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Ulysses S. Grant Republican Two terms (1869-1877) 75-77 no VP Vice President Schuyler Colfax (1869-1873) Vice President Henry Wilson (1873-1875) President Ulysses S. Grant a.k.a. Sam Grant had been an active member in the army before be coming president. But his time as a president is not nearly as appreciated as his time as a soldier. Grant failed to regain control for future presidents and that meant congress had control and they decided most things. For this and more reasons to come President Grants a C+ not for lack of effort but for lack of results. Ulysses S. Grant was a shoe-in for president, though he claimed to have no real intentions to be elected it was undeniable. Sadly he could not live up to the hype. It was a time after Johnson who was a let down from Lincoln and Grant could not pick up the slack either. He did not help himself by making some poor selections based on the spoils system. He elected a lot of people who helped him get to where he was. He can be given a little slack because he took over during one of the toughest times in our history, reconstruction. Still he made a major mistake. Grant on many occasions did not interfere with the south's conflicts in fear of the federal government becoming a scapegoat. This lack of action also allowed corruption to grow in southern governments. Grant had intentions to help blacks witch he did do and intentions to fix the south that he didn't do effectively. One of Grants major accomplishments of his presidency was the passing and the enforcement of the Fifteenth Amendment. He did this during reconstruction and really mad an impact on the future of the country. The right for blacks to vote would give more power to the north. The Enforcement act was also very important in his Presidency this made the people of the north and south follow the fifteenth amendment. It was successful until the KKK. The KKK scared many blacks out of voting. It didn't help that Ulysses Grant did not remain steady with his intervention in the crime in the south. Another aspect that was an issue for Grant was his Fiscal Policy.During Ulysses' first term there was a major gold scandal led by Jay Gould and James Fisk. Their plot to stop gold from being sold to deflate the market so that they would make off with a profit was clever and success. Then Grant's administration caught on and flooded the market with about 4million dollars worth of gold. As a result, even though Grant had nothing to do with the scheme, the Gould/Fisk scam a.k.a. Black Friday really damaged his reputation. The Panic of 1873 was another problem in Grants terms. The Wall Street firms that went under were one part of a nationwide depression. The Panic included a depression in Europe also. No matter what the reasons for the panic Grant still made a mistake in Vetoing the Inflation bill. That was a decision that was not good for the country. That meant that more greenbacks wouldn't be put into circulation therefore not ending the depresion. In the end Ulysses S. Grant left the country in decent condition considering what he got it in. He also made strides in reconstruction and civil rights. The fact that Grant let the power of the presidency sway to the congress and his poor decisions of lack of intervention all earn Grant a C+ for his overall presidency.

Bibliography [] http://www.classroomhelp.com/lessons/Presidents/grant.html [] http://www.usa-presidents.info/grant.htm