Transcription
Wanted ambitious individual for leadership position. Be prepared for difficult application process and stressful work environment. Challenges, many rewards, numerous. Failure possible. Your employer, the American people.
The few chosen have been the presidents. [Music] Never in history has there been a job like this. And yet, the American presidency as we know it today may never have existed had it not been for one man. I think one can debate Washington's intelligence and perhaps his political savvy, but what you cannot debate was the fact that this man was the embodiment of the revolution, and in fact, now would become the embodiment of the new American Republic.
Washington is the only president who was ever unanimously elected. Whoever got every single vote in the Electoral College, and he got that twice. Number one: George Washington, Federalist, 1789 to 1797. 57 years old, from Virginia. George Washington's inauguration took place on April 30th, 1789, at Federal Hall in New York City, as the first man to take the oath of office. Washington added the words, "So help me God," establishing the very first presidential precedent. "So help me God." Go help me God. Help me. Help me, God. So help me God.
At best, Washington was apprehensive about his new job. After leaving his home at Mount Vernon, he wrote, "My movements to the chair of government will be accompanied with feelings not unlike those of a culprit who is going to the place of his execution. I greatly fear that my countrymen will expect too much from me." [Music]
There were many questions about this new job, this president person. People wondered, "What do you say? How do you describe this person, this man who was going to head the United States of America?" His Excellency. [Music] We could laugh about it a bit, I suppose. "Mr. Speaker, the President of the United States." But think for a moment, what it would be like in our own time if the Sergeant at Arms had to introduce the President today as "His Mightiness, His Excellency, His High Mightiness, the President of the United States and Defender of Our Liberties." That, in fact, was one of the titles suggested for the President. He said, "No, no, no. Call me Mr. President." And I mean, that's a nice gesture. It doesn't mean much, but it's a nice gesture. It almost meant nothing at all. [Music]
Just weeks after taking office, Washington came down with a rare bacterial infection. Some believe it may have been anthrax, picked up on a farm. Washington nearly died, which could have wrecked the fragile new republic. [Music]
American historians have spent more than two centuries now, and trying to dig up dirt on George Washington, to find the flaws in Washington. It's a tough chore. For a long time, Washington was thought of as a nice guy, sort of a boob, not real smart, famous for being tall. George Washington brought many personal qualities to the presidency. His dignity, integrity, and honesty are well known. But he also had his quirks. He refused to shake hands when he became president. He thought that was beneath the presidency. It was all part of establishing the image of the presidency.
One example is how Washington projected his physical being. George Washington was the most athletic, the most robust, the most dynamic of all the Founding Fathers. He was the action hero, if you will, of the 18th century, who was considered by Jefferson the best horseback rider of the entire period. Washington usually rode a white horse named Nelson, and Nelson became a vital part of Washington's public relations package, his version of a Tailhook landing. When he would visit towns during the presidency, sometimes he would travel in the comfort of a carriage most of the distance between towns. But in many cases, he would hop out of that carriage and get on to Nelson and ride into town, looking like a million bucks, looking like that war hero, that man among men, looking like someone who could lead anyone. [Music]
Washington traveled extensively during his presidency, deliberately visiting every state in the new union. Along the way, he bought American landscape paintings. Many still hang at Mount Vernon. By doing so, he became America's first great patron of the arts. Being first was a Washington trademark. We all knew that he was first in war and first in peace and first in the hearts of his countrymen. [Music] But we never knew such things as the fact that he was first in dancing a minuet. Man, George Washington loved to dance, and that presidential receptions had ladies waiting in line for one dance with the President. Another thing that he never got credit for: he was first in interior decorating. For example, he was always working on fixing up Mount Vernon, even during the Revolutionary War. He was into designing uniforms. He never got credit. Uh, he was like the Calvin Klein of his day. And he was first in gambling. He would bet on anything. He may have had certain personal foibles, but in terms of political leadership, the man was a marvel.
Now, I don't know if Washington fully understood what his role was, but he was a man accustomed to commanding. Washington as a general, the way he commanded was to have frequent councils of war and to get everyone's opinion, and then he would judge. And this is the same way he ran his administration as president. He seems to have been a very, very good judge of character, and at the same time, a good judge of people's talents. So he surrounded himself with people who would do their job and, in the process, make him look good. In creating the executive branch of government, Washington hired men he knew and trusted, brilliant men of great talent. Certainly, his first cabinet is probably the best we've ever had. You know, when you have Hamilton at Treasury and Jefferson at State and Henry Knox at War, it just makes every subsequent one look like a pickup team. A chief among them, of course, Alexander Hamilton. I think bringing Hamilton in as Secretary of the Treasury was his landmark achievement because, in fact, Alexander Hamilton set the course of this country in terms of its economy.
