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1845-1849 James K. Polk Vice President was George M. Dallas. James K Polk's Inaugural Address.
Could James K. Polk get elected today? 1)Summary of his accomplishments: Went down in history books as the president who got all those stuff, all those large landmasses, Texas, Oregon, California. He was the president of Manifest Destiny a phrase coined by newspaper editor John O'Sullivan in 1845 to justify the annexation of Texas. James Polk extended the Nation's boundaries to the shores of the Pacific. Polk was an expansionist. Polk tried to buy California and New Mexico from Mexico, and the Mexican war followed (1846-48) when his offer was rejected. Under the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, ending the war Mexico got $ 15 million for the land which is now known as California, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, New Mexico, Arizona and Colorado. With the Oregon Treaty of 1846 Polk set the border with England (Canadian border) at the 49th parallel. 2)Critique: He started the Mexican War. Polk played high stakes gambling in politics. About Polk's risky foreign policy America Past and Present says, His reckless diplomacy had brought the Nation within an eyelash of being involved in two wars at the same time. 3)From a modern media perspective could he get elected today? Yes! I see no reason why he could not get elected if he would still be alive now. About his private life: Would anyone have listened to any young woman if James K. Polk would have had a casual affair with her?
11 James K. Polk Born: November 2, 1795, near Pineville, North Carolina. Died: June 15, 1849. Party: Democratic. Age when inaugurated: 49. Term: 1845-1849. Polk was the first "dark horse"or little-knownnominee to become President. He presided over the Mexican War, which added Texas, California, and other territory to the U.S. Famous Fact: Polk is the only President to have served as Speaker of the House.(Source: scholasticnetwork.com)
last updated 02/19/07 |
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