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Title: The Dark Horse: The Surprise Election and Political Murder of President James A. Garfield by Kenneth D. Ackerman ISBN: 0-7867-1151-5 Publisher: Carroll & Graf Pub. Date: June, 2003 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $28.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 5 (15 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Partisan politics that can lead to political murder...
Comment: History has afforded us many instances where the power and conversely the "adolescence" of political party in-fighting has seemingly affected our abilty to govern ourselves. Never was this theory put to greater practice than in 1880 when Ohio Senator James A. Garfield was surprisingly nominated and then (with help from the New York "political machinery") elected as the Republican Party candidate for President. Subsequently, and to Garfield's great surprise (and his untimely death), the "makers" of his election victory, whether real or imagined, expected to be rewarded. The resulting political in-fighting and backstabbing are the basis for this marvelous work by congressional historian Kenneth Ackerman. Wonderfully written and amazingly comprehensive, this account brings back to light the provocative Gilded Age period of our government and shows what "power politics" can do when adequately (in-adequately?) challenged.
The story of James Garfield's short Presidential term and assasination has previously been covered in general terms in many Presidential histories, but nowhere have I read such a focused and sublime account of this man and this period as in this book. Republicans in 1880 were set to re-nominate Ulysses Grant for an unprecedented 3rd term as President. This effort is led by Roscoe Conkling (calling his faction the "Stalwarts"), an arrogant and flamboyant Senator from New York, then the "mecca" of politcal machinery and power. His (Conkling's) political enemy James Blaine (leading the "Half-Breeds") is set to oppose Grant for the nomination and the ensuing gridlock blossomes at the Republican convention in Chicago. To break the roadblock (and it finally took a record 36 ballots), party members initiate votes for Garfield, himself there simply as an Ohio delegate for candidate John Sherman, then Rutherford Hayes's Treasury Secretary. Seeking to offset the "machinery", one State after another chooses to switch their vote...the result is that Garfield garners enough votes for the nomination. Then for Garfield to consolidate support from both the Stalwarts and Half-Breeds, he does not oppose the nomination (the conventions also chose the Vice Presidential candidate in those days) of Chester Arthur (a key New York Stalwart and Conkling ally) as his Vice-Presidential running mate and also makes tacit promises for patronage for both sides if they would help him get elected.
Upon his election, Garfield discovers just how acute the patronage issue is and decides to balance his Cabinet with leaders from both sides...this only serves to antagonize Conkling (Blaine is named Secretary of State, at the time the 2nd most powerful office next to the President) who then resorts to villifying Garfield in the press. Many of the Stalwart supporters rally around Conkling including a fringe supporter named Charles Guiteau, himself pursuing a foreign consul position after minor assistance in the campaign. Ackerman describes all this in clear and concise detail while still maintaining an amazing readability component. He shows how Guiteau's dementia escalates into a controlled fury and how the "removal" of Garfield would make everything well for the Stalwarts. Indeed, Ackerman's ability to place the reader well inside the minds of these major players leads one to effortlessly see each perspective.
Guiteau then of course shoots Garfield (saying "I am a Stalwart and Arthur will be president") at a train station in Washington and Ackerman discusses Garfield's death and Guiteau's trial and excecution brilliantly. The reader really feels all the emotion and sense of loss as the nation suffers through the 2nd Presidential assasination in history and the rage at Guiteau for his senseless act. Ackerman then exonerates Arthur and shows him to be an honest (although clearly not Executive Office material) and hard-working President. The underlying thread throughout this work, however, is the clear and present danger that petty partisan politics plays in making or breaking any candidate or office holder. Garfield, an otherwise decent and honest man, becomes entwined in the web of political patronage and seemingly loses perspective for the presidency and not until he takes a stand against the "machine" (read Conkling) does he become effective as a leader. Unfortunately for America, he does not get the chance to build on this moral stance and the country loses someone who may have been an exemplary president.
It really is a cliche to say that any historical work reads like a novel but it is really true with Ackerman's book. He has crafted an amazingly readable historical piece and deserves mention amoung the many gifted political history writers today. This tome should appeal to the historian and the general reader interested in politics and I recommend it highly.
Rating: 5
Summary: Incredible political history narrative!
Comment: Although many people know that James Abram Garfield was President of the United States of America, few people know that he was the second President assassinated while in office. Fewer yet know the reality of how he became President, what he accomplished (or failed to accomplish), and why someone saw fit for him to die.
Kenneth Ackerman does a remarkable job of tackling these tough topics in his new book Dark Horse: The Surprise Election and Political Murder of President James A. Garfield. The Republican National Convention of 1880, where Garfield was selected as the party's nominee for President (over the likes of U.S. Grant, John Sherman, and James G. Blaine), is the starting point for the book. Ackerman explains how and why Garfield got the nomination over these better known politicians of the era. Once nominated, of course, Garfield was in the throes of the campaign to be elected President. Here again, Ackerman details Garfield's "front porch" campaign, and the political maneuvering that went on behind the scenes to make his election a reality over the Democratic candidate, Winfield Scott Hancock.
