Book Review: Chester Alan Arthur by Zachary Karabell
I've mentioned The American Presidents Series in this community many times before. It is a set of concise biographies of the US Presidents written by first-rate historians. The series aims to offer biographies of the Presidents "in volumes compact enough for the busy reader, lucid enough for the student and authoritative enough for the scholar." (For a complete list of them you can either go to the above link, or to this journal entry in this community.
Following is my review of the biography of Chester Alan Arthur by the talented historian and economist Zachary Karabell.
Chester Alan Arthur is one of the most forgettable Presidents, and yet in this brief (143 page) biography, author Zachary Karabell explains why Arthur is in fact an interesting study of a man who never sought high office, but enjoyed modest success during his time in the Oval Office. He tells us of the fascinating transition of the dandy, sartorially splendid New Yorker from a political hack in the pocket of Republican Party boss Roscoe Conkling into a pragmatic reformer.
Arthur was the only President never elected to any office other than the Vice-Presidency. He was a first-rate party organizer and a likeable political operative who demonstrated a political efficiency without making enemies. He never wanted to run for office, preferring to be the hand that guided the efficient political machine. But his political savvy was not without conscience and Karabell informs the reader of Arthur's passion as an abolitionist, first as the son of a progressive preacher, then as a civil rights lawyer, and later as President.
Arthur's life is full of pleasant surprises. When his Stalwart faction was unsuccessful in capturing the Republican nomination for President in 1880, Arthur was offered the Vice-Presidency as a concession by Dark Horse winner James Garfield. Arthur surprisingly disobeyed his Stalwart boss Conkling by accepting the nomination, proving that he was capable of being his own man. Despite this, he was able to broker a temporary peace between Garfield and Conkling that brought about a Republican victory in New York and in the general election. It's a testament to Arthur's affability that he managed to stay on good terms with both the Conkling (Stalwart) and James G. Blaine ("Half-Breed") factions of the Republican Party.
Assuming the Presidency following Garfield's assassination, Arthur proved to be more than a placeholder. He vetoed popular legislation prohibiting Chinese immigration (though he eventually capitulated after he gained some concessions, when a veto override seemed inevitable.) Much as it is said that only Nixon could go to China, only the former prince of patronage Arthur could bring about civil service reform with the beginning of legislation that laid the groundwork for a professional civil service, ending abuses by corrupt politicians. Karabell provides an excellent analysis of the issue, clarifying the degree to which Arthur deserves credit and the part that Republican defeat in mid-term elections played in allowing the politicians to read the political writing on the wall. It is remarkable that Arthur accomplished as much as he did with a divided party, a hostile congress, an alleged aversion to hard work, and a losing battle with Bright's disease.
In this brief volume, Karabell gives the reader a superb understanding of one of the least understood and appreciated Presidents. It is a concise but informative biography not only of the man, but of the times he lived in. Karabell is to be commended for the manner in which he is able to take a seemingly dull subject and make it interesting and understandable.
Following is my review of the biography of Chester Alan Arthur by the talented historian and economist Zachary Karabell.
Chester Alan Arthur is one of the most forgettable Presidents, and yet in this brief (143 page) biography, author Zachary Karabell explains why Arthur is in fact an interesting study of a man who never sought high office, but enjoyed modest success during his time in the Oval Office. He tells us of the fascinating transition of the dandy, sartorially splendid New Yorker from a political hack in the pocket of Republican Party boss Roscoe Conkling into a pragmatic reformer.
Arthur was the only President never elected to any office other than the Vice-Presidency. He was a first-rate party organizer and a likeable political operative who demonstrated a political efficiency without making enemies. He never wanted to run for office, preferring to be the hand that guided the efficient political machine. But his political savvy was not without conscience and Karabell informs the reader of Arthur's passion as an abolitionist, first as the son of a progressive preacher, then as a civil rights lawyer, and later as President.
Arthur's life is full of pleasant surprises. When his Stalwart faction was unsuccessful in capturing the Republican nomination for President in 1880, Arthur was offered the Vice-Presidency as a concession by Dark Horse winner James Garfield. Arthur surprisingly disobeyed his Stalwart boss Conkling by accepting the nomination, proving that he was capable of being his own man. Despite this, he was able to broker a temporary peace between Garfield and Conkling that brought about a Republican victory in New York and in the general election. It's a testament to Arthur's affability that he managed to stay on good terms with both the Conkling (Stalwart) and James G. Blaine ("Half-Breed") factions of the Republican Party.
Assuming the Presidency following Garfield's assassination, Arthur proved to be more than a placeholder. He vetoed popular legislation prohibiting Chinese immigration (though he eventually capitulated after he gained some concessions, when a veto override seemed inevitable.) Much as it is said that only Nixon could go to China, only the former prince of patronage Arthur could bring about civil service reform with the beginning of legislation that laid the groundwork for a professional civil service, ending abuses by corrupt politicians. Karabell provides an excellent analysis of the issue, clarifying the degree to which Arthur deserves credit and the part that Republican defeat in mid-term elections played in allowing the politicians to read the political writing on the wall. It is remarkable that Arthur accomplished as much as he did with a divided party, a hostile congress, an alleged aversion to hard work, and a losing battle with Bright's disease.
In this brief volume, Karabell gives the reader a superb understanding of one of the least understood and appreciated Presidents. It is a concise but informative biography not only of the man, but of the times he lived in. Karabell is to be commended for the manner in which he is able to take a seemingly dull subject and make it interesting and understandable.