Vice-Presidential Trivia at CNN

CNN has a neat story titled A Celebration of Almost-Great Men. It has some trivia relating to American Vice-Presidents. It was written by Linda Rodriguez. Of course, if being a great man means becoming President, two of the men noted achieved that goal.

Here are a few highlights:

* Two Vice-Presidents were charged with treason. Both actually appear to have been guilty. These were Aaron Burr and John Breckenridge.

* Richard M. Johnson who - "Despite his credentials as a war hero and a Kentucky senator, Vice President Richard M. Johnson was never accepted in Washington. Perhaps that's because he dressed like a farmhand, cursed like a sailor, and made no secret of his three black mistresses, who were also his slaves."

* William Rufus de Vane King, who was sworn into office in Cuba and died 25 days later from tuberculosis and severe alcoholism.

* Henry Wallace, believer in eastern mysticism and a communist sympathizer.

President Chester Arthur and President Andrew Johnson are also covered in the article.

FDR Articles

I read a recent article in US News & World Report about FDR’s 30 year affair. Well, when I sent to the site to find the article to put up here, but I found a bunch of interesting articles, so I thought I’d share them all in one post.

FDR’s Secret Love – this is the one I was actually looking for it. It is excerpted from a book on FDR’s long term (30 year) affair with Lucy Rutherford. When Eleanor found out about this, she offered Franklin a divorce, but Sara Roosevelt put her foot down and threatened to disinherit him if he did. In addition, his political advisors told him divorce would spell the end of his political career.

FDR and Melanoma – FDR’s various medical problems have been explored in recent years as they were long covered up during his Presidency. This article tried to diagnosis the lesion above FDR’s left eyebrow as melanoma. The article ascertains that if FDR did have melanoma, it probably was benign and not life-threatening.

The Black Mark on FDR’s Presidency – This article explores why FDR, generally a humanitarian, ordered the incarnation of the Japanese-Americans during WWII. The article says that the entire US was up in arms in worry about these possible “traitors” and were pushing for it and FDR’s sin is simply giving in to the hype and paranoia.

Happy Mother's Day

President Bush's Mother Day Radio Message:
Good morning. Today is my daughter Jenna's wedding day. This is a joyous occasion for our family, as we celebrate the happy life ahead of her and her husband Henry. It's also a special time for Laura, who this Mother's Day weekend will watch a young woman we raised together walk down the aisle.

Mother's Day is a special time for mothers all across America. On this holiday, we pause to celebrate the love and compassion of the women who have raised us, and to thank them for the many years of patience and selflessness. Throughout our lives, mothers are there with an encouraging word, a sympathetic ear, and a tender heart. They set our direction in life, and from time to time they have been known to correct our course.

Like many of you, my life has been blessed by a mother who is a source of unconditional love. Those of us who have been so fortunate are forever in debt to these caring women. So on this holiday weekend, we celebrate all those mothers who help make our country a better place.
On this Mother's Day weekend, we think of the mothers who are celebrating this holiday for the very first time. Few blessings can compare to starting a new family. And few bonds are stronger than those between a mother and her newborn baby. This is also a special time for new adoptive mothers, who have welcomed their children into their homes with open arms and an open heart. We wish all these new parents many happy Mother's Days to come.

On this Mother's Day weekend, we think of the many mothers who raised the brave men and women serving our country in uniform. And to those mothers, I offer the thanks of a grateful Nation. Your sons and daughters are defending our freedom with dignity and honor. And America appreciates the sacrifices that your families make in the name of duty.

On this Mother's Day weekend, we remember the mothers grieving a son or daughter lost in the service to their country, as well as the children who have lost a mother in uniform. We share their pride in these wonderful Americans who have given everything to protect our people from harm. Nothing we say can ever make up for their loss. But on this special day, we hold them in our hearts and we lift them in our prayers.

I wish every mother listening this morning a blessed Mother's Day, including my own. And I have a message for every son and daughter listening this morning: Remember to tell mom the first thing tomorrow how much you love her.

Thank you for listening.

Mother's Day was first declared a holiday under Woodrow Wilson.

Jenna Bush and Henry Hager

Mr. and Mrs. Henry Hager with family
Jenna and Henry
Jenna and her father

Although this wedding was done in private with no media, I'm sure we will be inudated in the following days. The linked article is from USAToday and the pictures are from the White House's site.

No Rose Garden Wedding

Jenna Bush is getting married today - and not in the Rose Garden, but at home in Texas. Here are the details:
Bride: Jenna Welch Bush
Groom: Henry Chase Hager
Place: President Bush's Prairie Chapel Ranch, Crawford, Texas
Guests: More than 200 friends and relatives
Attendants: 14 women known as members of the "house party," not bridesmaids
Bride's gown designer: Oscar de la Renta
Ring: The diamond, a Hager family heirloom, reset in a ring that also features sapphires.
Maid of Honor: Jenna's twin sister, Barbara.
Ceremony site: At a cross made of beige Texas limestone erected near a lake on the ranch.
Engagement: Aug. 15, 2007 at Acadia National Park in Maine.

