Book Review: The Presidencies of James A Garfield and Chester A. Arthur
Okay, a person would have to be a total history geek to read this book.
Guilty as charged.
In The Presidencies of James A. Garfield and Chester A. Arthur, author Justus D. Doenecke writes a history of the presidential administration from 1881 to 1885 that is nothing if not thorough and detailed. Doenecke takes us through the events leading up to the election of the Garfield-Arthur ticket in the election of 1880, then through Garfield's brief tenure in office leading up to his assassination, followed by the workings of the Arthur administration. The book is not a biography of either man. Biographic details are provided in a thumbnail sketch and we learn nothing about either man that we didn't already know. Details of Garfield's assassination are described in more detail and in a more entertaining manner in books like Candice Millard's Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President. But where this author excels is in his scholarly dissection of every major and minor issue of the presidential term both domestically and in the field of foreign affairs.
On the international front, the author leaves the impression that these presidents did not drive the bus of foreign policy, but rather left it up to their Secretaries of State: first the fullback-like diplomacy of James G. Blaine (for whom the goal line was his aspirations to be the next president), and later the more refined and better considered policies of Frederick T. Frelinghuysen. The author gives us a complete accounting of this administration's diplomatic trials and tribulations on many fronts internationally, including South America, Mexico, China, Korea, Cuba, Ireland, Madagascar, and the Congo, all the while playing alternate games of bluff poker and chess with the great European powers. Who knew that the United States had so many international pots boiling in the early 1880s?
We are told of how the State secretaries each try to circumvent the Clayton-Bulwer treaty with England through spurious and unprincipled positions, while lacking the military muscle to be more than an irritant to the Europeans. In some areas however, Arthur was ahead of his time in many of these areas, including his recognition of the need for a strong navy and his opinions on tariff reform.
Domestically, Arthur confronts a number of pressing issues, some of which resemble battles confronted by modern day presidents. Should economic recession be addressed by free trade or by protectionism? We learn that the arguments of the 1980s were also the arguments of the 1880s. Arthur also had to address issues like protection of African-Americans in the south, and of Native Americas in the west. The President also was confronted by the issue of tariffs and how they could best be adjusted to benefit a fragile economy. Most important, we are told of how Arthur confronted the issue of civil service reform and of the scandals hungover from previous administrations. It is in this area that Arthur shines as a President, preferring to act in a principled manner, much to the chagrin of his former fellow Stalwarts in the Republican party who incorrectly expected him to preserve the status quo of the spoils system.
It was very interesting to see how Arthur, like many modern presidents, was forced to work around a Congress of a different political stripe, as the mid-term of elections of 1882 placed the Republicans in the minority position. This electoral change neutered some of Arthur's clout and ambition, although it is surprising how often he was able to skilfully use the presidential veto to accomplish some things.
I was hoping to gain a better understanding about the supposed reform of Chester Alan Arthur the man. I was curious to learn how or why a former pork-barrel politician became a champion of civil service reform. But Doenecke doesn't really answer this question. The book is very much about the minutiae of what happened, and not about why.
The book is not a page turner. It will not sustain the interest of anyone who is not a geek about these things. But if granular details of what happened on each of the major issues facing two Gilded Age Presidents in the first half of the 1880s are what you're looking for, then you've come to the right place.
Guilty as charged.
In The Presidencies of James A. Garfield and Chester A. Arthur, author Justus D. Doenecke writes a history of the presidential administration from 1881 to 1885 that is nothing if not thorough and detailed. Doenecke takes us through the events leading up to the election of the Garfield-Arthur ticket in the election of 1880, then through Garfield's brief tenure in office leading up to his assassination, followed by the workings of the Arthur administration. The book is not a biography of either man. Biographic details are provided in a thumbnail sketch and we learn nothing about either man that we didn't already know. Details of Garfield's assassination are described in more detail and in a more entertaining manner in books like Candice Millard's Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President. But where this author excels is in his scholarly dissection of every major and minor issue of the presidential term both domestically and in the field of foreign affairs.
On the international front, the author leaves the impression that these presidents did not drive the bus of foreign policy, but rather left it up to their Secretaries of State: first the fullback-like diplomacy of James G. Blaine (for whom the goal line was his aspirations to be the next president), and later the more refined and better considered policies of Frederick T. Frelinghuysen. The author gives us a complete accounting of this administration's diplomatic trials and tribulations on many fronts internationally, including South America, Mexico, China, Korea, Cuba, Ireland, Madagascar, and the Congo, all the while playing alternate games of bluff poker and chess with the great European powers. Who knew that the United States had so many international pots boiling in the early 1880s?
We are told of how the State secretaries each try to circumvent the Clayton-Bulwer treaty with England through spurious and unprincipled positions, while lacking the military muscle to be more than an irritant to the Europeans. In some areas however, Arthur was ahead of his time in many of these areas, including his recognition of the need for a strong navy and his opinions on tariff reform.
Domestically, Arthur confronts a number of pressing issues, some of which resemble battles confronted by modern day presidents. Should economic recession be addressed by free trade or by protectionism? We learn that the arguments of the 1980s were also the arguments of the 1880s. Arthur also had to address issues like protection of African-Americans in the south, and of Native Americas in the west. The President also was confronted by the issue of tariffs and how they could best be adjusted to benefit a fragile economy. Most important, we are told of how Arthur confronted the issue of civil service reform and of the scandals hungover from previous administrations. It is in this area that Arthur shines as a President, preferring to act in a principled manner, much to the chagrin of his former fellow Stalwarts in the Republican party who incorrectly expected him to preserve the status quo of the spoils system.
It was very interesting to see how Arthur, like many modern presidents, was forced to work around a Congress of a different political stripe, as the mid-term of elections of 1882 placed the Republicans in the minority position. This electoral change neutered some of Arthur's clout and ambition, although it is surprising how often he was able to skilfully use the presidential veto to accomplish some things.
I was hoping to gain a better understanding about the supposed reform of Chester Alan Arthur the man. I was curious to learn how or why a former pork-barrel politician became a champion of civil service reform. But Doenecke doesn't really answer this question. The book is very much about the minutiae of what happened, and not about why.
The book is not a page turner. It will not sustain the interest of anyone who is not a geek about these things. But if granular details of what happened on each of the major issues facing two Gilded Age Presidents in the first half of the 1880s are what you're looking for, then you've come to the right place.