So, how many people actually get this day off? Like, if I put up a great post today, will pretty much no one see it because they’re too busy celebrating the life of Millard Fillmore?
Yeah, you’re probably saying, “When was the last time you had a great post?” Know what? Screw you. Genius comes when genius comes.
Anyone know anything about Grover Cleveland other than that he serves two non-consecutive terms? I mean, without looking him up on Wikipedia?
I can assume his first term must have been mediocre, and whoever served after him must have sucked, but I don’t know anything for sure except that he screws up the count of how many presidents there were since he usually gets counted twice.
Who was the best one term president? I say hands down it was Polk, but does anyone else have a favorite? BTW, he has to have completed one term, so it can’t be someone who was a really popular president but wasn’t reelected because he was dead, i.e., Kennedy.
45 Comments
Grover Cleveland
Without looking it up, wasn’t he the guy who could write in Latin with one hand and Greek with the other?
Favorite one term prez? Taft.
Um, I don’t get the day off. I think only students do. Does anyone even celebrate this day anyway?
I know nothing about Grover, except that I think his name is the same as one of the characters on Sesame Street.
Favorite one term President: Jimmy Carter. Yes he sucked, but he has given us the most entertainment value of all one-termers (if not of all Presidential terms). My life missed his awful term by a few years, so even though I know he screwed up a lot of things, I can look back and laugh at him.
I agree that Polk was the best one termer; President of Manifest Destiny and all. We need a catchy slogan like that for taking over Mexico…or Cuba…or both.
Lawyers get the day off- woohoo!
I read a story about Pres. Cleveland- he was feeling pretty down on the job during one of his terms, but took time out to entertain a friend and his young son in the Oval Office. Before they left, he told the boy: “I pray for you, little man, that you never become the President of the United States.”
The friend was FDR’s dad, and the little boy apparently wasn’t paying attention…
Great post! I see you’re up on presidential history – Polk (from Columbia TN, BTW…) went into office with a 4 point agenda, accomplished all 4 points, then went home. Got in, got it done, went home. Of course, he was a Jackson crony but hey, no one’s perfect…
Polk is my favorite one termer by far. America would look very different without him.
As for Cleveland, the most interesting thing I know about him is that he was widely rumored to have at least one illegitimate child. I am not sure if he acknowledged one, but there was a whole campaign slogan about it.
The President in between Cleveland was Benjamin Harrison, the grandson of our 74 day President. So there will be precedent when Jenna runs for the office.
Well, the guys who served all of one term (and only one term) were
– John Adams
– John Quincy Adams (I guess if we definitely want a one-term president, we should pick an Adams; I don’t suppose we can get Obama to change his name to John Barak Adams?)
– Martin Van Buren
– James K. Polk
– Franklin Pierce
– James Buchanan
– Rutherford B. Hayes
– Benjamin Harrison
– William H. Taft
– Herbert Hoover
– Jimmy Carter
– George H. W. Bush
And, well,some of these guys were extraordinarily bad presidents (Pierce, Buchanan, Hoover, and Carter most notably). Bush the Elder seems to be pretty good by one-term president standards, actually.
Grover Cleveland’s first name was Stephen. I learned that from “One and Only Genuine Original Family Band”. When Lesley Ann Warren was hot. Old Disney movies ROOL!
Point of order – William Henry Harrison was only in office for 30 days not 74.
As for the best 1 term president, it has got to be Polk. He added almost 1/3 of the land in the lower 48. Won a war. Finnally he was the only one of the one term who voluntarily did not try for a second term.
Yup, I remembered about Cleveland’s by-blow. The way I hear it, his opponent’s supporters would taunt him at rallies by chanting “Ma, ma, where’s my pa?” When he won, his supporters finished the chant with “Gone to the White House, ha ha ha!”
Polk was one of the very best of all presidents.
Chester A. Arthur was a great (and greatly underrated) president. He took over when Garfield got elected and did quite a bit to clean up corruption in government. As a result, he was not nominated for re-election.
Grover Cleveland was the only democrat elected President between 1856 and 1912.
my place of employment is closed today. but I think it has more to do with a massive database migration/update than it being a holiday. they just timed it that way for fun.
Samantha, not any more. There used to be two separate holidays celebrating Washington’s and Lincoln’s birthdays. then they decided to split the difference and make them one holiday. and now of course all Presidents are special.
I agree with MJ. Jimmah Carter is definitely my favorite one-termer. No matter how awful a Republican president may made out or actually be, they’ll always have Carter.
John F. Kennedy did not become really popular until after he was shot and killed. Prior to his death, he was slumping in the polls. That was the primary reason for the trip to Texas, to help his ratings.
