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Accomplishments Of President James Polk

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\ President James Polk, for keeping his word throughout his presidency, through the expansion “manifest destiny”, President Polk receives the presidential rating of four. The president does an outstanding job of his conquest for “manifest destiny”, and leading our country from coast to coast. James Polk was a very fierce leader, he was willing to go and fight any war in order for us to own land from coast to coast. Throughout James Polk’s presidency he had four goals the first one I have already stated, James Polk was going to acquire the land from coast to coast. Another goal that he had was to lower the tariff rate. His third goal was to create an independent treasury from the state banks. Last president Polk only wanted to run for …show more content…

This is the one goal that through his election process, campaigned to the people of America, that he wanted to expand the United States from coast to coast. In this goal James Polk did succeed throughout his entire presidential carrier. Though only three states were admitted Texas, Iowa, and Wisconsin president Polk gained almost all of the Central and West coast that we know today. James Polk gained most of the land because of two events that went on in his presidential career. The first event started on April, 26 1846, but didn’t end until February 2, 1848, this is the Mexican War. At the end of the War Mexico had to ceced 55% of its land, and therefore the United States gained 520,000 square miles. The second event where Polk gained a good amount of land was the Oregon Treaty. This was a deal between the United States and Britain, where the United States wanted to have all the land in the Oregon region, instead of splitting it with Britain. James Polk was even willing to go to war with Great Britain again, in order to gain this land. After the treaty was signed the United States gained all the land in the Oregon Territory with the exception of Vancouver …show more content…

After James Polk's inauguration, he commissioned a study of tariff levels to his secretary of treasury Robert Walker. After this survey Robert Walker suggested a large reduction in tariff rates. Soon after this a bill was created, even though there was opposition to the bill inside James Polk cabinet. After a large debate, there was support from the southerners and westerners, and only a few northerners against it. Vice president George Dallas had the tie breaking vote in the senate, and after Polk soon signed a bill that is now known as the Walker Tariff of

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Polk had soon became known for wanting land expansion and he demanded that Oregon and Texas should be added to the United States. On election day, Polk was elected President since the Americans had showed favoritism of expansion.

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History students and fanatics alike might know James K. Polk by his famously quoted goals during his one term presidency. These four goals, first mentioned by historian George Bancroft, have been thought of as James K Polk’s legacy and rewritten by many other historians. The mystery of the origin of this myth has been debunked, but the great measures remain the popular story of Polk’s presidency. Although thought of as a given fact, Tom Chaffin pulls into question the legitimacy of the anecdote in his book Met His Every Goal?: James K. Polk and The Legends of Manifest Destiny, by discrediting the source of the message.

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Therefore, in July, they finally agreed to the bill the president had brought up. The other part of Polk’s program to have a Independent Treasury, also know as Independent Treasury Act of 1846, was designed to end the deposit of federal revenues in certain selected banks. Instead the president wanted to place all such money in special government vaults. After slowly considering the president’s proposal in the busy spring of 1846, Congress finally agreed to pass it in June. Thus by mid-summer Polk had succeeded at both plans for his economic program; “But no matter how you score your presidents on “greatness”, Polk is almost universally hailed for having been an effective president ” (Borneman,

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Jackson, infuriated with South Carolina for threatening to break the union, compromised by making the tariff lower. Jackson marked a turning point in American political life because he prevented a break in the union and set an example for Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln used Jackson’s techniques in dealing with secession himself. As Jackson based his attack on democratic grounds, Lincoln based his attack on Democratic grounds as

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He was a highly devoted man who entered the presidency with an unambiguous plan, setting out five main goals which he successfully executed in only one term in office (Bockert par. 13). Although the incessant pressure of American westward expansion had temporarily accumulated itself behind the Great Plains, it was now about to erupt with a deluge unlike any previous occurrence (Woodworth 59; "Expansion to the Mississippi"). A new start beyond the Western horizon would prove to be crucial to Americans so Polk became determined to use the concept of Manifest Destiny. This concept proved to prompt the American westward movement and lead to a flow of immigrants, and as portrayed in the figure above, to have a massive effect on the population of

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James Knox Polk, the 11th president of the United States, was the most effective president that had achieved all of his inaugural goals. He had made several domestic policies that helped the US economy to strive. Polk was also the president who had acquired the US’s ideal dream of Manifest Destiny by making treaties and compromising to gain land from the Pacific to the Atlantic. James Polk has made different efforts to make the US the best and most powerful country in the western hemisphere and he has been very successful in his efforts.