What Hamilton did was build the framework of a national banking system. As a first step, he proposed that the new government assume all the leftover war debt of the 13 original states, thereby establishing a federal line of credit. In order to get that done, he had to make a deal with people who were reluctant to have it done. These included people such as James Madison and Thomas Jefferson of Virginia, a state that had paid off most of its war debt. The issue of assumption, as it was called, became Washington's first test as president. Behind closed doors, he urged Madison, Jefferson, and Hamilton to consider a compromise. What he offered in return was the location of the nation's capital. The deal was straightforward: Hamilton got the funding, and the Virginians got the federal capital to be permanently located on land that belonged to Virginia. Washington let others hammer out the details, but when it came to choosing the actual site of the new federal city, Washington made the final decision himself. He chose a plot of swamp land called Foggy Bottom. It soon became unofficially known as the City of Washington because it was just a stone's throw from his home. Washington micromanaged the project. He personally surveyed the land where the new city would be built. He helped lay out the roads, and he left his imprint on the proposed President's Mansion by tinkering with the blueprints. [Music]
The building would not be finished until November 1800, a year after Washington's death. George Washington is the only president who never served in Washington. George Washington defined the presidency, but it defined him as well, especially in times of crisis. One troubling crisis arose in 1793 when war broke out between England and France. Suddenly, America was called upon to choose sides, but Washington chose neutrality. It was a decision that would come to haunt his successors.
On the domestic front, however, Washington faced crisis head-on. One defining moment of the Washington presidency happens in his second term, and it's the Whiskey Rebellion. In 1794, Pennsylvania farmers were up in arms over a federal excise tax on liquor. They even dusted off an old battle cry: "No taxation without representation." Washington's point of view was, "Wait a second. In 1776, we were rebelling against taxes that had been passed in London by the King and Parliament. But these taxes now, in 1794, these are passed in Philadelphia. That's the law of the land. You have to pay them." As the nation's first Commander-in-Chief, Washington personally mustered 12,000 volunteers to march to Pennsylvania. This show of force was all it took to put down the rebellion. [Music]
Washington understood very clearly that everything he did as the first president of the United States would be watched by nations abroad and by people at home, and would set a precedent. Well, the main precedent, the one that he's known the most for, is that he left. He decides at the end of his second term that he wants to step down. Partly, I think he's feeling the approach of age. He's in his mid-60s. I think he also wants to teach the country a lesson in the passing on of power. And you wonder, for example, if somebody like Richard Nixon, say, had been our first president, would Nixon have stepped down? Grace isn't knowing when to leave. Washington left after two terms. I think that was his finest moment. In 1798, George Washington produced 11,000 gallons of whiskey at Mount Vernon, making him the single largest distiller of alcohol in America. He was the most deserving person ever to become president, and he may have been the most personally unsuited for the job.
John Adams had a miserable presidency. It began on a gloomy March day in Philadelphia, 1797. At his inauguration, everybody is very moved to see the great hero, George Washington, leave the stage. And John Adams writes that Washington gave him a look as if to say, "Well, I'm leaving now. You're coming in. See if you enjoy the job." Number two: John Adams, Federalist, 1797-1801. 61 years old, from Massachusetts. If you think about following George Washington, how does one follow a person who is the American Cincinnatus? Oh my God, can you imagine how poor John Adams must have felt upon succeeding to the presidency, to follow this man? He was Harvard-educated, yet insecure. Enormously ambitious, yet oddly humble. Adams is a wonderful character. I mean, you've got to love him. He's erratic. One day he's up, one day he's down. I think there may have been a little imbalance there in his system. He craved fame and power, but he always pulled himself back and said, "No, I must make sacrifices for my country." Some days he thought he was on top of the world, and other days he thought he was just the lowest failure on earth. John Adams is a figure who was, in many ways, racked with self-doubt. At the same time, enormously ambitious. Adams' personality was not suited to the presidency.
John Adams certainly had the political pedigree to be president. He was a signer of the Declaration, a member of the Continental Congress, minister to France and England, and America's first Vice President. And yet, as a leader of men, John Adams' management style was problematic at best. During his administration, Adams is heavily criticized for his pretentiousness, as a man who was kingly in a way that George Washington never was. He was a very, very opinionated man, and he was sure that he was right and did not accept counsel as well as other presidents have. Adams was also prone to fits of anger, which he unleashed on subordinates. This is just not the way an effective executive deals with the people under him.
