A review by betsyrisen
Accidental Presidents: Eight Men Who Changed America by Jared Cohen

informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

John Tyler succeeded William Henry Harrison who died 30 days into his term. He was kicked out of his party and became the first president threatened with impeachment. Millard Fillmore succeeded esteemed General Zachary Taylor. He immediately sacked the entire cabinet and delayed an inevitable Civil War by standing with Henry Clay’s compromise of 1850. Andrew Johnson, who succeeded our greatest president, sided with remnants of the Confederacy in Reconstruction. Chester Arthur, the embodiment of the spoils system, was so reviled as James Garfield’s successor that he had to defend himself against plotting Garfield’s assassination; but he reformed the civil service. Theodore Roosevelt broke up the trusts. Calvin Coolidge silently cooled down the Harding scandals and preserved the White House for the Republican Herbert Hoover and the Great Depression. Truman surprised everybody when he succeeded the great FDR and proved an able and accomplished president. Lyndon B. Johnson was named to deliver Texas electorally. He led the nation forward on Civil Rights but failed on Vietnam.

"The Secret Service is not particularly interested in highlighting failures, the President doesn't want to engage in his own mortality, it is awkward for the Vice President to say anything at all, and after Al Haig declared he was "in control here" following an attempt on Reagan's life, cabinet secretaries are programmed to keep their mouths shut."

I enjoyed this book immensely. Drawing a through line through the history of accidental presidents without bouncing around or getting repetitive, I appreciated the way the book was structured and written. I am glad to never run out of things to learn about the office of the president, and this is just another slice of niche trivia to be glad to hear more about.