Post-Civil War Turmoil: Andrew Johnson and Chester A. Arthur
Abraham Lincoln chose Andrew Johnson, a fiercely pro-Union Democrat from Tennessee, as his running mate in 1864 to signal national unity. When John Wilkes Booth assassinated Lincoln in April 1865, conspirators also targeted Johnson, though his would-be assassin lost his nerve and got drunk instead. Johnson unexpectedly ascended to the presidency, plunging the nation into a bitter struggle over post-war Reconstruction. Johnson clashed fiercely with the Radical Republicans in Congress because he sought to quickly restore Southern states to the Union without guaranteeing civil rights for formerly enslaved individuals.
Congress repeatedly overrode Johnson’s vetoes. When Johnson fired Secretary of War Edwin Stanton in defiance of the Tenure of Office Act, the House of Representatives impeached him. The Senate acquitted Johnson by a single vote. Analyzing Johnson’s disastrous presidency shows you how a stubborn refusal to collaborate with lawmakers can cripple an administration.
Chester A. Arthur stepped into the presidency under similarly tragic circumstances in 1881. An assassin shot President James A. Garfield, who lingered in agony for months before dying from infections caused by his doctors. Arthur belonged to the “Stalwart” faction of the Republican party, a group notorious for embracing the corrupt spoils system. Critics expected Arthur to fill the federal government with his political cronies. Instead, Arthur shocked the nation by signing the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act. This landmark legislation required the government to hire federal employees based on merit and competitive exams rather than political loyalty. You can trace the origins of the modern professional bureaucracy directly back to Arthur’s surprising redemption arc.