Two issues defined Adams' presidency: the XYZ Affair and the Alien and Sedition Acts. [Music] Both were caused by a crisis in foreign affairs, the escalating war between England and France. By the time John Adams comes into office, the French are being particularly obnoxious. They're going through a period of seizing our shipping because they don't want us trading with their enemy, Britain. Hoping to quell the crisis, Adams sent a diplomatic team to Paris. That delegation was met with the demand for a bribe. This was reported back to the American Congress. Instead of referring to the Frenchman who demanded the bribe by their correct names, they were simply referred to as X, Y, and Z, and so this became known as the XYZ Affair. American public opinion raged against the French. Hawks screamed for war. Adams is not crazy about the French anyway, and so to be snubbed by the French like this, to be treated in effect like country bumpkins, must have offended Adams tremendously. [Music]
But instead of acting impulsively, Adams kept his cool and sent a second peace delegation to Paris. For this, the warmongers in Congress vilified him. Adams had the courage to stand against these men. Indeed, he stood against most of the men in his own party, the Federalist Party. But he was firm and adamant in seeking a peaceful solution. Adams would reach his peaceful solution in 1800 when France and the United States signed the Treaty of Mortfontaine. But this wouldn't happen before Adams made the worst decision of his presidency. In the midst of our difficulties with France, there were a great many dissident voices within America. Men, newspaper editors, some politicians were voicing their distress with the policies of the Adams government. [Music]
Acutely sensitive to criticism, Adams decided that the verbal attacks were seditious and dangerous to national security. So, in 1798, Adams signed the Alien and Sedition Acts, making it a crime to falsely speak out or write against certain federal officeholders, including the President. It stands out as the single greatest blemish on this otherwise extraordinary career. It fed into this image of Adams as the aristocrat, as Adams having this tinge of royalty, of arrogance, and the Alien and Sedition Acts simply underscored what his enemies were already saying about this man. Sadly, Adams' support of the Alien and Sedition Acts overshadowed the treaty with France, but the importance of his diplomacy cannot be forgotten. It was a monumental achievement and one of those great turning points, for had we not made peace with France, had Adams succumbed to the pressure to go to war, the history of America would have been very, very different. [Music]
Significantly, the threat of war with France was the impetus for the one legacy of Adams' presidency. John Adams is the father of the American Navy. It was Adams that understood that if America was to defend her shores, that it was necessary to have a navy. By creating the Department of the Navy, Adams became the first U.S. President to add a secretary to his cabinet. But even the U.S. Navy could not save John Adams from himself. He had alienated many members of Congress and men of his own party. In November 1800, just after becoming the first president to live in the White House, Adams lost his bid for a second term to Thomas Jefferson. It was a bitter defeat. Adams is not gracious in defeat. The image we have today of the election of a new president, the former president bids him welcome to the White House, etc., etc. Oh, no, not at all. Adams leaves Washington in the midst of the night. When he left office, he was certainly the most unhappy man in the country because he believed he left office disgraced and unappreciated. During his own life, John Adams' presidency was regarded as the low point of his remarkable political career. It would take nearly 200 years for historians to reassess his contribution to the office. Two presidents signed the Declaration of Independence: John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. Both died on July 4th, 1826, the 50th anniversary of the signing.
The election of 1800 set two precedents in American history. It was the first election in which the press played a big role, and for the first time in presidential politics, power was peacefully shifting from one political party to another. In this highly contentious election, the founding party of the nation, the Federalists, had been defeated, and the popular leader of a new political party was moving into the White House. Number three: Thomas Jefferson, Democratic Republican, 1801-1809. 58 years old, from Virginia. Thomas Jefferson was the first president inaugurated in Washington. On the day of his inauguration, Thomas Jefferson walks to the unfinished Capitol to deliver his inaugural address in one of the most important statements ever made by a president in any inaugural address. He tells the assembled group, "We are all federalists, we are all republicans."
But Jefferson did not intend to follow the Federalist model for the presidency. Jefferson believes that his election was virtually a second revolution. He thought the government was going down a very bad path under the Federalists. He thought he'd saved it. Jefferson believed the Federalists had put too much power in the central government. He vowed to reverse that. Well, it's the old adage, of course, a Jeffersonian adage, that government is best which governs least, except when you're elected to office. He was a remarkably casual man who sometimes greeted guests in his slippers. He was also eccentric and secretive. Such was the self-styled character of Thomas Jefferson.
