When Ulysses S. Grant was inaugurated the 18th President of the United States on March 4, 1869, his immediate predecessor refused to attend any ceremonies for the new president and his incoming administration. The animosity between the two men had reached a boiling point, despite Grant having served in Andrew Johnson’s Cabinet as the U.S. secretary of war. The outgoing president opted to host a final Cabinet meeting during Grant’s inauguration and then rode out of town, rather unceremoniously.
Nearly a century and a half later, we face similar regional, political and cultural divisions. With President TrumpDonald TrumpMcConnell circulates procedures for second Senate impeachment trial of Trump Trump suggests building own platform after Twitter ban Poll: 18 percent of Republicans support Capitol riots MORE’s announcement Friday that he will forgo attending President-elect Joe BidenJoe BidenUS judge blocks Trump administration’s restrictions on asylum eligibility McConnell circulates procedures for second Senate impeachment trial of Trump Top Trump official rescinds then reissues resignation letter to say departure is in protest MORE’s swearing-in on Jan. 20, he becomes the first living president since Johnson not to attend his successor’s inauguration. Speculation is mounting that Trump will likely host some kind of counterinaugural event during Biden’s swearing-in, similar to Johnson’s White House Cabinet meeting. Unfortunately for Johnson, the advent of network television was still many decades away, saving news executives from making difficult decisions on coverage and robbing the outgoing leader of his final insult toward the new administration.
Grant’s inauguration was the first set in front of the recently completed Capitol Dome finished in January 1866. Even during the height of the Civil War, with the Confederate capital less than 100 miles away in Richmond, Va., no Southern soldier was able to breach the Capitol and display the “Stars and Bars” of the flag of the Confederacy. That 150-year record ended Wednesday when insurrectionists backing Trump’s ill-fated pleas to remain in office ransacked the U.S. Capitol.
The manner in which Trump’s presidency is ending is not the only similarity between him and the 17th president. Around this time last year, the Senate was preparing for the coming impeachment trial of Trump, only the third time the upper chamber had met to hear articles of impeachment against a sitting president. In 1868, Johnson became the first sitting president to be impeached at the hands of the House of Representatives. Similar to Trump and former President Clinton, the Senate eventually voted to acquit after a contentious trial.
Both Johnson’s and Trump’s impeachments occurred in the final year of their first term, casting a long shadow over their attempts to retain their office. Johnson, a…
Read More: Donald Trump’s presidency is ending a lot like Andrew Johnson’s