List at least 5 of the Presidents (who did not die in office) listed on slide 3 and provide the reason for their percieved weak presidency

Question

Using the article below.

Before and during the Civil War, the presidency had held great power. After Lincoln’s assassination, the balance of power in Washington, D.C. began to shift. Grant’s administration marked the beginning of an era of weak presidencies. Most presidents in the Gilded Age struggled to earn more than 50 percent of the popular vote. This meant that they lacked a mandate, or sufficient approval from voters to be confident that their parties’ platforms represented the voters’ interests. Members of Congress were more likely to oppose the policies of presidents who seemed to lack strong public support.

Short Terms and Unpopular Policies
After Grant left office, the election of 1876 ended with neither candidate having earned enough electoral votes to claim victory. Rutherford B. Hayes eventually took office under the Compromise of 1877, a backroom deal that shifted electoral votes in his favor. An unwritten agreement decided the presidency, ended Reconstruction, and marked the start of the Jim Crow system in the South. Even though the compromise brought an end to Reconstruction in the South, many Democrats felt that they had been cheated. Their candidate, Samuel J. Tilden, had actually won the popular vote by over 300,000 votes and fallen just one electoral vote short of victory. The power of later presidents was further eroded by many different factors. All of them owed political favors. Some had their terms cut short by assassination or illness. Others were elected to just one term due to unpopular policies. For all of these reasons, Congress, not presidents, dominated the U.S. government in the Gilded Age. Big business campaign donors, in turn, dominated Congress.

Answer 1

Here are five U.S. Presidents from the Gilded Age who did not die in office, along with the reasons for their perceived weak presidencies:

1. Rutherford B. Hayes (1877-1881)

   • Reason for Weak Presidency: Hayes came to power through the Compromise of 1877, which ended Reconstruction. Many Democrats felt cheated by the electoral process, as they believed Samuel J. Tilden had legitimately won the popular vote. This lack of a strong mandate meant that Hayes struggled to unify the country and faced significant opposition from Congress.

2. James A. Garfield (1881)

   • Reason for Weak Presidency: Garfield's presidency was cut short by assassination, with only a few months in office. He faced significant challenges from factions within his own party and was unable to consolidate power or implement a strong agenda before his death.

3. Chester A. Arthur (1881-1885)

   • Reason for Weak Presidency: Arthur succeeded Garfield but lacked a strong mandate from the electorate, having assumed the presidency after Garfield's assassination. His support for civil service reform was not universally popular, and his administration struggled to assert itself amidst a divided Congress.

4. Grover Cleveland (1885-1889 and 1893-1897)

   • Reason for Weak Presidency: Cleveland was a controversial figure; although he was elected twice non-consecutively, he faced significant opposition to his policies, particularly his commitment to fiscal conservatism and the gold standard. His lack of widespread popularity—evidenced by his failure to secure a majority in the elections each time—led to difficulties in enacting his agenda.

5. Benjamin Harrison (1889-1893)

   • Reason for Weak Presidency: Harrison's presidency was marked by a lack of strong public support, culminating in his loss to Cleveland in the 1892 election. He dealt with significant opposition in Congress and faced challenges in implementing his policies, particularly regarding tariffs and civil rights.

The overall political landscape during the Gilded Age saw Congress asserting dominance over a series of weakened presidencies, making it difficult for individual presidents to implement coherent and influential policies.