On February 19th every year, America has a holiday called Presidents’ Day. A day where we celebrate and remember our current and past presidents over the country’s 247-year history. However, do you ever stop and wonder if some of these presidents deserved this kind of recognition?
Where Did Presidents’ Day Come From?
Presidents’ Day dates back to the year 1879 when on February 22nd, the United States made the birthday of the very 1st president, George Washington, a federal holiday. Because President Lincoln’s birthday falls nearby, on February 12th, arguments have been made that Presidents’ Day is honoring both Washington and Lincoln. Nowadays, the third Monday in February is frequently referred to as Presidents’ Day giving workers and students a long weekend.
Who Should Be Recognized?
There are a lot of presidents who desire to be recognized on this day. Of course, there is the 1st president George Washington because without him there would be no America. Also, the 32nd president Franklin Delano Roosevelt (aka FDR) helped America through the Great Depression and World War II, the deadliest human conflict in history. Let’s not forget the 16th president, Abraham Lincoln, who led the country during the Civil War, one of the country’s darkest periods. In addition, Lincoln passed the Emancipation Proclamation Act which abolished slavery for good in America. The 35th president John Fitzgerald Kennedy (aka JFK) should also be recognized. He contributed a lot during the Cold War even though he wasn’t in office for 1000 days when he was unfortunately assassinated in 1963. Our 26th president, Theodore Roosevelt (FDR’s cousin), a Spanish American war veteran who invited Booker T Washington to dinners in the White House in 1901, deserves to be mentioned. He won a Nobel Peace Prize in 1906 for ending the Russo-Japanese War in 1905. President Ronald Regan implemented Reaganomics, helped cut both taxes and government spending during stagflation, and transitioned a Cold War policy away from détente with the Soviet Union which was collapsing by that point near the end of the Cold War. Finally, the 34th President, Dwight D. Eisenhower, a WW2 general known for Operation Neptune (known as D-Day) created the American interstate system known as the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956.
Who Should Not Be Recognized?
In my opinion, not all of the former presidents had great accomplishments, and actually, some of them were bad for the nation. For example, the 14th President, Franklin Pierce, supported the confederacy. Our 15th President, James Buchanan didn’t do anything while in office. The 17th President, Andrew Johnson, made reconstruction a failure and was impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors. President Richard Nixon, the 37th President, has the Watergate scandal on his record. Our 28th President, Woodrow Wilson, screened the 1915 racist film The Birth of a Nation in the White House even saying it was historically accurate which nowadays wouldn’t have been taken well by most people. Finally, the 42nd President, Bill Clinton, has a mark on his presidency. We all know why he would be considered one of the worst in most peoples’ eyes based on his interactions with an intern.
Overall Thoughts
In my opinion, Presidents’ Day is a very good holiday to remember our former and fellow leaders of this country, but when looking back on some of them, it makes it hard to defend some of them for their actions in and out of the White House. Regardless, people will remember them no matter how good or bad they were.
