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Ulysses Grant Born: April 27, 1822 Died: July 3, 1885 Party: Republican Terms: (1st) 1869-1873 and (2nd) 1873-1877 Vice President: (1st, 1869-1873) Schuyler Colfax, (2nd, 1873-1875) Henry Wilson

Andrew Johnson had left a bad mark on America, especially during the dire times of the needed reconstruction in the South. With that in mind, Americans turned to Ulysses Grant, the almighty military hero from the Civil War. Unfortunately, though Grant displayed good intentions for the country, he was hindered by his lack of political experience and refusal to get involved with party politics. His presidency was filled with corruption and scandals, including the widespread Panic of 1873. This being said, although Grant was seen as the war hero, that only reflected his good intentions-not all of his actions. Therefore, he deserves a “D+” for his presidency.

The goals of Grant were actually quite respectable and understandable. In his first election, he claimed that he wanted his peace throughout his presidency, which after Johnson was a relief the American people. This goal, however, was not carried out well due to numerous scandals and the Panic of 1873 during his administration. Grant also wanted to follow Lincoln’s policy of restructuring the South, which he attempted to do under the best intentions. Despite that, the North and the South ended up getting tired of his plans and military involvement. His final goal was to protect the newly freed slaves in the South, which he did in ratifying the 15th Amendment. Yet this Amendment was still challenged day by day. In the end, although the goals Grant had were well put together, they were not able to be properly carried out.

Grant’s relationship with Congress was not the best. At first he refused to appoint people to his cabinet just for political leverage, and instead put people he knew he could trust and depend on. Obviously this seemed like a good idea at the time, but some congressman, Grant’s personal secretary, and even the vice-president become involved in the many scandals during Grant’s presidency. Looking at legislation, Grant passed some notable bills including the Enforcement Acts (1870) and within that the Klu Klux Klan Acts (1871) which were meant to protect African-Americans, the Treaty of Washington (1871) that served as a resolution with the U.S. and Britain from the Alabama incident during the Civil War, and the Specie Resumption Act (1875) during the Panic of 1873 which withdrew greenbacks from circulation and pledged the government to the redemption of the paper currency in gold. Within Congress, Democrats and Republicans were fairly even, so Grant didn’t quite have a majority party of which he could rely on which also didn’t help his relationship.

In Grant’s presidency, the most positive outcome would have to be his dedication in protecting African-Americans. In the 19th century, he did more to protect these rights than any other president. . The most notable action by Grant and the one he fought the most for was the ratification of the 15th Amendment, which gave African-Americans the right to vote. Along with the 15th Amendment, he passed the Enforcement Acts which helped protect the African-Americans’ right to vote. The Klu Klux Klan Act, within the Enforcement Acts, went into specifics by resisting any terrorizing acts in the South. By far, going to all this effort to protect African-Americans should definitely be recognized as the positive point in Grant’s administration. Although this protection wasn’t supported, at least Grant made headway on what would later come in fighting for African-American rights.

While Grant only had a couple positive outcomes during his presidency, the negative outcomes definitely shone through. The most negative would have to be the numerous scandals Grant faced, although he himself wasn’t part of any of them. In “Black Friday”, James Fisk and Jay Gould set out to corner the gold market, driving up prices which crashed businesses and ultimately became a cause for the Panic of 1873. The Panic involved bankrupt businesses, issuing of greenbacks to debters for inflation, and the hard money policy, all of which were hard hits on the economy. Other scandals included the Credit Mobilizer and the Whiskey Ring, where the vice-president and Grant’s personal secretary were found stealing money. Grant added more to the wound by interceding on his secretary’s behalf. If anything, Grant should have done more to prevent these scandals from happening, included more congressional investigations and check-ups. In an attempt to help Grant passed the first Civil Service Commission, which required congressman to be well-qualified for a position, but Congress didn’t pass the necessary legislation to make this change possible.

Grant’s biggest impact to the United States would have to be the ratification of the 15th Amendment. Even though it wasn’t supported by Americans at first, it should be remembered that tensions were high during the time period, especially racially. In essence, any Constitutional Amendment impacts the United States for future generations. Also in this Amendment was the foreshadowing and future freedoms African-Americans would encounter later in the 20th century. It was a giant step for voting rights, and also encouraged Woman’s Suffrage after. Indirectly, this was also a step into recognizing national equality.

In conclusion, while Grant had good intentions and fought well for African-American rights, his administration was filled with corruption, scandals, and the discontent of the people. However, even with all this said, the positives the nation received because of his administration such as the ratification of the 15th amendment leads to believe that the nation was better off with him as a former president. Still, these positives do not completely overshadow the numerous scandals and acts of corruption involved during his administration, and thus Ulysses Grant deserves a “D+”.

Sources: "American President: Ulysses Simpson Grant." Miller Center of Public Affairs. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 Apr. 2010. . Cohen, Lizabeth, David M. Kennedy, and Mel Piehl. The Brief American Pageant: A History of the Republic. 12 ed. Alexandria, VA: Not Avail, 2007. Print. Degregorio, William A.. The Complete Book of U.S. Presidents, Seventh Edition (Complete Book of Us Presidents). 7 ed. Fort Lee: Barricade Books, 2009. Print.