Jefferson viewed himself and presented himself as a man of the people. Somewhat ironic again, because here is Mr. Jefferson, who lives in perhaps the most elegant home in all of America, Monticello. He's hardly a man of the people. But on the other hand, he has this ability to connect and to make this pretense, to make this image of this democrat with a small "d." To help spin this image, Jefferson adopted a casual tone for protocol and official behavior at the President's Mansion. It was said that if you went to the White House, quite often Mr. Jefferson himself would open the door. Jefferson also ended the formal state dinners established by Washington and continued by Adams. Instead, he hosted informal supper parties where guests could sit anywhere they pleased. Even at the same time that Jefferson is symbolically downgrading the office, he is using it very effectively, and he calls the tune.
President Jefferson was a quiet but effective manager who preferred working in the privacy of his office than in the public eye. He does not give his annual messages to Congress, his speeches in person. He doesn't do that. He sends them written messages instead. He did not like to give public addresses. He was not a good public speaker. He had a very, very soft voice, apparently. But he was definitely a brilliant and cunning politician. He is brilliant at using power in a way that people don't know that he's using it. This was especially true with the press. Jefferson handled the press very, very well. He understood the importance of the press. The press, however, didn't always give him a free pass.
In 1802, a tabloid writer of the day reported Jefferson's alleged affair with Sally Hemings, one of his slaves. He's mentioned by name by James Callender, and that's the first time Sally Hemings' name appears in the newspaper. Freud would have a field day with this. Sally Hemings is the half-sister of Martha Wayles Jefferson, who was Jefferson's wife. She is the daughter of Martha's father and a slave woman. Jefferson skillfully managed the scandal by doing nothing. Thomas Jefferson never, never responded to any allegations, any accusations of his relationship with Sally Hemings or with anyone else. Jefferson simply ignored it. Early spin control from a master politician. I mean, if more people could follow that prescription, people wouldn't get into the trouble that, you know, they get into by talking too much. Jefferson never talked about anything that he didn't want to talk about.
The defining moment of Jefferson's presidency was his expansion of executive power to make the Louisiana Purchase, the mega deal of the 19th century. It more than doubled the size of the United States for a mere $15 million. This is just a bargain. But he doesn't know whether it's constitutional for him to do this. In fact, he rather thinks it isn't. Had he been true to his principles, he never would have done it. Not only did he do it, but he used Alexander Hamilton's system of finance to fund it, a system he had publicly opposed for 15 years. In effect, Jefferson did a complete political 180. Because of this, the Federalists attacked him. They hammered him with this. The argument is, "You are the one who's been worried about the federal government doing too much and taking on too much power. Well, here you've grabbed a third of the continent, and you're proposing to rule it by military governors. Doesn't that look like big government to you?"
Ignoring his critics, Jefferson also authorized a secret exploration of the territory: the Lewis and Clark Expedition. It would eventually be regarded as an epic American adventure. But when Jefferson sent a secret message to Congress requesting money for the mission, his enemies screamed that it was an unconstitutional military foray. [Applause] So, Jefferson, the man who supposedly loved small government, is a president who dramatically expands the power of the federal government. That, of course, is a tradition in our presidency.
In 1804, Thomas Jefferson was overwhelmingly re-elected. Yet, he found little joy during his second term. Jefferson is a very sensitive man. He hates the criticism that he gets, and his second term becomes hell to him. He feels as if he's in prison. I think Jefferson's greatest shot coming in office was his inability to deal with the rising international crisis. That crisis was the escalating war between England and France. Jefferson believed that America need not be involved with Europe, that somehow it was possible for us to ignore the world beyond us and to deal only with an interior America. The problem was, American merchants were trading with England and France. That infuriated both sides. Acting impulsively, Jefferson issued the Embargo Act of 1807, stopping all trade with all foreign nations. What a foolish solution to a problem. Doesn't want to go to war with France, doesn't want to go to war with England, and so instead of making a decision, he says, "Okay, we're not going to trade with anybody." Well, this is not a statesmanlike decision, and it's disastrous for New England trade. The Embargo Act of 1807 was extremely controversial, and it really sank his second term.
