A Country of Vast Designs

History has been fickle with James Knox Polk, the eleventh President of the United States. In some ways, he was the most successful president, given his agenda. He told a cabinet member that he had four goals: to claim Oregon from the British, gain California from Mexico, reduce the tariffs, and establish an independent treasury. He accomplished all of this in one term, and expanded the size of the U.S. by 500,000 square miles, establishing the map of the continental United States as it is today (except for the sliver of the southwest known as the Gadsden purchase). He did this in one term. He would die at age 53 only months after leaving office.

But, as President Obama has learned, accomplishments only go so far if not everyone agrees that they are good thing, and Polk, like Obama, had vehement opposition. This is detailed in Robert W. Merry's book, A Country of Vast Designs, which is really a biography of Polk with special emphasis on his four years in office, from 1845 to 1849.

The title of the book comes from a line from Ralph Waldo Emerson: "America is the country of the Future. It is a country of beginnings, of projects, of vast designs and expectations." It was during this period that the term "Manifest Destiny" was coined, when Americans believed it was their divine right to conquer and settle all the land between the oceans.

Polk was the only president who had also been Speaker of the House, he was also the first "dark horse" candidate. When the Democrats met for their convention in 1844, he hoped to be named to the ticket as the vice-presidential nominee. The favorite was the former president, Martin Van Buren, but his opposition to the annexation of Texas, plus a rule that required two-thirds of the delegation's votes, doomed his chances. Polk had the support of his mentor, the former president Andrew Jackson, who lobbied for his nomination. For eight ballots the delegates were in a stalemate, until Polk was introduced on the ninth ballot and nominated by acclimation. He then went on to beat the Whig candidate, Henry Clay, who had already lost a presidential election twice.

Polk's administration would be dominated by first Oregon, and then Mexico. The U.S. and Great Britain squabbled over Oregon (today Oregon, Washington and Idaho), and war was discussed. Some wanted the land all the way up to 54.40, which today would encompass British Columbia. A compromise was eventually struck, and Oregon became U.S. territory, but at the 49th parallel.

Mexico was a different story. Throughout the years, it has been assumed that Polk waged war because he wanted California (which included Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming). Merry doesn't fully disagree, but does point out that Mexico, by refusing to acknowledge the independence of Texas, brought the war upon themselves.

The details of the war are enlightening and eye-opening. It was as if the U.S. were making a rehearsal for Vietnam. The Whigs, including Henry Clay, were against it (he would lose a son in battle). Polk was exasperated by his generals, as Zachary Taylor made a few bad moves, but would then score victories that would launch him to the White House a few years later. Polk would remove Winfield Scott as the head of the army, which Scott responded to with a childish tantrum. But eventually Scott was reinstated, and he scored a major victory at Mexico City, prompting the Duke of Wellington to call him the world's greatest soldier.

The palace intrigue at the White House was also toxic. Polk's Secretary of State, James Buchanan, would be a constant source of vexation, but Polk never fired him, even when he thought Buchanan was working against him. Buchanan does not come off well in Merry's eyes, nor does Taylor, who is repeatedly labeled as dull and without opinions on the issues of the day.

Another theme running through the book is how the seeds that flowered into the Civil War were planted. A backbench congressman, David Wilmot, introduced a proviso into the bill that would pay for Polk's war that would outlaw slavery in any territory acquired through the conflict with Mexico. Thus the war took on an entirely different slant that would not be extinguished for another twenty years.

Merry is even-handed with Polk. He is admiring of his accomplishments, but doesn't seem particularly impressed with him as a man. He sums up by writing: "He had embraced an American aspiration that many articulated but few could fashion into a concrete plan with serious prospects of fulfillment. And, though grit, persistence, and flexibility of action, he had turned that aspiration into a reality that transformed a nation. But that ordeal also magnified the man's weaknesses--his suspicious sanctimony, his inability to establish a culture of teamwork, his tendency toward transparently sly maneuvers, his lack of personality traits used by true political leaders to bend others to his will."

The book is best when in the vein--analyzing Polk as a man. It suffers when dryly going through some of the history. It also would have done better with maps--a book about a war should have plenty of them. But I did learn a lot from this book, and got a much better sense of who James Knox Polk was, and how little has changed in over a hundred and sixty years.