#William Howard Taft

[deadpresidents]

Which President, in your opinion, was the most reluctant to seek the position? Which wound up hating it the most by the end of his term?

I am a strong believer that nobody truly becomes President of the United States "reluctantly". That's not exactly the kind of job that seeks you, especially the modern Presidency.

For a significant slice of American history, many of the people nominated for President acted as if they were being called upon to run when, behind-the-scenes, they were very active in building their campaigns and corralling supporters. Until the 20th Century it was frowned upon to openly run for the Presidency, but almost all of the Presidents wanted the gig.

I'd say that George Washington was probably more reluctant than most of his successors and likely would have preferred retiring to Mount Vernon after the Revolution, but I think he also recognized that he was the guy who needed to be the President that set the precedents. I think Ulysses S. Grant would have been perfectly happy to not be President, but once he was elected in 1868 he also wanted to keep the job. He even tried to run for a third term in 1880.

That 1880 election might have been the one case where the winner -- James Garfield -- genuinely wasn't interested in the Presidency at that point. He had gone to the Republican National Convention to support fellow Ohioan John Sherman (and defeat Grant's hopes for a third term) and gained some major attention after giving a well-received speech placing Sherman's name in nomination. When the candidacies of Sherman and James G. Blaine -- another anti-Grant candidate -- stalled, Garfield became a compromise choice and was eventually nominated on the 36th ballot. Garfield was apparently legitimately shocked by the events leading to him leaving Chicago as the GOP nominee.

By most accounts, William Howard Taft was far more interested in a potential seat on the Supreme Court than becoming President. At heart he was a judge and believed himself to be better suited for the judiciary than the Executive Branch. But Taft turned down three offers by Theodore Roosevelt to be appointed to the Supreme Court (in 1902, 1903, and 1906) because he felt obligated to complete his work as Governor-General of the Philippines and then Secretary of War. But Taft's wife desperately wanted him to become President and by the time of President Roosevelt's third offer of a seat on the Court, Taft was already being talked about as Roosevelt's hand-picked successor in the White House. And, as with all other Presidents, once he had a taste for the job, he didn't want to give it up, running for re-election in 1912 against his former friend, Roosevelt.

Gerald Ford is the only other President who hadn't spent a significant portion of his political career with his eyes on the White House. Ford spent nearly a quarter-century in the House of Representatives and his main ambition was to be Speaker of the House, but Republicans weren't able to win control of the House when Ford was in Congressional leadership positions. But even with Ford being a creature of Congress, he did attempt to put himself forward as a nominee for the Vice Presidency, first in 1960 and then in 1968, and Nixon kicked the tires on picking him as his running mate in 1960. No one wants to be Vice President without seeing it as a potential stepping stone to the Presidency, particularly at that point in history before Vice Presidents were empowered with some real influence within the Administrations they served in.

As for who wound up hating it by the end of their time in office, I think it's safe to say that John Quincy Adams didn't shed too many tears when he was defeated for re-election in 1828. And I'm sure he wouldn't use the word "hate", but nobody can convince me that George W. Bush wasn't thoroughly ready to escape Washington by late-2007. There were times in 2008 when he seemed like he just wanted to hold a snap election like they have in parliamentary systems and go home to Texas. If some Presidential insider published a book that said that Bush asked if he could just give the keys to the White House to Barack Obama in July 2008, I wouldn't be the least bit shocked.

On the other hand, if there were no term limits, Bill Clinton would have been running for President in every election since 1992 (and the crazy thing is that he's still younger than both of the presumptive 2024 nominees). I'm kind of surprised that he didn't make an effort to repeal the 22nd Amendment in the past 20 years. Clinton loved being President and was trying to find something Presidential to do until minutes before his successor was inaugurated in 2001.

[ryunumber]

do any US presidents have a ryu number??

William Howard Taft has a Ryu Number of 2.

[brimleysbears]

[idvoteforthatdaddy]

William Taft (1857-1930) Physique: Average Build Height: 6′ 0″

William Howard Taft was the 27th president of the United States and the tenth chief justice of the United States, the only person to have held both offices. Taft was elected president in 1908, the chosen successor of Theodore Roosevelt, but was defeated for reelection in 1912 by Woodrow Wilson after Roosevelt split the Republican vote by running as a third-party candidate. In 1921, President Warren G. Harding appointed Taft to be chief justice, a position he held until a month before his death. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery, the first president and first Supreme Court justice to be interred there.

Taft is generally listed near the middle in historians' rankings of U.S. presidents. But to me, he's top 10 looks whys. Just check out that body. And trust me, I have. I bet he would have been a great bottom.

[catherinetheprincessofwales]

20 US Presidents related to the Princess of Wales (1/2)

George Washington, 1st U.S. President - 8th cousin 7 times removed

William Howard Taft, 27th U.S. President - 10th cousin 4 times removed

Thomas Jefferson, 3rd U.S. President - 11th cousin 7 times removed

James Madison, 4th U.S. President - 11th cousin 7 times removed

William Henry Harrison, 9th U.S. President - 12th cousin 6 times removed

Rutherford B. Hayes, 19th U.S. President - 13th cousin 4 times removed

Grover Cleveland, 22nd and 24th U.S. President - 13th cousin 5 times removed

Benjamin Harrison, 23rd U.S. President - 14th cousin 4 times removed

John Quincy Adams, 6th U.S. President - 14th cousin 5 times removed

Calvin Coolidge, 30th U.S. President - 15th cousin 2 times removed

[zerio105]

Anyway, this is the Taft coin of 1993, minted in celebration of the president passing the... uh, kidney stone.

Fun facts:

Worth 4

Made with an alloy of butter and copper

Originally wet to the touch, in commemoration of the bathtub (2/13)

[ronaldreaganfan]

did you know…

the oval office is an oval because William Howard Taft was really into the ‘how many corners in the round house’ riddle.

follow for more history facts!

[presidential-man-slut-poll]

Presidential Man Slut Round 1

Vote for who you think has the absolute sluttiest vibes! Learn more at the FAQ. This poll ends on Saturday, 25 February 2023.

Remember to reblog to make sure everyone gets a chance to vote. That’s democracy, babey!!!!

[lulu-cat-princess]

Some of the Button House as American Presidents 

Kitty: George Washington

Thomas: James Monroe

Fanny: William Howard Taft

Captain: Franklin D. Roosevelt

Pat: Ronald Reagan

Julian: Bill Clinton

[1900scartoons]

Taft Is Coming 

March 26, 1907

Porto Rico attaches barrels as flotation devices in preparation for Taft’s visit.

The caption reads "Preparations for the big man are being made in our island possessions."

William Taft was making a visit to Puerto Rico. The Secretary of War was known for his weight.

See Also: William H. Taft

From Hennepin County Library

Original available at: https://digitalcollections.hclib.org/digital/collection/Bart/id/5767/rec/88

[thepresidentsblog]

[deadpresidents]

I dare you to find a better Presidential campaign poster than this one for William Howard Taft. Good luck.

[woodrowwilsonofficial]

Mr. President, if William Taft came back to life, what would you do?

push him down a flight of stairs

[notlinny]

US presidents + NYT minus Context

[idvoteforthatdaddy]

William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857 – March 8, 1930) 27th U.S. President

[deceptigoons-attack]

WILLIAM HOWARD TAFT, THE OG HATER