James K. Polk: Dark Horse
2023-05-07
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1VOA Learning English presents America's Presidents.
2James Knox Polk moved into the White House as the 11th president of the United States in 1845.
3Few had predicted that Polk would become president.
4Even he was surprised.
5Polk had come to his party's presidential nominating convention nearly a year earlier with low expectations.
6But the top politicians, including former president Martin Van Buren, failed to win a majority of votes.
7Convention delegates tried again and again to agree on a candidate.
8Eventually, Polk was nominated.
9A small number of delegates supported him.
10Then the delegates voted again.
11This time, Polk received all 266 votes.
12He became the first dark horse candidate in U.S. history to be nominated by a major party.
13In other words, he was someone no one thought would win. But he did.
14Polk was born in the southeastern state of North Carolina.
15When he was a child, his family moved west, to Tennessee.
16At the time, Tennessee had few white settlers. Some considered it the wilderness.
17Polk's family did well there. His father became wealthy, buying land and enslaved people.
18His mother Jane, who followed strict, Christian religious teachings, gave her 10 children a good education.
19James was the oldest. He went to college, then studied law.
20When he was 25, he married an intelligent and wealthy young woman named Sarah Childress.
21The two never had children. But they worked together to launch Polk's political career.
22In time, Polk was elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives, then the national House of Representatives.
23There, he developed a close relationship with President Andrew Jackson.
24Since Jackson was called "Old Hickory," Polk became known as "Young Hickory."
25When Polk left Congress and returned to Tennessee to become governor, he supported Jackson's banking reforms.
26But soon the U.S. economy collapsed. Tennessee voters failed to re-elect Polk as governor - not once, but twice.
27So Polk returned to his plantations and waited for a chance to re-enter national politics.
28In 1844, Polk traveled to the city of Baltimore to attend the Democratic Party's national convention.
29He thought he could perhaps win the nomination for vice president.
30Instead, he became the Democrats' candidate for president.
31Several months later, he narrowly defeated the opposing party's candidate in the national election.
32Historian Robert Merry wrote a book about Polk's presidency.
33Merry says one reason Polk won the election was the issue of Texas.
34Polk wanted to make Texas a state.
35He thought the United States could take possession of the area peacefully.
36The other leading candidates did not.
37Merry says the other candidates were right - the United States eventually went to war with Mexico. But Polk spoke for the American people.
38In the 1840s, many Americans liked the idea of expanding the country.
39They believed in "manifest destiny" -- the idea that God wanted America to expand west, all the way to the Pacific Ocean, and take control of the continent.
40As a result, many voters supported Polk and his promise to add Texas to the United States.
41Polk took another unusual position in the 1844 election.
42He said if he won the presidency, he would serve only one term -- that is, four years.
43(Several previous presidents had served two terms.)
44Polk told voters presidents might abuse their power if they held office too long.
45One term, he said, would be enough for him.
46But Robert Merry says there was more to Polk's one-term promise. It was a political bet.
47Polk thought if he said he would serve as president for only one term, other party leaders might help him win.
48Then, those politicians could try again to win the presidency in four years, instead of waiting eight.
49He was probably right. If Polk had not made the campaign promise, Merry says, Young Hickory would not have won.
50During the first days of his administration, James K. Polk famously listed the four things he planned to do as president.
51He wanted to reduce taxes on imports. He wished to establish an independent treasury.
52He hoped to settle the dispute with Britain over the Oregon border. And he wanted to get California for the United States.
53Less than four years later, Polk had realized each item on his list.
54He is remembered for greatly expanding the size of the United States.
55He successfully negotiated with Britain for U.S. control over territory in the west up to the 49th parallel.
56The agreement gave the U.S. the current states of Oregon, Idaho, and Washington.
57Below those states lay California.
58An American government minister once described California as the richest, the most beautiful, and the healthiest country in the world.
59The official said the port of San Francisco was big enough to hold all the navies of the world.
60He said someday San Francisco would control the trade of all the Pacific Ocean.
61There was only one problem, from the point of view of the U.S. government.
62California was part of Mexico.
63At first, U.S. officials attempted to buy California from Mexico.
64But Mexican officials refused even to talk about selling California to the United States.
65Shortly after the U.S. Congress approved statehood for Texas in early 1845, Mexico broke relations with the U.S. all together.
66The following year, Mexican troops crossed the Rio Grande and clashed with American soldiers.
67In answer, President Polk asked Congress to declare war.
68He did not think the conflict would last long.
69He believed the U.S. declaration would quickly force Mexico to sell him the territory he wanted.
70Polk was wrong. Historian Robert Merry says the war with Mexico lasted longer, was more expensive, and cost more lives than he expected.
71But in the 1848 treaty that ended the war, Polk got the land he had wanted.
72Mexico recognized the independence of Texas, and it sold the areas that are now all or part of the states of Arizona, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, Wyoming, Colorado and, yes, California.
73President Polk kept his promise to serve only one term.
74After four years, he retired from the presidency, traveled for a few weeks, and then returned to Tennessee to settle in a new home.
75Only three months after he left the White House, Polk died.
76He left behind a much larger country, but a divided one.
77The issue was again slavery.
78Southerners argued that they had the right to take enslaved people into California and other former Mexican lands.
79Northerners opposed any further spread of slavery.
80The question was this: did Congress have the power to control - or even ban - slavery in the new territories?
81I'm Kelly Jean Kelly.
