John+-+Buchanan+-+F08

 = = =James Buchanan (April 23, 1791 – June 1, 1868) =

**1857-1861**
James Buchanan, to put it simply, was a bad president. His presidency was full of controversy, including the Dred Scott Case, Bleeding Kansas, John Brown, the Panic of 1857, and more leading up to the Civil War. Seeing as “Old Buck” didn’t really attempt to help prevent the Civil War, he deserves a D- for his presidency. James Buchanan’s goals for his presidency were basically to strengthen the Democratic Party, diminish sectional antagonism, and prevent a Civil War. The first goal was somewhat accomplished, but it was most likely not in the way he had hoped. The Democratic Party strengthened itself to the point that it decided it was powerful enough to break away from the Union, which ultimately resulted in the Civil War. He also did almost nothing to diminish the sectional antagonism. Obviously, the Civil War prevention goal was not achieved at all. Old Buck didn’t have a very good relationship with Congress. He tried to keep a sectional balance in Congress, but as tensions grew worse between the Republicans and Democrats, he began to lose support. He vetoed the Homestead Act, which denied cheap land to settlers and pleased the Southerners. Out of Buchanan’s actions as president, not much can be said about how much he helped America, because he didn’t. Because I can’t think of a certain action with any positive outcome, I’ll just say his best move was not messing up even worse than he did. Although a lot of the things Buchanan did were wrong, his worst act, surprisingly, was his lack of reaction to the Southern secession. When the southern states decided to break away from the Union, Buchanan, although he believed the secession was unconstitutional, did nothing to stop it. He believed he could not take legal action against the South, but because of this judgment, the South seceded successfully, which led to the Civil War briefly afterwards. Buchanan’s actions did affect the future, but it wasn’t for the better. The only time he affected was the period directly after his presidency, where, because of Buchanan’s incompetence, Lincoln had to deal with the problems pushed on from Buchanan’s term. These problems include the Southern secession and the Civil War. Now, the Civil War wasn’t his fault. Old Buck didn’t force the North and the South to hate each other. If he had he would’ve gotten an even lower grade than he did. The D- is simply for not doing much to prevent the oncoming crisis. When he took on the role of president, he took on that responsibility, but it wasn’t fulfilled.
 * VP: John C. Breckinridge**

“James Buchanan (1857-1861).” //Miller Center of Public Affairs.// 2008. University of Virginia. 20 October 2008. 

“James Buchanan.” //The White House//. Washington. 21 October 2008. 

Osbourne, John. “James Buchanan (1791-1868).” //Their Own Words//. 9 July 2003. 22 October 2008. .