Dan+R.+-+JB+-+SP10


 * James Buchanan**
 * Born:** April 23, 1791
 * Death:** June 1, 1868
 * Political Party:** Democrat
 * Term:** 1857-1861
 * Vice President:** John C. Breckinridge

As the 15th president of the United States, James Buchanan deserves an F for a grade as president. Even though Buchanan wanted to be president, he was timid to take the presidency because of the turmoil of the country over the slave issues. Buchanan never really made his position clear on slavery, leaving the issue up to the states and not him. On the other hand, Buchanan urged the Kansas territory to be accepted as a slave state. The Buchanan presidency produced a few positive accomplishments.
 * Thesis**

Buchanan had a few goals as president. One of Buchanan's main goal was to keep the union together. He once said that he was hesitant to take office because of the fear of secession. Also, Buchanan wanted to expand the nation, especially Cuba and other parts of the Carribbean. He had the belief of Manifest Destiny.
 * Goals**

Buchanan's relationship with congress was horrible. Under his term a senator was nearly beaten to death because of his view points. The congress was at a stalemate. The House of Represenatives was dominated by Republicans. Any bills favoring the republicans that were passed and made it to his desk; Buchanan vetoed every single one. Also, his cabinet members resigned from duty when he failed to take action for the southern cause of slavery. Buchanan upset his southern supporters for not acting in support.
 * Relationship to Congress**

There were less than a handful of positives to come from Buchanan's presidency. The most positive outcome was how he defended Central America from Great Britian. The United States was trying to have stronghold in the Central America region for its trading purposes. The United States sent down the navy and successfully turned away Britian's advancement.
 * Positive Outcome**

Unanimously, the most negative thing Buchanan did as president was do absolutely nothing. There were multiple incidents when this occured. In the panic of 1857, Buchanan did nothing to help the failing economy. Towards the end of his term, the south was beginning to form its Confederacy. Buchanan did not take action against or for the South which only angered the south even more. Even though he supported the southeners, he did not want a war to break out while he was president. This only let the tensions grow higher. Buchanan did not even try to make compromises between the two sides. Both sides were upset with this. Buchanan's worst nightmare was about to happen, the Civil War, and he did absolutely nothing to prevent it.
 * Negative Outcome**

The presidency of James Buchanan left a HUGE impact on future American presidents. He left the United States in turmoil for Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln had to deal with the mess that Buchanan could not handle and was forced into the Civil War. So far, comparing Buchanan to the rest of the presidents, he definately left the United States worse off than any other president before him.
 * Impact**

Overall, James Buchanan was not a very good president. He had very little positive accomplishments over his presidency. He also did not act on some very important situations that deeply affected the nation. As I stated before, Buchanan deserves an F as president.
 * Conclusion**

[] en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_**Buchanan**
 * Bibliography**
 * []**