A while back I did French Presidents as though they were US Presidents. This time I'll do U.S. Presidents analogous to French presidents
1953-1957 Harry S. Truman (Democrat)
Truman's disastrous foray into the Korean War dramatically reduced his popularity. Seen as a relic from the Roosevelt era he was primaried out of office in the '56 election
1957-1961 Adlai Stevenson (Democrat)
The Hawaiian independence movement spun out of control under Stevenson and had to be put down with force. General MacArthur, frustrated by the Korean War and the Hawaii debacle openly derided Stevenson and the federal responses. MacArthur mused at a run for president but instead decided to back Eisenhower.
1961-1969 Dwight Eisenhower (Republican)
The turbulent 60s were a time of protest, social transformation, and bubbling radical politics. The assassinations and subsequent protests/strikes of 1968 led to Eisenhower signing a dramatic "great society" package to mollify the left.
1969-1974 Richard Nixon (Republican)
Radicalism lead to reaction. Eisenhower's crafty, red-baiting Vice President Richard Nixon claimed the support of a "silent majority" and rode a wave of conservatism into office. His tenure was plagued by scandal, and he resigned from office in 74.
1974-1981 Nelson Rockefeller (Republican)
Before his resignation Nixon appointed the moderate Rockefeller to the Vice Presidency, who then pardoned Nixon. Rockefeller presided over a stagnant economy, barely eking out reelection in '76.
1981-1985 Henry "Scoop" Jackson (Democrat)
Patriarch of the New Democrats, "Scoop" Jackson styled himself as a strident anti-communist. In order to prevent red-baiting from conservatives he made efforts to separate the Democratic Party from its left wing and supported a hard line against the Soviet Union. This strategy of "triangulation" allowed him to pass some social and economic reform during this conservative period in American politics, although it alienated many on the left. He died of an aneurysm in office, ironically on the same exact day of his frequent nemesis Konstantin Chernenko.
1985-1996 William Jefferson Clinton (Democrat)
The youthful and energetic Bill Clinton was the longest serving president since Roosevelt, finishing his predecessor's term in '85 and reelected in '88 and again in '92. For this third time Republicans took him to the Supreme Court to try to bar him from office, but they ruled in Clinton's favor. Clinton continued his predecessor's policy of triangulation and oversaw the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end to the cold war. His final term in office was a contentious one, stymied by frequent policy disagreements with a congress that had swung conservative in 1994 and a Republican party who felt the '92 election was illegitimate.
1996-2001 Newt Gingrich (Republican)
Before his election Gingrich was the arch-conservative Speaker of the House, having arranged a Republican takeover in 1994. For those two years he had a contentious relationship with President Clinton and dogged him with probes and inquiries. Gingrich's revenge was complete by winning the Presidency in '96, and immediately went to work dismantling his predecessor's legacy. But his own term in office became just as rough when the Democrats took control of congress in 1998 and began scrutinizing Gingrich's own shady dealings. Faced with possibly losing the presidency in the new millenium, the Republicans primaried him in 2000.
2001-2009 Jeb Bush (Republican)
The governor of Florida and scion to the Bush political family was a perfect fit for the 2000s election. Styling himself a "compassionate conservative," Bush charmed the nation with his unassuming personality and his squeaky-clean personal life (he was a committed teetotaler after his brother, George W. died in a drunk driving accident decades earlier). His successful primary against the scandal-ridden and combative Gingrich marked a shift in the personality, if not necessarily the practical politics of the White House. In 2001 a series of terrorist attacks in Paris, culminating in a plane flying into the Eiffel tower, set most of the Western world on the warpath. Although Bush joined a wartime coalition into an invasion of Afghanistan, he avoided joining France's 2003 invasion of Iraq despite the urgings of many in his own administration.
2009-2012 Rudy Giuliani (Republican)
Bush's attorney general and the former mayor of New York won a narrow election to the presidency in 2008. Almost immediately after his entrance into office the financial crisis of 2009 struck. He spent most of his troubled presidency warding off corruption charges and trying to shore up the economy from the Great Recession.
