James K. Polk entered the office of the President as heir apparent to Andrew Jackson's Democratic party after the miserable failure of the Whigs under William Henry Harri

Love his politics or hate them, one can scarcely argue with the assertion that James K. Polk (1795-1849), America's eleventh President, presided over one of the most (if not the most) successful administrations in American history.

Even those who disagree with his policies (and there are many who are critical of them to this day), there are things which most certainly have to be admired about Polk - he declared right from the beginning that he would serve only a single term and not run for reelection (a promise he held to, though he most likely could have won a reelection campaign).

Campaign Promises

He also set a very strict policy agenda for himself while in office:

· He promised to immediately seek annexation of Texas from Mexico.

· He would, under the auspices of "manifest destiny" seek westward expansion, specifically regarding the Oregon territory in the northwest.

· He would purchase California from Mexico

· He sought to impose a system of independent treasury in order to prevent private banks from having too much control over the nation's funds (one of the causes of the Panic of 1837), while at the same time providing an alternative to another National Bank like the one dissassembled by Andrew Jackson.

· He promised to reduce tariffs.

Famously, Polk completed all of these objectives in his four years in office without the need of seeking a second term. It is this success that has earned him a place among America's great leaders.

Polk in Congress

Polk had earned his nickname, "Young Hickory," for good reason.

Born in North Carolina and raised in Tennessee as a Jeffersonian Republican, Polk had long watched and admired the political career of Andrew Jackson ("Old Hickory").

In fact, in 1824, the year that Jackson famously lost the heated election to John Quincy Adams, Polk was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, where he derided the congressional decision to give the White House to Adams, supporting (with Jackson) a constitutional amendment to rid the nation of the electoral college process (which failed).

Along with Jackson, who would finally win the Presidency four years later, Polk spoke spoke out against the Second Bank of the United States and, like the true Jeffersonian that he was, favored agricultural interests over industrial ones (which also surely stemmed from his lifelong ownership of a slave-filled plantation in Tennessee).

His power in congress only grew throughout Jackson's two terms, becoming chairman of the House Ways and Means committee - one of the most important congressional committees - and eventually being named Speaker of the House, thus earning him his first place in the Presidential line of succession.

Governor Polk

Polk remained in Congress throughout both Jacksonian terms and the single term of his successor, Martin Van Buren (who was unfortunate enough to lead the country during times of financial hardship). As it became clear that Van Buren and the Jacksonian Democrats would lose the election in 1840, Polk himself decided to leave Washington and serve his party back home in Tennessee.

In 1939, as the Whig party candidates William Henry Harrison and John Tyler moved toward the White House (where Harrison would last only a month, to be succeeded by the much more democratic Tyler), Polk was elected governor of Tennessee.

Two years later, Polk lost reelection to James C. Jones. Two years after that, he lost again.

Unsuccessful as he may have been, his performence in defending democratic ideals during these campaigns helped earn him national attention, and a place near the front of the line for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1844.

After all, the dismal failure of John Tyler in the White House had opened the door for another Jacksonian attempt at the White House. Polk - "Young Hickory" himself - was seen by some as being a good choice.

Nevertheless, Polk was not favored at first in the Democratic party, which tried to resurrect Martin Van Buren for another run at the White House. On the fifth ballot at the Democratic convention, however, after much indecision, Polk's name was submitted as a 'dark horse' candidate. He finally won the nomination on the ninth ballot with the support of Jackson himself.

Presidency

After winning the Presidency against Whig opponent Henry Clay (who was running for the fourth of five total times) in 1844, Polk set about to achieve his agenda.

It did not all go smoothly, however. In particular, his views on westward expansion were thwarted by the Mexicans in California and Texas, though Polk would not be swayed by their efforts to stop America's push to the west. The result, of course, was the Mexican-American War.

Resulting in part from Mexico's refusal to allow Texas to secede and become their own republic (which had taken place during the Van Buren, Harrison and Tyler administrations, beginning in 1836), things boiled over when John Tyler offered Texas statehood, an event which Mexico had warned would lead to war.

Upon achieving statehood, Polk sent American militia under General Zachary Taylor to protect the new state, facing off with the Mexicans at the Rio Grande.

The resulting war was fought entirely within the space of Polk's single term, ending with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo on February 2nd, 1848.

While the war was surely the most defining aspect of Polk's time in office, it was necessary in order for him to achieve his previously stated goals. With victory over Mexico he was able to purchase both California and the Oregon territory, thus presiding over the second largest territorial expansion in American history (the first being the Louisiana purchase under Jefferson).

Post-Presidency

After leaving office in March of 1849, Polk, only 54 years old, was not a healthy man. In fact, he only lived another 3 months, dying after a tragically short retirement period in his Tennessee home on June 15 of that same year.

His Presidency, while disagreeable to many, was perhaps the most successful that ever was, especially in light of today's elections which are filled with endless numbers of promises, the vast majority of which will most certainly not be kept.

References:

"James K. Polk." American Presidents: An Online Reference Resource.

"Biography of James K. Polk." The White House.