14.) Franklin Pierce 1853-1857

"We Polked  you in 44, we're Pierce you in 52!"

Franklin Pierce may have my favorite campaign slogan yet. But in terms of presidencies, wow, this guy is a total disaster. I mean, Millard Fillmore just nuked the only major opposition party into oblivion. Governing should be easy, right? Not when you're Pierce, who do his best to one-up Fillmore and wreck the Democratic party on the bloody shoal known as "Bleeding Kansas."

Follow along as Pierce falls hilariously short in his pursuit of military glory in the Mexican-American War, gets elected president anyway when Democratic partisans can't agree on any of the more-qualified candidates, and then triggers a mini Civil War in Kansas after he passes the Kansas-Nebraska act.

By the time Pierce leaves office, we'll be four years away from The Civil War.

Bibliography
1. Franklin Pierce – Michael F. Holt
2. Millard Fillmore – Paul Finkelman
3. Bosom Friends – Thomas J. Balcerski
4. James Buchanan - Jean H. Baker
5. Abraham Lincoln – David Herbert Donald

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