2012-2016 Martin O'Malley (Democrat)
Styling himself as a new progressive, the charismatic O'Malley rode into office after a torrent of promises to help out the little guy and reverse the great recession. But his actual tenure in office disappointed many. His failure to break up the big banks or commit to big spending projects drove the left away from him, and he soon faced the Occupy Wall Street protests of 2011. If he thought his moderation would win him points with conservatives he was absolutely mistaken. After terrorist attacks in New York and Miami the far-right in the United States became emboldened and started to embrace ugly nationalism and conspiracy theories. O'Malley declined to run for reelection in 2016 with basement-level polling numbers and high-profile defections from his cabinet.
2016-Present Hillary Rodham Clinton (Unity)
The 2016 election has been truly the strangest in the modern era. The absolute collapse of the two-party system in the United states, and the re-orienting of power- at least temporarily- from traditional "left vs right" to "insider vs outsider" has been an unusual development to say the least. Reality television host Donald Trump took control of the US Constitution party and completely eclipsed the Republicans as the mainstream party of the right. Hillary Clinton, the former first lady and O'Malley's Secretary of State, saw an opening with disgruntled moderate Republicans and formed a "Unity" ticket with former Republican Nikki Haley as her running mate. Clinton won in a landslide, championing a pro-business but also socially progressive platform. It is less likely that this ultimate establishment ticket won the election as much as her opponent lost it: in October multiple woman accused Trump of sexual assault and his support collapsed. Many cheered Clinton's landslide election; the victory of two women over a naked misogynist was seen as certainly something to celebrate. The honeymoon period has since ended rather dramatically. Clinton's "Unity" is falling to pieces. On the right lurks Trump and other nationalists, wailing about rigged elections and spreading dark conspiracy theories. On the left is a resurgence in Bernie Sanders's Progressive Party and massive strikes from students and unions to a degree unseen since '68. It is likely that the "radical center" will shift to either the far left or the far right very soon.
Notes:
Truman = Auriol
Stevenson = Coty
Eisenhower = De Gaulle
Nixon = Pompidou
Rockefeller = d'Estanig
Jackson and Clinton here both serve as analogues to Mitterand, who was president of France for 14 years.
Likewise Gingrich and Bush are analogous to the first and second terms respectively of Chirac, who was president for 12 years.
Giuliani = Sarkozy
O'Malley = Hollande
HRC = Macron
1953-1957 Harry S. Truman (Democrat)
Truman's disastrous foray into the Korean War dramatically reduced his popularity. Seen as a relic from the Roosevelt era he was primaried out of office in the '56 election
1957-1961 Adlai Stevenson (Democrat)
The Hawaiian independence movement spun out of control under Stevenson and had to be put down with force. General MacArthur, frustrated by the Korean War and the Hawaii debacle openly derided Stevenson and the federal responses. MacArthur mused at a run for president but instead decided to back Eisenhower.
1961-1969 Dwight Eisenhower (Republican)
The turbulent 60s were a time of protest, social transformation, and bubbling radical politics. The assassinations and subsequent protests/strikes of 1968 led to Eisenhower signing a dramatic "great society" package to mollify the left.
1969-1974 Richard Nixon (Republican)
Radicalism lead to reaction. Eisenhower's crafty, red-baiting Vice President Richard Nixon claimed the support of a "silent majority" and rode a wave of conservatism into office. His tenure was plagued by scandal, and he resigned from office in 74.
1974-1981 Nelson Rockefeller (Republican)
Before his resignation Nixon appointed the moderate Rockefeller to the Vice Presidency, who then pardoned Nixon. Rockefeller presided over a stagnant economy, barely eking out reelection in '76.
1981-1985 Henry "Scoop" Jackson (Democrat)
Patriarch of the New Democrats, "Scoop" Jackson styled himself as a strident anti-communist. In order to prevent red-baiting from conservatives he made efforts to separate the Democratic Party from its left wing and supported a hard line against the Soviet Union. This strategy of "triangulation" allowed him to pass some social and economic reform during this conservative period in American politics, although it alienated many on the left. He died of an aneurysm in office, ironically on the same exact day of his frequent nemesis Konstantin Chernenko.
