Lyndon B. Johnson - All The Way

[image error] How do we judge our president? It is like asking to define America with all its complex and diverse differences.  Throughout history the best example of the American spirit has always been the Declaration of Independence, and the presidents that exhibit and uphold these values have remembered the following: “For the real glory of the Declaration of Independence has been our nation's epic struggle to close the gap between the ideals of this remarkable document and the sometime painful realities of American life.  The Declaration symbolizes the birth of our nation of course, but also the constant struggle to achieve its ideals” (Stott, 2003).  So, when we judge a president we must compare his successes and failures with the Declaration of Independence, or what Thomas Jefferson called “the expression of the American mind.”  In the case of Lyndon B. Johnson, he closed the gap between the ideals of the Declaration of Independence and the harsh reality of American life that had plagued our nation’s minorities for far too long. [image error]        In today’s politics, Lyndon B. Johnson would be considered a crooked politician.  He strives for power and would do anything to obtain it.  In fact, during the 1948 senatorial race in Texas, he gave a speech to secure the votes required for victory, where he denounced the Civil Rights movement “as a farce and a sham – an effort to set up a police state in the guise of liberty” (Woods, 2007).  However, by the 1960's, the country was in turmoil and was demanding Civil Rights action.  No one thought that the Southern Democrat would change his stance on Civil Rights, but in doing so he would be guilty of one of the biggest flip flops in American history. President Johnson did not just change his stance on Civil Rights but also used multiple other tactics that would later cause him to be labeled a corrupt politician.  He approached a gullible Republican, Everett Dirksen, and promised him national recognition for supporting the Civil Rights Act. “When Everett expressed doubt that he could ever go along with such a bill, LBJ said, ‘Everett if you come with me on this bill, two hundred years from now there’ll only be two people they remember from the state of Illinois, Abraham Lincoln and Everett Dirksen’” (Jr., 2015). In persuading Dirksen to believe this statement, Johnson broke the filibuster by other Southern Democrats.              Johnson went further when he persuaded House Majority Leader Charles Halleck to support the Civil Rights Act.  He in fact traded district financial support from NASA to get the bill through the House Rules Committee.  NASA administrator James Webb “told the President he had met that very morning with Halleck and suggested that, with Halleck’s help in the House, NASA might be able to finance a building to a tune of some $750,000 – along with a series of research grants (for which he noted Purdue was well suited) – that might amount to an additional $300,000 to $400,000, spread over three years. The net effect, Mr. President, Webb added, ‘is that if you tell him that you're willing to follow this policy as long as he cooperates, I can implement it on an installment basis. In other words, the minute he kicks over the traces, we stop the installments’” (Purdum, 2014).  Two days after this arrangement was made Republican and Democrats worked together to get the bill passed by Judge Smith and up for a vote. In the play “All the Way,” by Robert Schenkkan,which was later adapted to the screen for HBO.  It depicted LBJ abusing his powers of the office and even breaking the law on numerous occasions.  He ordered the FBI director Edgar Hoover to violate surveillance laws without a search warrant.  By violating the Fourth Amendment, he placed his administration above the law and broke his oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, in order to pursue Civil Rights reform.   He also worked with activist groups at that time that were inciting riots and violence.  In doing so he put individual and communities in danger just to win public support for his bill. [image error] With the passing of the Civil Rights Act, Johnson closed the gap between the ideals represented in the Declaration of Independence that were not allotted to much of the African American population.  In doing so he became a Civil Rights hero but at a costly price that can still be seen today.  Moments after signing the Civil Rights Act, LBJ turned to his aid and said, “I think we just delivered the South to the Republicans for a long time to come” (Moyers, 2013).  Johnson was right and this would later be one of the pivotal reasons for the fall of the Democratic Party in 1968.  The Civil Rights Act and the tactics used by LBJ to get the bill passed into law had lasting effects.  It led to party polarization, with the Republican Party becoming more conservative and vice versa for the Democratic Party.   In today’s political world it has led to the least productive Congress since 1948, and many could argue that it is why our government doesn’t work today.

When we judge a president, we must look at more than just their policies, successes and failures. We must not forget how we compare and idolize other American leaders from other industries and organizations from outside the government.  For we as a nation have always rewarded those that break the rules and challenge the norms of society.  From the founder of the American Revolution, to the titans of the Industrial Revolution and even the pioneers of the Information Age, we expect leader to bring change, knowing full well that bad also comes from the good they bring. We should look for honor, courage, and commitment to an idea in our presidents.  But it is the job of a leader to balance these traits accordingly, to minimize negative effects. “That is why courage is tricky.  Should you always do what other tell you to do?   Sometimes you might not even know why you are doing something. I mean any fool can have courage, but honor is the real reason you do something or you don’t.  It’s who you are or maybe want to be.  If you die trying for something important, then you have both honor and courage and that’s pretty good… we should look for honor and hope for courage and maybe even pray that the people that are telling you what to do have some too” (Hancock, 2009).ReferencesHancock, J. L. (Director). (2009). The Blind Side [Motion Picture].Jr., J. A. (2015). The Triumph & Tragedy of Lyndon Johnson: The White House Years. Touchstone.Moyers, B. (2013). Moyers on America. Anchor.Purdum, T. S. (2014). An Idea Whose Time Has Come: Two Presidents, Two Parties, and the Battle for the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Henry Holt and Co.Stott, J. (Producer), & Brown, A. (Director). (2003). Declaration of Independence [Motion Picture]. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.