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Presidency of James Buchanan (American Presidency (Univ of Kansas Hardcover)) ReviewJames Buchanan entered the presidency in 1857 under difficult circumstances. This book tries to elucidate Buchanan's southern position, his inability to coalesce the factions in the Democratic party, and allegiance to a Jacksonian era of the past. Although the author does not portray Buchanan as a shrewd politician, he does recognize that the president tried to avert a Civil War. Furthermore, the chapter about secession clarifies the disunity in southern politics. In addition, the author explains how the slavery dispute thwarted Buchanan's quest for territorial expansion, especially his desire to annex Cuba. Besides, this penetrating study analyzes the economic panic of 1857 and the ultimate corruption in Buchanan's cabinet. In summary,Buchanan emerges as neither weak nor incompetent, but rather a man who had a clear purpose in mind. Unfortunately, Buchanan did not ameliorate the animosities about slavery and he has gone down in history as a much disparaged president.The prose made it a bit tedious to read. Also, the author treats some topics with such brevity (for instance the panic of 1857) that it helps to already have some familiarity with this subject.Presidency of James Buchanan (American Presidency (Univ of Kansas Hardcover)) OverviewThis book offers conclusions that are very different from most of the traditional historical interpretations of the Buchanan presidency. Historians have either condemned Buchanan for weakness and vacillation or portrayed him as a president dedicated to peace who did everything constitutionally possible to avoid war. Under the scrutiny of Elbert B. Smith, Buchanan emerges as a strong figure who made vital contributions not to peace but to the accelerating animosities that produced the war."Historians who have considered the Civil War a necessary and justifiable price for the destruction of slavery should feel a debt to James Buchanan," Smith writes. "Those who think the war could and should have been avoided owe him nothing."Most of the accounts of the era have concentrated on the Dred Scott Case, Bleeding Kansas and the Lecompton Constitution, the Lincoln-Douglas debates, John Brown, the rise of the Republicans and the disintegration of the Democrats, the election of 1860, and the bitter quarrels over slavery extension occasioned by these events. Buchanan has often appeared on a stage occupied by more important actors.Whether or not the war was already inevitable by March, 1857, cannot be proved. That a subsequent series of emotion-packed events filled both North and South with rage and fear, triggering secession and the war, is undebatable. It is Smith's theory that Buchanan, in leading the United States through these fateful years, added much to the war spirit that developed in both sections. Driven by affection and sympathy for the Southerners, he tried to satisfy their demands for slavery rights in the territories. This aroused bitter anti-South feelings throughout the North, which foiled his efforts and further convinced the Southerners that they could no longer have their way inside the Union. The one event that finally triggered the Southern secession was the election of a Republican president, and Buchanan's agreement with the Southern demands and his personal hatred for Stephen A. Douglas did much to accomplish this.Covering the most controversial period in American history, Smith presents important new evaluations for the consideration of students of both the Civil War and the presidency.This book is part of the American Presidency Series.Want to learn more information about Presidency of James Buchanan (American Presidency (Univ of Kansas Hardcover))?
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