Questions tagged [president]
A president is a head of republican state. The term can also refer to leader of organization, institution or community.
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Has any country ever had 2 former presidents in jail simultaneously?
I suspect that today, this achievement has been granted for the first time to Brazil, with the arresting of Michel Temer, and considering that Lula da Silva is still under arrest.
It is normally big ...
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1answer
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Was 2019 the first state of the union to have sung happy birthday?
I watched the state of the union and they sang the happy birthday song to the holocaust survivor because it was his birthday. Has something like this ever happened before?
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What did Harry Truman think about the 25th Amendment to the US Constitution?
The American Presidential succession process is interesting in that it starts off in the executive branch (with the VP), moves to the legislative branch (Speaker of the House, then President Pro Tem), ...
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1answer
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What is this medal that LBJ is wearing?
This photo shows President Lyndon Johnson wearing a medal that I can't ID:
(LBJ, Westmoreland, and Air Force One. ¿In New Orleans?)
LBJ supposedly won the Silver Star in WW2, but that looks ...
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1answer
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Who was the real first president of the United states of america? [duplicate]
Me and a colleague are arguing about the actual first president. He says the first was actually president of the continental Congress. My view is that after the constitution was ratified is when the ...
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1answer
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Does the Presidential term occurring after a death in office have a name (USA specifically)?
I'm working on a project involving US Presidents and their term dates etc. If a President dies in office, how is the new President's term until the next election year referred to? Is it simply 'The ...
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How was Washington and Jefferson's relationship in Dec 1799?
Bottom Line Up Front(BLUF)
George Washington died December 14th, 1799.
My question is what are some examples that demonstrate this period when these two preeminent founding fathers were bitter ...
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Did Andrew Jackson threaten to kill the Vice President?
In my Government and Politics class the other day, we were taught that Andrew Jackson threatened to kill the vice president. This sounded a bit odd to me so I wrote it in my notes and resolved to look ...
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American presidents on secession legality?
I am writing article (in Russian) on secession legality, and would like to include and analyze expressed opinions of antebellum American Presidents on the subject.
My favorite is Andrew Jackson’s ...
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671 views
How was President Andrew Jackson able to eliminate U.S national debt in 1835?
How was President Andrew Jackson able to eliminate U.S national debt in 1835?
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What's the relation of FDR and Wilson to War on Terror/terrorism? [closed]
In House of Cards, Frank Underwood brings up FDR and Wilson when saying that he wants to declare war on ICO (fictional terrorist group possibly related to ISIS). What's the relation please? I mean, ...
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Did a senator try to oust Woodrow Wilson from office?
The book "Raven Rock: The Story of the U.S. Government's Secret Plan to Save Itself--While the Rest of Us Die" by Garret M. Graff contains the following passage:
When Wilson left America for the ...
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1answer
137 views
Which US Presidents travelled around the world?
Shortly after President Grant left office, he went on a round-the-world journey, with stops all over Europe, in Russia, through the Suez Canal, to China and Japan, arriving in San Francisco and then ...
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Can anyone verify this story about the President's driver?
I remember hearing a story that I believe was either President Roosevelt or President Truman which involved his driver. There was a crash or incident because of his driver's error or negligence. After ...
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102 views
Holders of what offices are usually used to inaugurate the new head of state in various countries? [closed]
In the USA it is the Chief Justice of the United States. In Russia it is the Chairman or the Central Electoral Commission. In Byzantine Empire it was the Patriarch. What are other examples? What are ...
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Who were the chief executives of the United States in the thirteen years before George Washington? [duplicate]
Fully thirteen years passed after the Declaration of Independence before George Washington became President—first under Congress, then under the Articles of Confederation. It's a famous trivia fact ...
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Why did Roosevelt and Truman change the usual switch date of presidency? (4th of March to 20th of January)
Before Roosevelt, all Presidents started and ended their time in office on 4th of March (excluding, of course, deaths). Roosevelt himself took the office on March 4, 1933.
I don't understand why ...
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Other than Mr. Putin, has there been occassion of an ex-secret agent becoming the primary executive power holder?
In the modern era, are there people who were a secret agent before they started to play politics and get elected as the primary executive power holder such as but not limited to the position of ...
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Why was Franklin D. Roosevelt pro-intervention?
In the lead-up to WW2, most Americans were in favor of neutrality and isolation. President Roosevelt, however, was privately in favor of intervention.
One paragraph from Wikipedia summarizes it ...
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1answer
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Why did South Carolina continue to select their Presidential Electors by legislative choice until after the Civil War?
Looking back through a history of the electoral college, many of the states did not at first actually have a popular vote to decide the electors for president. Instead many states chose electors by ...
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1answer
395 views
Why is the US Independent in 1776 but the first President isn't inaugurated until 1789? [closed]
I'm reading a book1 covering the events around The Independence of United States from Britain, which happened on 4th July in 1776. However, the first US president was George Washington and he was in ...
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1answer
545 views
Was George Washington the thirteenth president? [closed]
I recently read in a book called Contrary to Popular Belief that George Washington was in fact the thirteenth president of the US. Is there any truth to this?
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1answer
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Organizing the 1788 presidential and congressional elections
In 1788 the new Constitution of the United States went into effect in the states that had ratified it, and that meant elections had to be organized for representatives in Congress and for members of ...
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On what accomplishments does Theodore Roosevelt's present day reputation rest?
Teddy Roosevelt appears on Mount Rushmore, and Wikipedia's Historical rankings of Presidents of the United States page reveals almost unanimous love for Teddy. But why? From what I know about his time ...
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At what point were there the most current and former US Presidents alive?
