In Washington and Lincoln could be the whole story of America, from soup to nuts, if we only told the tale well. But we don't anymore; we are impatient, and time is money, and, after all, Franklin Pierce and Warren Harding are also the tale of the nation, aren't they?
No. These were ambitious, small men who pursued personal or regional interests above national ones. By letting them, along with Tyler and the Harrisons (both William Henry and Benjamin) and James Buchanan, coopt Presidents' Day, we have raised them to the stature of the first President and the awe of the 16th. We have made the office, rather than the quality of performance in the office, the prize.
Is that American, in the best sense?
via nydailynews.com
I couldn't agree more!