By 1808, Thomas Jefferson was tormented by migraine headaches. The presidency had aged him considerably. Jefferson came to hate the presidency so much that he left it off his gravestone. Yet, his achievements remain unparalleled in American history. He took the oath of office intending to change the power of the presidency, and indeed he did. Thomas Jefferson kept two bear cubs at the White House. They were given to him by Lewis and Clark and housed in cages on the South Lawn. Jefferson is succeeded by one of his own, the president who follows him is his Secretary of State, his friend, his associate, really, his right-hand man for over 20 years. [Music]
Number four: James Madison, Democratic Republican, 1809-1800. Age 57, from Virginia. He was eminently qualified for the job. A veteran of the Revolution, author of the Constitution, a Jeffersonian democrat, and a Virginian. There are people who feel that he had a much, in some ways, a better mind than Jefferson, certainly a more disciplined mind than Jefferson. In truth, James Madison was everything Thomas Jefferson wasn't. He was sort of the opposite of Jefferson physically. He was short, why Jefferson was tall. He was funnier than Jefferson. He was known as having a good sense of humor. He had light hair, turned gray, blue eyes, was soft-spoken, and not given to rage or small talk. He usually dressed in black.
Madison brought something else to the White House that had been missing during Jefferson's presidency: a First Lady. Dolly Madison is enormously important in the shaping of protocol. She is a younger, vivacious woman who sparkles, sort of brightens up what is considered Madison's drab exterior. He becomes a much more interesting, exciting figure because of her. The Madisons became known for lavish parties and sumptuous feasts at the White House. These often included ice cream, a delicacy of the day. Dolly's favorite flavor was oyster.
As an executive, Madison had an abiding sense of fairness, a calm demeanor, and was always well prepared. This was not only a very smart man, this was a man who did his homework, who did his thinking, who did his studying, and was really prepared for whatever came up, except for a war. The War of 1812, which ultimately defined his presidency. Madison comes into office with an enormous problem on his hands. Half the country's still pushing to go to war with England, after the country's pushing to go to war with France, and Madison is really pushed by events into the war with England. The War of 1812 was sparked on the high seas shortly after Madison's inauguration. The British began seizing American ships and impressing U.S. sailors and merchant seamen. Diplomatic efforts to solve the crisis went nowhere. Finally, on June 18th, 1812, James Madison became the first president in U.S. history to ask Congress for a declaration of war. Imagine what guts it took. We declared war on Great Britain. They did not declare war on us. Our navy in 1812 numbered about 20 ships. Theirs numbered about 1,000. Their army was battling Napoleon. It was triumphant. We had militia and militia. It was a foolish thing to do. It is a disaster. We lose humiliating engagements in Detroit and in upstate New York, and the war begins very badly indeed.
Madison's troubles grew as the war progressed, especially in New England. There was almost a civil war in 1814 because New England threatens to secede. I mean, New England is so angry. Their lifeblood is commerce and shipping. Then, in August 1814, the British raided Washington and burned the President's Mansion. Driven from his home, James Madison became the first and only sitting president to face enemy fire. He personally took command of a militia battery outside Washington, but to his embarrassment, the Commander-in-Chief was forced to retreat. Much as we hate to disappoint the American public who believes America has never lost a war, we definitely lost this war. Our capital was burned. We're defeated on land, on sea, and poor Madison is burdened with this image that he got us into the war.
Desperate to end it, Madison sent James Monroe to negotiate peace with England. In December 1814, Monroe succeeded with the Treaty of Ghent, officially ending the war. Then, before news of the treaty reached Washington, America was strangely rewarded with a belated victory at the Battle of New Orleans. The man who benefited most was the defender of New Orleans, General Andrew Jackson. But the victory did little for James Madison. Two important things come out of this war: Dolly Madison saves the portrait of George Washington, and the Star-Spangled Banner. But it does tarnish Madison. It's about the only thing he's really remembered for. The War of 1812 brought the American presidency into the politics of international diplomacy and the real world. Foreign issues could no longer be ignored. This is a rude awakening about world politics that Madison gets with the War of 1812. It's a time of the opening up of the presidency, the part of America becoming much more mature, and the president has to play a role in this because he is the symbol of the United States. As with those who came before him and those who would follow, James Madison learned a harsh lesson about the office he helped create. It is not so much about the man, but the unforeseen events which define a presidency. [Music]
Before the War of 1812, James Madison proposed that the United States, instead of building new ships, should simply rent Portugal's navy. It didn't happen. The election of 1816 was one of the most harmonious in American history. Party politics had seemingly vanished as the country elected another Founding Father to the White House. Number five: James Monroe, Democratic Republican, 1817-1825. 58 years old, from Virginia. On his relic, he's the last of the Revolutionary generation to hold high office. He's the last of the Virginia Dynasty. In person, he cut the figure of the quintessential hero of the Revolution, from his boots, breeches, and ceremonial sword right up to his cockade hat. The funny thing about James Monroe is that no one ever seems to have thought terribly well of him, except his character. Everybody said he was honest, and everybody said he was trustworthy, but no one ever said he was extremely intelligent. Yet, this man must have been doing something right because he gets elected twice to the presidency by crushing margins.
