The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly of American Presidents: Part 3

All too often, American presidents are generalized. This one was good, this one was bad, or all of them were bad before or after this point. In reality, each President has positive or negative aspects that may be frequently overlooked. Sometimes what seemed good at the time is not so good in retrospect, or what was controversial would be accepted today. In this series, we'll look at the highlights of each President from the founding of America to today.

In Part 2, we looked at the presidencies of Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. We now continue with two more influential presidents, James Monroe and John Quincy Adams.

5. James Monroe (in office March 4, 1817 – March 4, 1825)

Monroe served in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War.

He served as governor of Virginia, a member of the Continental Congress, a member of the United States Senate, and U.S. ambassador to France and Britain.

Under President Madison, he served as US Secretary of State and Secretary of War at the same time.

Operating as a special envoy of President Jefferson, Monroe was key to the Louisiana Purchase.

Monroe's leadership helped win the War of 1812, ushering in the Era of Good Feelings and making Monroe the clear successor to President Madison.

Achievements as President

Last founding father to serve as president, and last president of what became known as "the Virginia Dynasty", since Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe were each from Virginia.

He issued "the Monroe Doctrine", a core position in American foreign policy that limits European colonialism in the area of North America.

Following the collapse of the Federalist Party, Monroe was able to run for a second term, virtually unopposed.

Working with Secretary of State John Quincy Adams, Monroe worked to strengthen relations with Great Britain and jointly oppose the Spanish Empire. As part of this effort, Monroe signed the Adams-Onis Treaty in which Spain ceded Florida to the United States and defining what part of the North American continent was American territory and what part was New Spain (now Mexico).

Monroe signed several treaties with Great Britain regulating their activities in North America, normalizing relations, setting the border between the US and Canada, and strengthening trade.

As Americans spread west, reaching the Pacific Northwest, clashes occurred with Russia, as their own explorers and settlers had reached the west coast as far south as San Francisco. To ease tensions, Monroe signed two treaties with Russia, limiting their claim to territory at the southernmost tip of Alaska.

As the Spanish empire continued to collapse, Mexico and multiple areas of South America, including Argentina, Peru, Chile, and Colombia, declared independence from Spain, following the example of America's independence from Great Britain. While Monroe kept America out of their conflicts, he did recognize their independence and reach out to them to provide guidelines for trade and operations as long as they provided most favored nation status to the U.S.

In 1819, multiple factors resulted in a harsh decline in the economy and the first economic depression in American history. Because banks were regulated by the states, not the federal government, there was little Monroe could do to improve the situation, but he did what he could, greatly reducing defense spending and asking Congress for a tariff increase. When Congress refused, the ongoing high unemployment rates and massive increase in foreclosures prompted reflected badly on banks, businesses, and Congress, not Monroe.

Monroe was the first president to visit the American West.

When he ran for reelection in 1820, no serious challengers rose against him and he ran unopposed, the only president other than Washington to do so.

Failures

While he ran unopposed in the 1820 election, Monroe didn't get a unanimous vote. One elector who believed Monroe to be incompetent voted for John Quincy Adams.

Monroe had no major failures during his time as president, though there were no major challenges that were under his control.

Controversies

Monroe opposed ratification of the Constitution.

Monroe opposed the creation of the Electoral College.

He was a slave owner, but a member of the American Colonization Society, which supported the colonization of Africa by freed slaves. For that reason, the capital of Liberia is named Monrovia in his honor.

As president, Monroe signed the Missouri Compromise, admitting Missouri into the union as a slave state, but limiting which areas of the country could be considered slave states, effectively dividing the country between slave and free states.

While he dedicated areas of American territory in the west to Native Americans to provide for their peaceful existence and resettlement, he saw Native Americans who didn't assimilate to mainstream life as an obstacle to American expansion and prosperity.

6. John Quincy Adams (in office March 4, 1825 – March 4, 1829)

Aided his father, John Adams, in diplomatic efforts before and during the Revolutionary War.

Represented Massachusetts in Congress.

Appointed by President Washington to be diplomat to the Netherlands, and later Ambassador to Portugal.

Appointed by President John Adams to be Ambassador to Prussia, and in that role negotiated a new trade agreement with Prussia.

Appointed by President Madison to be the first Minister to Russia.

As a diplomat, helped negotiate the end of the War of 1812.

Served as Secretary of State under President Monroe.

Working with President Monroe, Adams worked to strengthen relations with Great Britain and jointly oppose the Spanish Empire. As part of this effort, forged the Adams-Onis Treaty, signed by Monroe, in which Spain ceded Florida to the United States and defining what part of the North American continent was American territory and what part was New Spain (now Mexico).

Helped formulate the Monroe Doctrine, one of the central parts of U.S. foreign policy.

After serving as president, was elected to the House of Representatives. He remains the only former president to serve in the House.

Achievements as President

One of only 2 of the first 12 presidents to never own a slave (the other being his father).

First son of a president to be elected President.

Adams' cabinet was harmonious, and purposefully selected from a variety of regions of the U.S., to provide maximum viewpoints and support.

Under the direction of Adams, the Army Corps of Engineers surveyed areas for a number of development projects, the national road was extended from Cumberland, Maryland to Zanesville, Ohio, and multiple canals were started or expanded.

The first passenger railroad, the Baltimore and Ohio, was completed during Adams' presidency, partially using federal funds.

Adams administration forged numerous trade agreements with areas including Denmark, Sweden, Hawaii, Central America, Prussia, and Tahiti.

Failures

Adams had a stated agenda that included formal relations with Latin America, the founding of a national university, and federal funding for infrastructure, but all of these were blocked by Congress.

During his tenure, Adams' party, the Democratic Republicans, split into two parties, with the new National Republican party backing Adams and the Andrew Jackson's new Democratic Party backing Andrew Jackson. Jackson, backed by the Democrats, then went on to defeat Adams in his bid for reelection, making him the second incumbent president to be defeated, the first being his father, John Adams.

While he had avoided taking a stand on tariffs, not wanting to anger supporters in New England or the South, Adams signed the Tariff of 1828, which came to be known as "The Tariff of Abominations", and made him unpopular in the South.

Controversies

In the 1824 presidential election, one of the 4 candidates received a majority of the electoral votes, leading once again (as in 1800) to an election in the House of Representatives. Adams won, but only after an endorsement by Speaker Henry Clay, who was also one of Adams' opponents in the election. After winning the election, Adams made Clay Secretary of State, described by supporters of fellow candidate Andrew Jackson as a "corrupt bargain."

As a member of Congress, Adams opposed the annexation of Texas as a state, mainly because it would have added another slave state to the U.S.

When inaugurated, Adams placed his hand and swore on a book of constitutional law, not a Bible.

Upon learning that treaties with Native Americans in Georgia were being violated, Adams signed a new treaty with them. While he favored Native American assimilation with mainstream Americans, Adams thought they should not be forced to relocate. Under the new treaty, the Muscogee Indians were allowed to stay, but much of their land was ceded to the state of Georgia. Georgians overwhelmingly favored removal of all Native Americans, and this treaty made Adams unpopular in Georgia.

Next: Andrew Jackson, Martin Van Buren, and William Henry Harrison