Reconsidering the Presidency of Ulysses S. Grant
Historians Comment on Grant

“Grant was an ignorant and confused President, and his eight
long years of blunderland are generally regarded as a national
disgrace.” Thomas A. Bailey

Arthur Schlesinger places him among the failures in his 1948 &
1962 presidential ratings.

C. Vann Woodward contends that we can attribute to Grant “the
all time low point in statesmanship and political morality in our
history.”
Corruption

Much of the
evidence for
these
charges
comes from
Liberal
Republican
“spoilsmen”
Corruption

list the
corruption
and graft
that occurred
during
Grant’s
presidency.
Should politicians or any person in power
practice patronage?

Do “patronage” and “corruption” differ?

Should historians judge the people in the
context of their times?
Corruption?

Patronage seems to
be the way things
were done in this
time, and it did not
originate with Grant.
Worst Presidents: Ulysses S. Grant (1869-1877)
US News and World Report
By Jay Tolson
At No. 7, Ulysses S. Grant has risen from No. 2 on the 1948 Schlesinger
list probably because of the same revisionist take on Reconstruction that
lowered Johnson in the eyes of historians.
Although there is no way to overlook the widespread graft and
corruption that occurred on his presidential watch - it was at the time
unprecedented in scope - he was in no way a beneficiary of it.
"My failures have been errors of judgment," the popular former Civil
War general admitted, "not of intent.“
More important, the 18th president now receives plaudits for his
aggressive prosecution of the radical reform agenda in the South. His
attempts to quash the Ku Klux Klan (suspending habeas corpus in South
Carolina and ordering mass arrests) and his support for the Civil Rights
Act of 1875 were controversial and may have produced only short-lived
gains for African-Americans, but Grant's intentions were laudable and
brave. He also worked for the good of American Indians, instituting the
reservation system as an imperfect, last-ditch effort to protect them
from extinction.
Grant's reputation may continue to rise as a result of sympathetic
biographies and studies - and because of a renewed appreciation of his
own excellent memoir, considered to be the best ever produced by a
former president.
 Grant’s Civil Service
Commission anticipated the
Pendleton Act of 1881. Grant
issued an earnest call for civil
service reform in his Second
Annual Message in 1870, and
ousted almost 200 officials.
 Crédit Mobilier scandal took
place in the Johnson
administration before Grant
was president.
The
Defense
 Grant’s Civil Service
Commission anticipated
the Pendleton Act of 1881.
Grant issued an earnest
call for civil service reform
in his Second Annual
Message in 1870, and
ousted almost 200
officials.
 Credit Mobilier scandal
took place in the Johnson
administration before
Grant was president.
Editorial cartoon: Uncle Sam directs U.S. Senators (and Representatives?) implicated in the
Crédit Mobilier scheme to commit Hari-Kari. Carl Schurz and Charles Sumner peer out from
behind a screen.


Jay Gould and Jim Fisk
attempted to corner
the gold market, but
were thwarted when
Grant ordered the
federal government to
sell gold. [Gold
Scandal]
There was also the
Salary Grab, which
was by Congress, not
the executive.
 The Tweed
Ring was a
New York City
scandal that
had nothing
to do with the
federal
government.
 The Whiskey
Ring began
during the
Johnson
administration
and was
uncovered [and
punished] during
the Grant
Administration.
Grant’s Ineffective Presidency?
 Grant brought the country through eight years of difficult times
after a destructive Civil War had almost torn the country apart.
 Grant pursued an economic policy that restored prosperity,
reduced taxes, restored a favorable balance of trade and reduced
the national debt.
 He vetoed the Inflation Bill of 1874, and passed the
Resumption Act of 1875, which dealt with the Panic of 1873.
 Grant settled the Alabama Claims [US had claims against the
UK] with an arbitration treaty with Britain, a model for future
peaceful settlements of disputes.
 He also squashed two other potential wars, the Cuban
Rebellion [1870] and the Virginius Affair – potential
war with Spain [1873].
 He secured a commercial treaty with Hawaii, which pointed
toward eventual annexation.
 Grant had a major role in the Hayes-Tilden election, which
threatened to tear the country apart again, and he helped
with the smooth transition called The Compromise of
1876.
 Grant appointed the first Civil Service Commission.
 Grant began the process which led to the building of the
Panama Canal.
While Johnson’s failure to deal well with Congress
led to his near impeachment…
 Grant employed the veto a record 93 times
 He also sent troops to enforce reconstruction and protect the
hardly an example of a
weak executive.
newly freed slaves –
 It is interesting that
revisionist
historians criticize
Grant for his too
vigorous attempts to
protect the
freedmen, thus
bringing about the
“Solid South” –
Southern support for
the Democratic Party
beginning in 1877.
Grant and the South
Grant and the South
 Grant insisted that
reconstructed
states ratify the
15th Amendment
before reentering
the Union.
 His annexation treaty for Santo Domingo, rejected by
the Senate, would have provided a possible refuge and
political voice for blacks.
 Frederick Douglass said of him,
“Our shelter in the storms of the past has been Ulysses S.
Grant. The question is, who will shield us in the future.”
 Protections for blacks also included the Enforcement Acts
[1870] and the Civil Rights Act [1875] - both of which are
credited with the demise of the Ku Klux Klan.
 Grant was elected twice
to the Presidency, and
was the most popular
and admired figure of his
time.
 He is the only President
to be elected to two
consecutive terms
between Lincoln and
McKinley.
Your thoughts…
 What grade would you give Grant’s presidency?

Should historians judge the people in the
context of their times?
Why do you believe an
industrialist might view
Congressmen as hypocrites?
Please copy down and respond to the following.
Why is Ulysses S. Grant generally considered
to be an unsuccessful president?