At what year or parts of years were the most current (meaning in office) and former Presidents of the United States alive? It seems that 1833 to 1836 had the most current, former, and future ...
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Was the impeachment trial of Andrew Johnson a “media circus”?
I recently watched a History Channel special on presidents during the Reconstruction era, where various historians describe the Andrew Johnson impeachment trial as a "media circus" comparable to the ...
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What's the story behind this photo of hikers who brought white plague cure to President Wilson?
"LOS ANGELES HIKERS WHO BROUGHT WHITE PLAGUE CURE TO PRESIDENT WILSON. AT WHITE HOUSE"
I stumbled upon this interesting photo at the United States Library of Congress site, which seems to refer to ...
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Why did Taft write a one cent check on his first day as Chief Justice?
I was looking at William Howard Taft's Wikipedia page, and among other things was a $0.01 check drafted by him on his first day as Chief Justice of the United States.
The check has ended up at the ...
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4answers
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Why didn't Henry A. Wallace become President in 1945?
Henry A. Wallace was Roosevelt's vice-president during WWII. Shortly before Roosevelt's death (82 days) following a slow decline in health, the Conservative wing of the Democratic Party started an ...
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1answer
284 views
Why did Thomas Hendricks win the majority of Horace Greeley's electoral votes in 1872?
In researching my answer to Can electors "flip the ticket?", I re-examined the results of the election of 1872. As stated in that answer, 1872 was an interesting election, not for the result (Grant ...
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1answer
888 views
Why is president Nixon considered worst president in the history of US? [closed]
I have listened from people that Nixon is considered the worst president of US.
I also watched a Doctor Who episode in which Nixon asks The Doctor whether he would be remembered or not. Then, The ...
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Were any other members of the Kennedy (Political) family affected by Addison's disease?
Besides JFK, are there any known Addison's sufferers in the Kennedy political family?
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Did Jefferson and Washington smoke weed?
According to this document (page 26, §1):
Like all farmers, Washington probably sampled the quality and potency
of what he grew, and he may have used this hemp to treat his chronic
tooth aches. ...
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Did Theodore Roosevelt ever say the “things that will destroy America” quote?
The fullest form of the quote I have been able to find online is from thinkexist.com and goes as follows:
Americanism means the virtues of courage, honor, justice, truth,
sincerity, and hardihood—...
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1answer
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Did James Monroe and James Madison ever disagree? [closed]
I can't seem to find anything that they did butt heads about.
Did they ever have any public disagreements that were recorded by history?
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Why was Lakhdar Boumediene, in the Boumediene v Bush case, acquitted of his charges? And, why was the habeas corpus not suspended? [closed]
From my knowledge, the habeas corpus can be suspended in times of rebellion and danger of public health and safety. Wouldn't this be ground to ultimately suspend the habeas corpus in Bush's favor? (...
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Pre-1901/1902 US Presidential Protection
I've spent a little while looking around online about the origins of US Presidential protection - while it has become apparent that the US Secret Service became officially responsible for Presidential ...
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Has any US President served in a government position with a foreign nation before or after their presidency?
Has a person elected to the US Presidency ever held a government position in a nation besides the United States?
I think any government-related role would be an interesting answer. I think the ...
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Why did George H. W. Bush select Dan Quayle as his running mate in 1988?
I've just been revisiting some quotes from Dan Qualyle. For example:
I believe we are on an irreversible trend toward more freedom and
democracy – but that could change.
and
We are ready for ...
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When was the last time (if ever) an elector was faithless in US presidential elections?
With regards to the ongoing US presidential elections, I just read this on electoral-vote.com:
Could There Be Faithless Electors?
Presidential electors are supposed to vote for the person who ...
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Natural born citizen
From what I understand, the so-called "birther movement" in the US asserts that Barack Obama is not eligible to be president of the USA because he allegedly wasn't born in the US and therefore is not ...
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1answer
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Which battle enabled Andrew Jackson to become the President of USA?
Which significant battle enabled Andrew Jackson to become the President of the USA? Considering his leadership and contribution to this war he was catapulted to the White House.
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Where the did the concept of “smear campaigns” originate?
In the US political system there have been campaigns against and for certain candidates, and this goes back to the first Presidential Elections, where both sides used to have editors of newspapers ...
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Any precedents of U.S. presidents having served in other government roles after the ends of their terms?
Are there any precedents for U.S. presidents having served in other official government roles after the ends of their terms. Conceivably they could become ambassadors or Supreme Court judges, for ...
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What is the single longest Presidential Campaign run in the United States?
Looking back to 2008 it looks like Mitt Romney has been running for President ever since he was in the 2008 Republican primaries where he lost to John McCain. Considering a short stoppage while ...
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Can Bill Clinton run for president of France?
Bill Clinton says in an interview (Bill Clinton on running for political office again) :
Because I was born in Arkansas, which is part of Louisiana Purchase, any person anywhere in the world that ...
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1answer
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What was the average US unemployment rate for Democrat and Republican presidents?
Starting with the end of World War 1, what was the average unemployment rate for each United States President? Was the overall average different for Republican and Democratic presidents, and if so, by ...
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President proposes bills: provenance
The President of the United States sends proposed bills to members of Congress, that they may introduce the bills on his behalf. There's no provision for this in the Constitution (AFAICT).
What was ...
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When did it become acceptable to campaign for yourself for US President?
I am fascinated by the stark differences between election mechanics/strategies/policies of the early United States when compared to today.
In the early days of the US, it was seen as "ungentlemanly" ...
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Who was the last US president who did not start a war?
Who was the last US president who did not start a war?
