Mistakes That Millard Fillmore Made While He Was President
Millard Fillmore was the thirteenth president of the United States. He took over after the death of Zachary Taylor, who died of a stomach ailment. Fillmore was the vice president at that time. He served out Taylor's term, but did not get his party's nomination for re-election. He was the last Whig to hold this position. |
It was during Fillmore's presidency that the Compromise of 1850 was passed. This was done to pacify the states that had slavery and was instrumental in putting off the Civil War for a few years. However, this Compromise could have been a mistake on Fillmore's part as it allowed the slave states to become strong and confident, and this ultimately led to their succession. If Fillmore had taken a military stance to the slave states, the resulting conflict could have been short and bloodless. It is quite possible the Fillmore did not anticipate a civil war erupting. Also, the Compromise of 1850 was not accepted by the Northern Whigs, which led to factional fighting within the party. As a result the party lost many elections.
Another mistake that Fillmore made while he was the president was not giving refuge to Lajos Kossuth, a Hungarian revolutionary. Kossuth was viewed as the Hungarian version of George Washington, and was very popular in the US. However, Fillmore decided not to offer him refuge as he wanted to continue America's neutral stances to Europe's problems. This was unspoken rule that was adopted by all the earlier presidents of the US, and was established by George Washington.
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