I believe his opponents campaigned, “Ma, ma! Where’s my pa!” and Cleveland’s supporters said, “Gone to the White House! Ha, ha, ha!” Along with Andrew Jackson and FDR, he was one of three Presidents who won a plurality of the popular vote at least three times (although there’s probably no record of Jackson having done so, since popular vote wasn’t generally accounted for back then). This makes Harrison II, along with Adams II and Bush II, one of the descendants of presidents elected president themselves, though all three were beaten in popular vote – by Jackson, Cleveland, and Gore, respectively. It finally took someone as sucky as Kerry to lose to a presidential descendant. Cleveland was also one of two bachelors elected, but he married a 21-year-old a few months later, making him the president with the greatest age disparity in marriage. I think he also weaseled out of the Civil War, but all this is by memory, not Wikipedia, so your mileage may vary. I also believe that he was the only Democrat in multi-decade period of otherwise non-stop Republican rule. That was assured by the Civil War and the Panic of 1893 (okay – I had to Google the date of that one).
Are you kidding me?!?! Polk wasn’t just the best 1 term president he topped them all. Polk will go down in history as simply the most bad ass President to ever walk the face of the earth.
Taft never even wanted to be President, and failed to convince the rest of the nation why Liberal Fascism was a bad idea. The 1912 election nearly got us TR again, and instead got us Dr Birth-Of-A-Nation Wilson. Taft was a good Supreme, though.
Likewise John Q Adams was a pretty mediocre prez but did great as a Congressman. (Greatness isn’t always found in the Oval Office. Something for the draft-Newt people to think of.)
Polk? Best. Democrat. Evar. Zombie Polk would eat Obama’s brain, and still have room for Hillary’s for dessert. buuurRRrrrp
I vote Hoover!
Though my favorite ever is Ronald Reagan… even though Teddy was BAD ASS and very awesome. I’ll give hime second place.
…and no day off for me: The U.S. Air Force does not sleep.
Polk’s four goals as President:
Get Oregon territory from England – check
Get California admitted to union – check
Lower tariffs – check (can you imagine a Democrat cutting taxes?)
Create an independent treasury – check
Polk is not only the best one-termer and the best Democrat, he’s in my top five Presidents, behind only Lincoln, Washington, and Reagan and just ahead of Truman.
BTW, only five US Presidents have had brown eyes: JQ Adams, Andrew Johnson, Chester Arthur, LBJ and Nixon and only one of them, Nixon, got re-elected.
Jimmy Carter did wish me a happy b-day on tv, but I think that was a waste since I was not old enough to vote. Bush Sr. good?….no new taxes….well I guess he is not the worst choice. By comparison to Jimmy C. he was leaps and bounds better. I wasn’t alive for the other guys, not sure what they actually did. Although Bush Sr. was riding the wave of Reagan goodness. What a wave that was, even Clinton (Bill) got to ride that one for six or so years.
From memory, so these may be wrong:
Grover Cleveland was governor of New York. Teddy Roosevelt was his protege.
As for one-term Presidents, I’ve always been partial to Franklin Pierce, who evidently was drunk for his entire term. I think that he’s also the only President from New Hampshire.
* So, how many people actually get this day off? Like, if I put up a great post today, will pretty much no one see it because they’re too busy celebrating the life of Millard Fillmore?
More like bemoaning the life of FDR. But I do know who Fillmore is.
Yeah, you’re probably saying, “When was the last time you had a great post?” Know what? Screw you. Genius comes when genius comes.
As a musician, I know this all too well. I prefer not to elaborate.
* Anyone know anything about Grover Cleveland other than that he serves two non-consecutive terms? I mean, without looking him up on Wikipedia?
I do, though I’m not telling. But then, I have a degree in History. That’s why I work in a grocery store.
I can assume his first term must have been mediocre, and whoever served after him must have sucked, but I don’t know anything for sure except that he screws up the count of how many presidents there were since he usually gets counted twice.
Actually, he wasn’t elected the first time, so that doesn’t really count. Zachary Taylor died. It’s (sorta) like Ford getting elected in 1980.
* Who was the best one term president? I say hands down it was Polk, but does anyone else have a favorite? BTW, he has to have completed one term, so it can’t be someone who was a really popular president but wasn’t reelected because he was dead, i.e., Kennedy.
First off,Garfield was the one who could write with both hands.
I like John Tyler best because he basically flipped the bird at the Whig parties agenda and gave us the rules of succession.
Grover Cleveland
Without looking it up, wasn’t he the guy who could write in Latin with one hand and Greek with the other?
Favorite one term prez? Taft.