Monroe's presidency was so seemingly amicable that he was unopposed when he ran for his second term. He had, in many ways, a falsely easy presidency. This is supposed to be the Era of Good Feelings. He seems to reign over a period of peace and happiness in America, but not really, because if you look just underneath the surface, you have Monroe presiding, but he's presiding over lots of stuff that's going on behind the doors. Monroe's management style reflected his personality. He was a hands-off executive who hired great people for his cabinet, then delegated authority. This served him well during the moments that defined his presidency.
At the beginning of Monroe's first term, the territory of Missouri petitioned for statehood. In theory, adding a star to the flag should have been cause for national celebration. Instead, it ignited a great political debate over slavery. Would Missouri be a free or slave state? As Congress debated the explosive issue, Monroe, a slave owner himself, made it clear that he would veto any legislation that restricted self-determination for any state. He eventually Congress passed the Missouri Compromise of 1820. Missouri enters the Union as a slave state, Maine enters the Union as a free state, and prohibitions are put upon the expansion of slavery. It is a temporary, a temporary solution. Monroe also came up with his own plan. He proposed to return slaves to Africa, called the American Colonization Society. This led to the founding of Monrovia, Liberia, the only foreign capital to be named for a U.S. President. Unfortunately, this did little to solve the crisis at home.
While the slavery questions simmered, Monroe faced a border crisis in Florida. The territory was still owned by Spain, but the Spanish did little to govern it. It's a nest of pirates and outlaws, and there are Indian tribes who live there who are certainly not under the control of the Spanish government. By 1818, border incursions were common. Seminole Indians, in particular, were raiding white settlements in Georgia. These raids were often encouraged by British privateers who operated on the Florida coast. In response, Monroe sent troops to the region, led by the hero of New Orleans, General Andrew Jackson. Andrew Jackson ends up being sick and tired of it, and he invades Florida and captures the British and hangs them. So he creates an international incident involving three countries: the United States, Spain, and Britain.
Jackson's raid caused an uproar in Monroe's cabinet. Some, including Secretary of War John C. Calhoun, wanted to reprimand the general. And Secretary of State John Quincy Adams sticks up for him. He says, "What the British were doing was outrageous, and the Spaniards ought to have stopped them, and they didn't, and Jackson did a preemptive strike, and that's what he ought to have done." Monroe did not reprimand Jackson. Instead, he opened negotiations with Spain for the rights to the territory. In 1819, the Spanish ceded Florida to the United States without a fight.
Border disputes were constant during Monroe's tenure. Significantly, it was a border issue that led to Monroe's defining moment in office. In December 1823, the President delivered a message to Congress and to the world. Ostensibly, he addressed a minor dispute between Russia and the United States over Alaska, but the speech contained a short paragraph that became his legacy. It stated, "The American continents are henceforth not to be considered as subjects for future colonization by any European powers." The Monroe Doctrine is our statement that we reject countries coming in and trying to acquire further territorial gains in this hemisphere. You stay in your hemisphere, we'll stay in ours. It wasn't until 1852 that people began calling it the Monroe Doctrine. By then, it was regarded as Monroe's greatest moment, and yet he was not the true author. That's a wonderful example of how the presidency is becoming the central branch of the government, and the president is becoming so important. The Monroe Doctrine is written by John Quincy Adams, Secretary of State, but because it happens in Monroe's administration, it's known as the Monroe Doctrine.
The end of James Monroe's presidency was a turning point in American political history. He was the last of the Revolutionary generation, the last of the architects of the American Republic. These men were not politicians. Their vision of themselves was as caretakers of and leaders of a nation, as good citizens, as statesmen. And I think that that maybe marks the difference between the generation of Jefferson and Adams and the generation of Andrew Jackson and the men who come after. This is mother nature out of control. Could these natural disasters have been prevented? How is the latest technology helping us predict the next disaster? And how can history teach us to prepare for next nature's funeral? Week begins tonight at 8 on the History Channel.