Florida, Louisiana, Oregon and South Carolina. Voters in these states were not re-polled. Instead, the question of the next president was thrown to Congress, where it was hotly debated. Finally a 15-man committee was chosen to select the winner. After a close eight to seven vote, Hayes was named the victor 115 days after the election.

But the Democrats were not just disappointed that Samuel Tilden lost to Hayes, they were furious. You see, the committee that selected the 19th president consisted of eight Republicans and seven Democrats. The Democrats prepared to challenge the vote, but instead proposed a deal. It was during the aftermath of the Civil War and the Democrats vowed they would accept the committee’s decision if the new Republican administration would withdraw all federal troops from the South.

The Republicans weighed their options and decided to cooperate. Troops were withdrawn and the Southern states regained political control over their state and local governments. Hayes moved into the White House.

Our commander and chief does not need military experience. Just get elected. Woodrow Wilson, Franklin Roosevelt, and Bill Clinton never served in the military. Article II, section 2 of the Constitution says the president shall be the commander in chief of the Army and Navy of the United States and of the Militia of the several states when called into the actual service of the United States. And there is nothing in the Constitution about the other branches of the service. A president can do a lot, but he cannot declare war. That job is specifically given to the Congress.

President Grant (1869 - 1877) made a habit of relaxing most evenings at the Willard Hotel near the White House. Grant would sit in the lobby of the hotel and enjoy an after-dinner cigar. Those wanting favors from the president found this to be an ideal opportunity. They waited for him in the lobby, and (not so creatively) earned the name "lobbyists."

Shortly after Hillary Rodham graduated from Yale Law School in 1973, she took a job as an attorney for the Children’s Defense Fund and then was chosen to be on the inquiry staff of the House of Representatives Judiciary Committee. And what was the Committee working on? The Watergate investigation and possible impeachment of President Richard Nixon. Little did Hillary know that her own husband would be facing a very similar situation 24 years later. She has been on both sides of the impeachment proceedings.

Why is the presidential election held in November? Congress decided that it was practical because the young nation was largely a rural farming country. Early November seemed the best time because harvesting would be over and Winter would not yet have made Northern roads impassable. At any other time, farmers were either too busy, or it was too hard for them to reach the polls.

It was a big upset when Dwight Eisenhower was picked ahead of many more senior officers to lead Allied armies to victory in Europe in World War II. He wasn’t made a full colonel until 1941, and wasn’t even a general until right before the war. But he led war games in Louisiana and his maneuvers in the exercises caught the eye of the Army Chief of Staff General George Marshall. That catapulted him forward on a meteoric rise from obscurity to superstardom. Just six months after being made a colonel, Ike was promoted to brigadier general and given the assignment of charting an Allied invasion of Europe. Three days after submitting his plan he was named commander of American Forces in Europe. He had been advanced above 366 senior officers for the job.

Resource: Strange & Fascinating Facts about the Presidents by Charles Reichblum