1985-1996 William Jefferson Clinton (Democrat)
The youthful and energetic Bill Clinton was the longest serving president since Roosevelt, finishing his predecessor's term in '85 and reelected in '88 and again in '92. For this third time Republicans took him to the Supreme Court to try to bar him from office, but they ruled in Clinton's favor. Clinton continued his predecessor's policy of triangulation and oversaw the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end to the cold war. His final term in office was a contentious one, stymied by frequent policy disagreements with a congress that had swung conservative in 1994 and a Republican party who felt the '92 election was illegitimate.
1996-2001 Newt Gingrich (Republican)
Before his election Gingrich was the arch-conservative Speaker of the House, having arranged a Republican takeover in 1994. For those two years he had a contentious relationship with President Clinton and dogged him with probes and inquiries. Gingrich's revenge was complete by winning the Presidency in '96, and immediately went to work dismantling his predecessor's legacy. But his own term in office became just as rough when the Democrats took control of congress in 1998 and began scrutinizing Gingrich's own shady dealings. Faced with possibly losing the presidency in the new millenium, the Republicans primaried him in 2000.
2001-2009 Jeb Bush (Republican)
The governor of Florida and scion to the Bush political family was a perfect fit for the 2000s election. Styling himself a "compassionate conservative," Bush charmed the nation with his unassuming personality and his squeaky-clean personal life (he was a committed teetotaler after his brother, George W. died in a drunk driving accident decades earlier). His successful primary against the scandal-ridden and combative Gingrich marked a shift in the personality, if not necessarily the practical politics of the White House. In 2001 a series of terrorist attacks in Paris, culminating in a plane flying into the Eiffel tower, set most of the Western world on the warpath. Although Bush joined a wartime coalition into an invasion of Afghanistan, he avoided joining France's 2003 invasion of Iraq despite the urgings of many in his own administration.
2009-2012 Rudy Giuliani (Republican)
Bush's attorney general and the former mayor of New York won a narrow election to the presidency in 2008. Almost immediately after his entrance into office the financial crisis of 2009 struck. He spent most of his troubled presidency warding off corruption charges and trying to shore up the economy from the Great Recession.
2012-2016 Martin O'Malley (Democrat)
Styling himself as a new progressive, the charismatic O'Malley rode into office after a torrent of promises to help out the little guy and reverse the great recession. But his actual tenure in office disappointed many. His failure to break up the big banks or commit to big spending projects drove the left away from him, and he soon faced the Occupy Wall Street protests of 2011. If he thought his moderation would win him points with conservatives he was absolutely mistaken. After terrorist attacks in New York and Miami the far-right in the United States became emboldened and started to embrace ugly nationalism and conspiracy theories. O'Malley declined to run for reelection in 2016 with basement-level polling numbers and high-profile defections from his cabinet.
2016-Present Hillary Rodham Clinton (Unity)
The 2016 election has been truly the strangest in the modern era. The absolute collapse of the two-party system in the United states, and the re-orienting of power- at least temporarily- from traditional "left vs right" to "insider vs outsider" has been an unusual development to say the least. Reality television host Donald Trump took control of the US Constitution party and completely eclipsed the Republicans as the mainstream party of the right. Hillary Clinton, the former first lady and O'Malley's Secretary of State, saw an opening with disgruntled moderate Republicans and formed a "Unity" ticket with former Republican Nikki Haley as her running mate. Clinton won in a landslide, championing a pro-business but also socially progressive platform. It is less likely that this ultimate establishment ticket won the election as much as her opponent lost it: in October multiple woman accused Trump of sexual assault and his support collapsed. Many cheered Clinton's landslide election; the victory of two women over a naked misogynist was seen as certainly something to celebrate. The honeymoon period has since ended rather dramatically. Clinton's "Unity" is falling to pieces. On the right lurks Trump and other nationalists, wailing about rigged elections and spreading dark conspiracy theories. On the left is a resurgence in Bernie Sanders's Progressive Party and massive strikes from students and unions to a degree unseen since '68. It is likely that the "radical center" will shift to either the far left or the far right very soon.
Notes:
Truman = Auriol
Stevenson = Coty
Eisenhower = De Gaulle
Nixon = Pompidou
Rockefeller = d'Estanig
Jackson and Clinton here both serve as analogues to Mitterand, who was president of France for 14 years.
Likewise Gingrich and Bush are analogous to the first and second terms respectively of Chirac, who was president for 12 years.
Giuliani = Sarkozy
O'Malley = Hollande
HRC = Macron