I should clarify that most one termers were fairly unremarkable and Taft wins by default. In short, there’s a healthy curve when judging one termers.
http://www.cracked.com/article_15895_5-most-badass-presidents-all-time.html
I vote for William Henry Harrison. He did nothing to screw up the US in his 74 days in office.
Um, I don’t get the day off. I think only students do. Does anyone even celebrate this day anyway?
I know nothing about Grover, except that I think his name is the same as one of the characters on Sesame Street.
Favorite one term President: Jimmy Carter. Yes he sucked, but he has given us the most entertainment value of all one-termers (if not of all Presidential terms). My life missed his awful term by a few years, so even though I know he screwed up a lot of things, I can look back and laugh at him.
I agree that Polk was the best one termer; President of Manifest Destiny and all. We need a catchy slogan like that for taking over Mexico…or Cuba…or both.
Lawyers get the day off- woohoo!
I read a story about Pres. Cleveland- he was feeling pretty down on the job during one of his terms, but took time out to entertain a friend and his young son in the Oval Office. Before they left, he told the boy: “I pray for you, little man, that you never become the President of the United States.”
The friend was FDR’s dad, and the little boy apparently wasn’t paying attention…
Turns out it was Garfield that could write both languages with different hands. Got my cartoon characters mixed up.
Great post! I see you’re up on presidential history – Polk (from Columbia TN, BTW…) went into office with a 4 point agenda, accomplished all 4 points, then went home. Got in, got it done, went home. Of course, he was a Jackson crony but hey, no one’s perfect…
Kneel before your leader:
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1777069922535499977&q=a+time+for+choosing&total=1431&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=0
Polk is my favorite one termer by far. America would look very different without him.
As for Cleveland, the most interesting thing I know about him is that he was widely rumored to have at least one illegitimate child. I am not sure if he acknowledged one, but there was a whole campaign slogan about it.
The President in between Cleveland was Benjamin Harrison, the grandson of our 74 day President. So there will be precedent when Jenna runs for the office.
JKS, thank you for that link; I’m still laughing.
Well, the guys who served all of one term (and only one term) were
– John Adams
– John Quincy Adams (I guess if we definitely want a one-term president, we should pick an Adams; I don’t suppose we can get Obama to change his name to John Barak Adams?)
– Martin Van Buren
– James K. Polk
– Franklin Pierce
– James Buchanan
– Rutherford B. Hayes
– Benjamin Harrison
– William H. Taft
– Herbert Hoover
– Jimmy Carter
– George H. W. Bush
And, well,some of these guys were extraordinarily bad presidents (Pierce, Buchanan, Hoover, and Carter most notably). Bush the Elder seems to be pretty good by one-term president standards, actually.
I think it was Grover Cleveland who said “Ninety per cent of our troubles would go away if we just sat down and shut up”.
Grover Cleveland’s first name was Stephen. I learned that from “One and Only Genuine Original Family Band”. When Lesley Ann Warren was hot. Old Disney movies ROOL!
Point of order – William Henry Harrison was only in office for 30 days not 74.
As for the best 1 term president, it has got to be Polk. He added almost 1/3 of the land in the lower 48. Won a war. Finnally he was the only one of the one term who voluntarily did not try for a second term.
Personally, I like Polk, but I think John Adams was better. I’m reading the book John Adams by David McCullough and it’s quite facinating.
Just a question – isn’t Presidents Day only supposed to commemorate the birthdays of Washington and Lincoln?
Yup, I remembered about Cleveland’s by-blow. The way I hear it, his opponent’s supporters would taunt him at rallies by chanting “Ma, ma, where’s my pa?” When he won, his supporters finished the chant with “Gone to the White House, ha ha ha!”
Polk was one of the very best of all presidents.
Chester A. Arthur was a great (and greatly underrated) president. He took over when Garfield got elected and did quite a bit to clean up corruption in government. As a result, he was not nominated for re-election.
Grover Cleveland was the only democrat elected President between 1856 and 1912.
my place of employment is closed today. but I think it has more to do with a massive database migration/update than it being a holiday. they just timed it that way for fun.
Samantha, not any more. There used to be two separate holidays celebrating Washington’s and Lincoln’s birthdays. then they decided to split the difference and make them one holiday. and now of course all Presidents are special.
I agree with MJ. Jimmah Carter is definitely my favorite one-termer. No matter how awful a Republican president may made out or actually be, they’ll always have Carter.
Grover Cleveland: Only U.S. president to get a major Ohio City AND a Sesame Street character named after him.
Can I get a “hell yeah” for Jefferson Davis? Ummm,… did I mention I was raised in The South?
John F. Kennedy did not become really popular until after he was shot and killed. Prior to his death, he was slumping in the polls. That was the primary reason for the trip to Texas, to help his ratings.