And for more information, check out this article.

The Left Starts to Rethink Reagan

Ronald Reagan has been considered a successful American President by most Americans since during and after his presidency from 1981-1989. This has not always been believed by those on the left of the political spectrum. This may be changing. Newsweek has an article online titled The Left Starts to Rethink Reagan. The article is by Evan Thomas and recounts an interview with Sean Wilentz (Left) and George Will (Right).

Here is the quote that got my notice. It is from Wilentz. He said, "It's no secret that intellectuals, generally being liberals, didn't think much of Ronald Reagan at the time. Unlike Roosevelt, who got covered right away—as soon as he died there were books out about [him]—it took people a long time to catch up with Ronald Reagan. But I think that now they can no longer ignore him. His impact on the world and country, whether you like it or not, was so important that to ignore him is to ignore an entirety of American politics."

Obviously, this quote can be taken in many ways. However, the rest of the article shows that Wilentz believes Reagan was a successful president even if he does not agree with everything that Reagan did.

It is tough to judge a President who was in office in our lifetimes. Our own political interests cloud our judgements. This is true of historians as well. It takes time to determine how successful a president was whether they be ultimate failures or successes or somewhere between.

Wilentz has just published a book titled The Age of Reagan. It looks like a good book to read. I will buy a copy for my library. Whether you liked Reagan or not, it looks like it may be a good read.

Happy Birthday, Harry!

Today is Harry Truman's 124th birthday (born May 8, 1884), so I thought I'd share something from his library site. You can read the log of Truman's trip to the Berlin Conference in 1945. First, a summary of the event:
In the late summer of 1945, President Truman journeyed to Berlin for a conference between the three major allied powers-the United States, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union. The President and his party sailed from the United States to Antwerp, Belgium aboard the U. S. S. Augusta, a heavy cruiser, and traveled by plane and car to Berlin. This particular trip was different than most other trips the President made, as it took place during wartime. While on board the ship, the President witnessed several military exercises, including radar-tracking demonstrations, target practice ships, and the landing of planes on ships at sea. He also participated in an "abandon ship" drill.

While at this conference, Truman met both Josef Stalin and Winston Churchill for the first time. The three leaders and their advisors settled many issues, including the establishment of a Council of Foreign Ministers to further work on the peace treaties, the governing of Germany during occupation by the Allies, German reparations, the methods for handling war criminals, and the admission of the defeated countries to the United Nations, and other topics.

As Truman met with the British and Russians to prepare for peace, preparations were also taking place for the final assault on Japan. Truman received word of the first successful test of the atomic bomb while in Potsdam, and authorized its use against Japan. On his return voyage after the conference, the United States dropped the first atomic bomb over Hiroshima, which gave President Truman great hope that the war would soon be over.

Now you can go check out each day of his trip online. I just picked a random day to share some of the log - July 25:
0920: Admiral Lord Louis Moutbatten (Supreme Commander, Allied Forces in the India-Burma Theatre) called on the President at the Little White House.

1000: General Marshall called on the President.

1035: The Presidend and his party left the Little White House for Cecilienhof where they arrived at 1045. Before the conference was called to order, the President, the Prime Minister, and the Generalissimo posed in the Palace garden for still and motion pictures. Photographers (service and civilian) from all three nations were represented.

1100: The Big Three and other delegates entered the conference room and the ninth meeting of the Berlin Conference was called to order by the President. The meeting adjourned at 1200, at which time the President left to return to the Little White House.

Admiral Leahy, accompanied by Rear Admiral H.A. Flenigan, U.S.N., Captain Vardaman, Colonel Rusk, Lieutenant Elsey, Lieutenant Edelstein, Lieutenant Rigdon, and First Lieutenant Vardaman left Babelsberg this morning for a flight to London. They returned to Babelsberg Thursday afternoon.

2000: Ambassador Murphy, Ambassador Caffery, and General Somervell were dinner guests at the Little White House this evening. Dinner music was played by an eight-piece band from the 278th Army Ground Force band with Staff Sergeant Joe Borrelli conducting. Vocal selections were rendered by Pfc Jules Navarra.

You can go enjoy the rest as well as lots of other documents on the trip.

TR in San Franciso

Here is a New York Times article that talks about Theodore Roosevelt's visit to San Francisco in 1903. What made me go find this article is that I've been watching "Mega Diasters" on the History Channel - the one about the San Francisco Earthquake of 1906. TR stayed the Palace Hotel in 1903 and this building - supposedly earthquake-proof and fire-proof - was completely destroyed in this diaster.