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James Polk was elected in 1845 and had an expansionist viewpoint. He accomplished all of his presidential campaign goals which included gaining Texas, California, Nevada, Utah, most of New Mexico, and Arizona including a few more territories on the southern border, therefore, expanding America's territories. In addition, Polk began a period of Manifest Destiny. This was a phrase used to describe America’s goal to grow from “sea to shining sea”. Also, the Mexican-American War in 1846 acquired new lands for America in the southwest from the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo.

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However, because he was so stubborn, he was willing to go to war to obtain it, thinking that the Mexicans would not put up much of a fight. Polk had, at first, hoped he could gain California from Mexico the same way he had gotten Oregon from Great Britain--with what is called “eyeball diplomacy,” staring at the opponent and expecting he would blink first. This tactic obviously did not work, which angered him. Economically, the United States was not fit for a war, especially a war in a foreign country. Though the Americans did win the war, their relationship with the Mexicans became poor.

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James K. Polk had accomplished his work in making our country a stronger nation by expanding it. James K. Polk made one of the most important moves in history which had lead us to becoming the Country we are

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We later find out that Polk was happy to no longer be president he says he felt “exceedingly relieved” to be free from public duty. In 1893 Polk's body was transported from Polk's place to a tomb at the state capitol in Nashville. ( Byrnes) James K Polk impacted the world by Reestablishment of the independent treasury system, lowering the tariff, the settlement of Oregon, and Acquisition of California. Many of the things he did are still used today.

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Polk and corresponding political course of his administration. But the author does not assert that it was solely Polk’s desires. Rather Polk is portrayed as an initiative follower of Thomas Jefferson’s and Andrew Jackson’s ideas about American expansion. The belief in potency of a new undeveloped land became the characteristic of that time. “By 1840s, territorial expansion was viewed by many to be a measure of that [America’s] greatness”.

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Throughout the 19th century, the United States’ population significantly increased. Mexico looked towards the United State’s booming population and offered Stephen Austin the prospect of colonizing the “old three-hundred” American families in present-day Texas in order to populate the otherwise desolate region. Mexican officials, however, weren’t aware of the implications such colonization would have on the union’s longevity. In spite of Mexican provisions requiring colonists to become “Mexicanized” and be non-slave owning catholics, many Texans did not follow such terms facilitating the development of an independent Texan-American identity ultimately culminating in the Texan Revolution. After the Texan Revolution, Texas applied for statehood in the United States raising questions as to how such expansionism might upset the balance of free to slave states.

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291 Words | 2 Pages

The United States gained from the expansion, aside land, was the resources found in the different states owned. For example, the state of California contributed gold and oil. The United States should have not gone declared war with Mexico because it resulted in many deaths on both sides. A second reason was since the U.S. gained new land it caused a problem, in whether to allow slavery in the new territory or not.

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With the economy struggling so mightily during the great depression, congress passed the Smoot-Hawley Tariff of 1930. This Tariff disallowed foreign imports, and showed that the government wanted the economy to get better by buying producing and consuming its’ own goods. During the great depression the destruction of farming and agriculture was one of the main factors to start the whole storm. This Tariff was designed to protect the value of domestic farming versus foreign agricultural imports. He protected the interests of the American economy by shutting out the others, and therefore had to sacrifice some of his good foreign policy

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553 Words | 3 Pages

In 1836, Texas won its independence from Mexico and became the Republic of Texas. President James Polk put forth his interest of Texas by its victory during the Mexican- American War. America gained about one-third of Mexico’s territory (California, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico). Before America and Mexico went to war in 1846, John Fermont’s expedition to California (Mexican

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