Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
I don’t know much about President James Garfield. If this author is giving an accurate portrayal, there are some things to really like about the man.
My wife and I have been dreaming about what successful people we should draft to run for political offices. The most competent among us seem to be rarely interested in participating in the humiliating process of standing for election. Let me briefly recap the political career of James Garfield as portrayed in a Tech Nation interview of author Candice Millard by Moira Gunn.
Garfield was born into extreme poverty. He put himself through college, first as a janitor (in year one) and then as a professor of literature, mathematics, and ancient languages (in year two). By age 26, he was the president of the university. He was a genius.
He was then asked to serve in the Ohio state senate and later was asked to fill a vacancy in the US Congress. He served there for 17 years. Through that time, he (according to the author) never campaigned but said the people could vote for him if they liked the way he voted his convictions.
When he was nominated for president, he wasn’t a candidate then either. The favorite going in to the Republican convention was Ulysses S. Grant for a 3rd term. John Sherman, another candidate, asked Garfield to give his nominating address at the convention.
Garfield agreed, but gave such an impressive speech that when he got to the end and said, “What do we want?” someone shouted out, “Garfield!” Later when the convention failed to settle on a candidate after dozens of rounds of voting, the votes started to come in for Garfield. He eventually took the nomination and the presidency.
Sadly, he was assassinated before he could serve even a full year in office. I wonder what sort of president he would have been if he could have served out a full term or two. I wonder what we have to do to get the reluctant candidates to step in today.
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Nov '10
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
Good post.
I liked, "The most competent among us seem to be rarely interested in participating in the humiliating process of standing for election."
Sep '10
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
Wow! Just before returning to Ricochet, I watched a C-Span.org program with the author of this very book! You might want to go and look it up, as the author, who has great fondness for her subject, said she believes that a man like Garfield could never be elected president, that is, someone who really had no desire to be president but was pressed into it by the public. I agree.
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
Let's hope that someone still in the running asks Paul Ryan to give his nomination speech.
Apr '11
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
I have the JJ Miller podcast interview on my xPod. I didn't know a lot (and still don't know so much) about Garfield, but he seems like an admirable guy.
While I don't endorse Susan Voloch (just going from memory, may be misspelled or thinking of someone else), I thought her Assassination Vacation was very good.
May '11
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
Garfield was nominated back when one didn't need to campaign for 2 years, raise millions of dollars and go thru a proctologist exam of scrutiny. What rational person would want to go thru that? I don't advocate we go back to the days of back room deals at the party conventions to nominate a candidate but the process has become to long and laborious. Paul Ryan of course is the perfect candidate. The mind is capable but the soul isn't willing. DRAT!!
May '11
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
The current primary process was a direct response to the smoke-filled room, brokered conventions that resulted in a Garfield candidacy. Yes, delegates can switch their votes from that intended by the primary voters just as the Electoral College can vote in a president that did not win enough electoral votes. Neither could go home afterwards though.
I think this longing for a mechanism to draft a different candidate is simply a reflection of the likely choice of Romney and the dislike many have for him. (Or the others for that matter.)
Apr '11
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
Recently I considered posting on the fantastical idea that we could end up with an old fashioned brokered convention and someone like Ryan or Daniels could be nominated.
It was actually not unusual under the old nominating system for a contentious primary to end with a reluctant dark horse nominee. People sneer about decisions made in "smoke filled rooms," but it could be argued that that process resulted in better candidates.
Apr '11
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
There is a huge under-appreciation of late 19th century American Presidents, a gap between Lincoln and TR during which America becomes a superpower, we have a succession of wonderful Presidents (in both parties; Cleveland was magnificent) and real achievements, and yet most of the survey histories are marginal books by commies and malcontents. I'm glad to hear that a good book is coming out on Garfield.
Apr '11
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
Just finished this book. It's excellent. The River of Doubt (her first book) concerns TR in the Amazon it is superb.
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
Garfield not only knew both Latin and Greek; he could write in both languages simultaneously, using his left hand for one and his right hand for he other.
Let's see Obama top that, Chris Matthews!
Jun '10
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
Steve Manacek: Garfield not only knew both Latin and Greek; he could write in both languages simultaneously, using his left hand for one and his right hand for he other.
Let's see Obama top that, Chris Matthews! · Nov 21 at 4:47pm
Now that sends a thrill up my leg.
Jun '10
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
Tip for those trying to persuade Mr. Ryan to run: you might not want to lead with the story of a reluctant President who got assassinated during his first term...
Mar '11
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
This is a really good example that I can only dream of happening next year. I honestly think this year no candidate will have a majority going into the convention. Also, I would love this scenario because it would be great for the party. It would be great if Paul R or even a Jeb B. got the nomination in the back room between delegates. Especially if Romney had the most delegates, because other than electability in a general election, I think almost the whole field of potential nominations would be better than Mitt.
Secondly, that is a really good point that we had a series of good president thru Coolidge, with Wilson being the only major outlier. I never thought of that.
Jul '10
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
The presidents between Lincoln and TR are very underappreciated. (exception Johnson). They were mostly pro-growth Jeffersonians uninterested in government activism. But we should be eternally greatful to them for their policies and allowing unprecedented growth. Grant rigorously enforced reconstruction and crushed the old Klan while drawing down the Indian Wars. And Cleveland from the other party was a principled small government man of exceptional character. I'll have to read that book on Garfield. I wish I knew more about these post-Reconstruction presidents.
May '10
Re: Garfield: Reluctant Candidate
Oh, James Garfield. I thought at first that we had yet another ABR candidate being drafted to run, even though the primary registration dates are past.