1VOA Learning English presents America's Presidents. 2James Knox Polk moved into the White House as the 11th president of the United States in 1845. 3Few had predicted that Polk would become president. Even he was surprised. 4Polk had come to his party's presidential nominating convention nearly a year earlier with low expectations. But the top politicians, including former president Martin Van Buren, failed to win a majority of votes. 5Convention delegates tried again and again to agree on a candidate. Eventually, Polk was nominated. A small number of delegates supported him. Then the delegates voted again. 6This time, Polk received all 266 votes. He became the first dark horse candidate in U.S. history to be nominated by a major party. In other words, he was someone no one thought would win. But he did. 7Early life 8Polk was born in the southeastern state of North Carolina. When he was a child, his family moved west, to Tennessee. At the time, Tennessee had few white settlers. Some considered it the wilderness. 9Polk's family did well there. His father became wealthy, buying land and enslaved people. 10His mother Jane, who followed strict, Christian religious teachings, gave her 10 children a good education. James was the oldest. He went to college, then studied law. 11When he was 25, he married an intelligent and wealthy young woman named Sarah Childress. The two never had children. But they worked together to launch Polk's political career. 12In time, Polk was elected to the Tennessee House of Representatives, then the national House of Representatives. 13There, he developed a close relationship with President Andrew Jackson. Since Jackson was called "Old Hickory," Polk became known as "Young Hickory." 14When Polk left Congress and returned to Tennessee to become governor, he supported Jackson's banking reforms. But soon the U.S. economy collapsed. Tennessee voters failed to re-elect Polk as governor - not once, but twice. 15So Polk returned to his plantations and waited for a chance to re-enter national politics. 16In 1844, Polk traveled to the city of Baltimore to attend the Democratic Party's national convention. He thought he could perhaps win the nomination for vice president. Instead, he became the Democrats' candidate for president. 17Several months later, he narrowly defeated the opposing party's candidate in the national election. 18Why Polk won 19Historian Robert Merry wrote a book about Polk's presidency. Merry says one reason Polk won the election was the issue of Texas. Polk wanted to make Texas a state. He thought the United States could take possession of the area peacefully. The other leading candidates did not. 20Merry says the other candidates were right - the United States eventually went to war with Mexico. But Polk spoke for the American people. 21In the 1840s, many Americans liked the idea of expanding the country. They believed in "manifest destiny" -- the idea that God wanted America to expand west, all the way to the Pacific Ocean, and take control of the continent. 22As a result, many voters supported Polk and his promise to add Texas to the United States. 23Polk took another unusual position in the 1844 election. He said if he won the presidency, he would serve only one term -- that is, four years. (Several previous presidents had served two terms.) 24Polk told voters presidents might abuse their power if they held office too long. One term, he said, would be enough for him. 25But Robert Merry says there was more to Polk's one-term promise. It was a political bet. 26Polk thought if he said he would serve as president for only one term, other party leaders might help him win. Then, those politicians could try again to win the presidency in four years, instead of waiting eight. 27He was probably right. If Polk had not made the campaign promise, Merry says, Young Hickory would not have won. 28Presidency 29During the first days of his administration, James K. Polk famously listed the four things he planned to do as president. 30He wanted to reduce taxes on imports. He wished to establish an independent treasury. He hoped to settle the dispute with Britain over the Oregon border. And he wanted to get California for the United States. 31Less than four years later, Polk had realized each item on his list. 32He is remembered for greatly expanding the size of the United States. He successfully negotiated with Britain for U.S. control over territory in the west up to the 49th parallel. The agreement gave the U.S. the current states of Oregon, Idaho, and Washington. 33Below those states lay California. 34An American government minister once described California as the richest, the most beautiful, and the healthiest country in the world. The official said the port of San Francisco was big enough to hold all the navies of the world. He said someday San Francisco would control the trade of all the Pacific Ocean. 35There was only one problem, from the point of view of the U.S. government. California was part of Mexico. 36At first, U.S. officials attempted to buy California from Mexico. But Mexican officials refused even to talk about selling California to the United States. 37Shortly after the U.S. Congress approved statehood for Texas in early 1845, Mexico broke relations with the U.S. all together. 38The following year, Mexican troops crossed the Rio Grande and clashed with American soldiers. 39In answer, President Polk asked Congress to declare war. 40He did not think the conflict would last long. He believed the U.S. declaration would quickly force Mexico to sell him the territory he wanted. 41Polk was wrong. Historian Robert Merry says the war with Mexico lasted longer, was more expensive, and cost more lives than he expected. 42But in the 1848 treaty that ended the war, Polk got the land he had wanted. 43Mexico recognized the independence of Texas, and it sold the areas that are now all or part of the states of Arizona, Utah, Nevada, New Mexico, Wyoming, Colorado and, yes, California. 44Legacy 45President Polk kept his promise to serve only one term. After four years, he retired from the presidency, traveled for a few weeks, and then returned to Tennessee to settle in a new home. 46Only three months after he left the White House, Polk died. 47He left behind a much larger country, but a divided one. 48The issue was again slavery. Southerners argued that they had the right to take enslaved people into California and other former Mexican lands. Northerners opposed any further spread of slavery. 49The question was this: did Congress have the power to control - or even ban - slavery in the new territories? 50I'm Kelly Jean Kelly. 51Kelly Jean Kelly wrote this story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. 52See how well you understand this story by talking this listening quiz. Play each short video, then choose the best answer. 53______________________________________________________________ 54Words in This Story 55convention - n. a large meeting of people who come to a place for usually several days to talk about their shared work 56strict - adj. carefully obeying the rules or principles of a religion or a particular way of life 57plantation - n. a large area of land especially in a hot part of the world where crops (such as cotton) are grown 58manifest destiny - n. a future event that is sure to happen; a destiny that can be clearly seen and that cannot be changed 59bet - n. a choice made by thinking about what will probably happen 60parallel - n. any one of the imaginary circles on the surface of the Earth that are parallel to the equator and that are shown as lines on maps 61expensive - adj. costing a lot of money 62ill - adj. not well or healthy 63We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.