skip to content
Polk : the man who transformed the presidency and America
ClosePreview this item

Polk : the man who transformed the presidency and America

Author: Walter R Borneman
Publisher: New York : Random House, ©2008.
Edition/Format:   Book : Biography : English : 1st edView all editions and formats
Summary:
The first complete biography of a president often overshadowed in image but seldom outdone in accomplishment. James K. Polk's pledge to serve a single term, which many thought would make him a lame duck, enabled him to rise above electoral politics and to outflank his adversaries. Thus he plotted and attained a formidable agenda: He fought for and won tariff reductions, reestablished an independent Treasury, and  Read more...
Rating:

based on 1 rating(s) 0 with reviews - Be the first.

 

Find a copy in the library

Retrieving... Finding libraries that hold this item...

Details

Genre/Form: Biography
Named Person: James K Polk; James K Polk
Material Type: Biography, Internet resource
Document Type: Book, Internet Resource
All Authors / Contributors: Walter R Borneman
ISBN: 9781400065608 1400065607
OCLC Number: 123232239
Description: xxiii, 422 p. : ill., maps ; 25 cm.
Contents: I: The man --
Old Hickory's boy --
Carrying the water --
Tennessee and Old Tippecanoe --
The last defeat --
Hands off Texas --
A summons from Old Hickory --
Baltimore, 1844 --
"Who is James K. Polk?" --
II: The conquest --
Making good on Texas --
Standing firm on Oregon --
Eyeing California --
Mission to Mexico --
"American blood upon American soil" --
54'40' compromise! --
To Santa Fe and beyond --
Mr. Polk's war --
Old Bullion's son-in-law --
A president on the spot --
Securing the spoils --
The Whigs find another General --
Homeward bound --
A Presidential assessment.
Responsibility: Walter R. Borneman.
More information:

Abstract:

The first complete biography of a president often overshadowed in image but seldom outdone in accomplishment. James K. Polk's pledge to serve a single term, which many thought would make him a lame duck, enabled him to rise above electoral politics and to outflank his adversaries. Thus he plotted and attained a formidable agenda: He fought for and won tariff reductions, reestablished an independent Treasury, and most notably, brought Texas into the Union, bluffed Great Britain out of the lion's share of Oregon, and wrested California and much of the Southwest from Mexico. In tracing Polk's life and career, author Borneman dispels conventional views of Polk as an accidental president. Instead, we see Polk as he was--a decisive, if not partisan, statesman whose near doubling of America's boundaries and expansive broadening of executive powers redefined the country at large, as well as the nature of its highest office.--From publisher description.

Reviews

User-contributed reviews
Retrieving weRead reviews...
Retrieving GoodReads reviews...
Retrieving Amazon reviews...

Tags

Be the first.
Confirm this request

You may have already requested this item. Please select Ok if you would like to proceed with this request anyway.

Close Window

Please sign in to WorldCat 

Don't have an account? You can easily create a free account.