Once elected President, Garfield was immediately confronted with job-seekers looking for a "plum" job in the administration. Many of the "applicants" had assisted in the campaign in one way or another, though some (like Charles Guiteau) significantly over-valued their efforts. While reading the book, it initially seems that perhaps the patronage issue is overdone, but it becomes clear why when Ackerman explains the significance of Charles Guiteau.
Guiteau is the man that actually shot Garfield in a train station in Washington in 1881. Ackerman makes an extremely compelling case for Guiteau's rationalization as to why he must "remove" the President from office, based in no small part upon Garfield's failure to provide Guiteau with the foreign minister position that he so desired. The death of President Garfield is also addressed in the book, as is the elevation of Chester A. Arthur into the Presidency, although these topics are given minimal attention, as is appropriate given the title of the book.
Overall, I would heartily recommend this book to anyone that has an interest in the American Presidency, the Garfield administration, or Gilded Age Politics. This book is an exemplary addition to the available literature on the Garfield administration, as well as Gilded Age politics in general.
Rating: 5
Summary: Well-written & riveting account
Comment: I first encountered the slow death of James Garfield while doing research on unrelated events taking place in the summer of 1881. Reading through the microfilmed copies of several small-town Kansas newspapers, I kept seeing the weekly updates of the stricken president, and even though it wasn't part of the focus of my research at the time, I found myself drawn to the prolongued agony of a nation, as it watched its president slowly slip away.
The cruel irony of Garfield's death was that it was against all odds that he should have been dying in the White House in the first place, and of course that is what makes the whole story so interesting. Ackerman does an excellent job setting the stage for the 1880 Republican convention (yes, once upon a time, party conventions really did matter), which was largely a struggle between several power blocs.
First and foremost was the struggle between Senators Roscoe Conkling & James Blaine, who had a mutual dislike rivalled by few other politicians (LBJ & Bobby Kennedy come to mind). Blaine was seeking the presidency in his own right, and Conkling, having spent the last 4 years jousting with outgoing President Hayes, was angling to regain the White House (for a third term) for former president Grant. Ackerman skillfully weaves a picture filled with wheeling & dealing --- the classic picture of a smoke-filled back room really has historical basis --- and shows how the forces of history sometimes take on a momentum of their own, and slip loose from the hands of even the most adroit political managers.
To surprise of all, Garfield got the nomination, and then had to face an election that turned out to be extremely close. Through the campaign, more wheeling & dealing occurs, and Ackerman vividly illustrates the uncertain nominee attempting to reach agreement with various truculent party bosses. During this stage of the game, Garfield comes off looking very much like a politically clumsy neophyte, not equal to the challenges of the office.
What Garfield might have ultimately done as President we will never know, and thankfully Ackerman spares of the "what-if" brand of history at this point. Garfield's only real victory of consequence during his brief term was the outmaneuvering of Roscoe Conkling regarding office nominations in New York. Garfield's behavior during this episode can be interpreted as either standing firm on principle or mule-headed stubborness, and one can draw any number of conclusions on how this behavior might have played over 4 years. His victory over Conkling was thought to be only the first of several battles for the control of the Republican Party.
Of course, the whole situation abruptly was thrown into chaos as Garfield is shot down, and not only fails to die quickly but actually for a time improves in health. Truly this is the most sickening part of the whole book, as Ackerman describes in gory detail Garfield's eventual succumbing to infection, starvation & blood poisoning. In a perverse way, Charles Guiteau was actually correct when he said he didn't actually kill Garfield. The doctors with their germ-covered hands were ultimately more responsible for Garfield's demise than was Guiteau.
Ackerman's book is not just the story of Garfield; it is the story with several equally important characters --- Grant, Conkling, and Blaine. Lurking in the shadows are two characters that suddenly assume great importance --- Chester Arthur & the strange little man, Charles Guiteau. When Garfield is suddenly removed from the scene, the story does not simply end with him. The other main characters are left behind to try and pick up the pieces and move on without him. One is left with a much greater respect for Arthur after reading this book, as he is suddenly thrust, unprepared and under a cloud of suspicion & distrust, into the presidency. Ackerman does not emphasize this, but Arthur actually knew for the last 3 years of his term that he was slowly dying from Bright's Disease, but managed to conceal his ill health and still function effectively as president.
Overall, this is a lively account of a story that has more than its fair share of peaks and valleys. Read in conjunction with Roy Morris' "Fraud of the Century," this book presents a very good picture of partisan politics and their sometimes unexpected consequences.
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Title: Fraud of the Century: Rutherford B. Hayes, Samuel Tilden, and the Stolen Election of 1876 by Roy Morris Jr. ISBN: 0743223861 Publisher: Simon & Schuster Pub. Date: 12 February, 2003 List Price(USD): $27.00 |
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