Rutherford B. Hayes - American Presidents Series
by Hans Trefousse
reviewed October 2018
The American President Series of books definitely achieve what they set out to do – give the reader a thorough, yet at the same time, a concise, history of each U.S. President. Not surprisingly, the lesser known presidents have few biographies devoted to them, so these volumes serve as a valuable resource for someone who wants to learn about such individuals.
Based on my research, there IS a very good biography of Rutherford Hayes out there by author Ari Hoogenboom, yet for some reason, even a used volume costs about $40. I was on the fence, and eventually economics won. The good news (for me) is that the author of this volume, Hans L Trefousse, is already familiar to me, as he penned a ‘legitimate’ biography of the 17th president, Andrew Johnson. Since I had just completed the Johnson bio, this was a factor that aided in my decision. Not surprisingly, Trefousse refers to the Hoogenboom account many times within his book, so at some point I’ll probably break down and spend the exorbitant price for the Hoogenboom book.
The presidency of Rutherford Hayes reminds me of the best airline flight that I ever had – because I don’t remember it. We don’t remember our great airline flights. Why? Because they’re smooth and uneventful. It’s the bad ones we remember. Such is the Hayes administration. Unlike most politicians, Rutherford Hayes is the type of man that you feel like you can be in a room with for several hours, and not have to have bathe immediately afterwards to remove the sleaze and slime that one recollects when they recall images of ‘successful’ politicians. He is a devout family man, an official eager to advance the rights of recently emancipated freedman, a successful Civil War general, and a man who maintains that he’ll only serve one term as president after not really wanting the job in the first place. He even manages to voluntary abstain from alcohol while serving in the White House.
In fact, the biggest controversy of his presidency is his election. Like his 21st century counterparts Bush and Trump, Hayes loses the popular vote, yet barely (by one vote) wins the electoral college. Not surprisingly, the other side whines often and loud (just like 2000 and 2016) and the first half of Hayes’ administration is looked at dubiously by his opponents as ‘someone who shouldn’t even be there’. Yep. Nothing has changed in the world of politics, folks.
He makes some good progress in office. He manages to further reconstruction efforts, enacts meaningful Civil service reform, and genuinely comes across as breath of fresh air compared to many of his predecessors (his immediate predecessor, Ulysses S. Grant, had a somewhat tarnished reputation with scandalous activities by some in his cabinet. History has been much more forgiving). One reflects that it must be nice to have a president in the office who never seriously wanted to be there, dreaded the thought of serving a second term, yet did a very favorable job overall, with many on the opposite side of the political fence even praising his efforts after he left.
Mister, we could use a man like Rutherford B. Hayes again.
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