I believe his opponents campaigned, “Ma, ma! Where’s my pa!” and Cleveland’s supporters said, “Gone to the White House! Ha, ha, ha!” Along with Andrew Jackson and FDR, he was one of three Presidents who won a plurality of the popular vote at least three times (although there’s probably no record of Jackson having done so, since popular vote wasn’t generally accounted for back then). This makes Harrison II, along with Adams II and Bush II, one of the descendants of presidents elected president themselves, though all three were beaten in popular vote – by Jackson, Cleveland, and Gore, respectively. It finally took someone as sucky as Kerry to lose to a presidential descendant. Cleveland was also one of two bachelors elected, but he married a 21-year-old a few months later, making him the president with the greatest age disparity in marriage. I think he also weaseled out of the Civil War, but all this is by memory, not Wikipedia, so your mileage may vary. I also believe that he was the only Democrat in multi-decade period of otherwise non-stop Republican rule. That was assured by the Civil War and the Panic of 1893 (okay – I had to Google the date of that one).
Are you kidding me?!?! Polk wasn’t just the best 1 term president he topped them all. Polk will go down in history as simply the most bad ass President to ever walk the face of the earth.
Was it Cleaveland or Polk that got stuck in the Bathtub. Whichever, that guy’s my pick.
#30
I think that may have been Taft. Michael Moore would never have that problem if he were President of… anything; at least Taft bathed.
This is a good time for this. I’d recommend listening to the song before reading the lyrics, though.
http://www.jonathancoulton.com/songdetails/The%20Presidents
#30 …definitely Taft in the tub.
#3 …that was hilarious. Had a hard time holding the laughter in. Jackson was the man.
teddy roosevelt was the most badass american ever
Fave Democrat ever: Cleveland. Read the first paragraph on his Wikipedia page and you’ll understand what happened to the Democrats.
Taft never even wanted to be President, and failed to convince the rest of the nation why Liberal Fascism was a bad idea. The 1912 election nearly got us TR again, and instead got us Dr Birth-Of-A-Nation Wilson. Taft was a good Supreme, though.
Likewise John Q Adams was a pretty mediocre prez but did great as a Congressman. (Greatness isn’t always found in the Oval Office. Something for the draft-Newt people to think of.)
Polk? Best. Democrat. Evar. Zombie Polk would eat Obama’s brain, and still have room for Hillary’s for dessert. buuurRRrrrp
(8:29 was me.)
I vote Hoover!
Though my favorite ever is Ronald Reagan… even though Teddy was BAD ASS and very awesome. I’ll give hime second place.
…and no day off for me: The U.S. Air Force does not sleep.
Polk’s four goals as President:
Get Oregon territory from England – check
Get California admitted to union – check
Lower tariffs – check (can you imagine a Democrat cutting taxes?)
Create an independent treasury – check
Polk is not only the best one-termer and the best Democrat, he’s in my top five Presidents, behind only Lincoln, Washington, and Reagan and just ahead of Truman.
BTW, only five US Presidents have had brown eyes: JQ Adams, Andrew Johnson, Chester Arthur, LBJ and Nixon and only one of them, Nixon, got re-elected.
Jimmy Carter did wish me a happy b-day on tv, but I think that was a waste since I was not old enough to vote. Bush Sr. good?….no new taxes….well I guess he is not the worst choice. By comparison to Jimmy C. he was leaps and bounds better. I wasn’t alive for the other guys, not sure what they actually did. Although Bush Sr. was riding the wave of Reagan goodness. What a wave that was, even Clinton (Bill) got to ride that one for six or so years.
Polk. I have a sentimental attachment to Adams, but Polk pretty much kicked butt as far as getting things done.
From memory, so these may be wrong:
Grover Cleveland was governor of New York. Teddy Roosevelt was his protege.
As for one-term Presidents, I’ve always been partial to Franklin Pierce, who evidently was drunk for his entire term. I think that he’s also the only President from New Hampshire.
More like bemoaning the life of FDR. But I do know who Fillmore is.
As a musician, I know this all too well. I prefer not to elaborate.
I do, though I’m not telling. But then, I have a degree in History. That’s why I work in a grocery store.
Actually, he wasn’t elected the first time, so that doesn’t really count. Zachary Taylor died. It’s (sorta) like Ford getting elected in 1980.
I go with John Adams, myself.
How inconvenient, and embarrasing. I misread the post and confused Fillmore and Cleveland.
Never mind.
I stick by Adams.
First off,Garfield was the one who could write with both hands.
I like John Tyler best because he basically flipped the bird at the Whig parties agenda and gave us the rules of succession.
Polk has an awesome TMBG song written about him.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=nGCuDDAPggw