Tuesday, October 7, 2008

Prsident*, etc. (for President)

I recently saw Carll Tucker talk about his book The Bear Went over the Mountain, a chronicle of his quest to visit the gravesite of every deceased U.S. president and vice president. According to the author, James Buchanan was probably the worst of the lot—but he was also, for what it's worth, the only one presumed to be in love with his second in command. (We'll omit the obvious John McCain/Sarah Palin joke here, since it doesn't really look as though they'll be consummating their relationship.) Despite presidential attempts at PR, the press hinted at homosexuality, while Andrew Jackson brazenly referred to William Rufus deVane King as "Miss Nancy" or "Aunt Fancy." Prsident* appears in OhioLINK 30 times, Presdient* seven times, and Presdent* three times. (You might find a hanging chad or two for Persident* and Presidient* too). Like his far worthier successor, James Buchanan was born in a log cabin. On his last day in office, he remarked to Abraham Lincoln: "If you are as happy in entering the White House as I shall feel on returning to Wheatland, you are a happy man."

(White House portrait of James Buchanan, from Wikimedia Commons.)

Carol Reid

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