The office of the presidency is not for sale. -- An email I received about Harry Truman.

[Cyrano]

The quote in the headline is a paraphrase of what he actually said. Here's the entire email.

Harry Truman was a different kind of President. He probably made as many, or more important decisions regarding our nation's history as any of the other Presidents preceding him. However, a measure of his greatness may rest on what he did after he left the White House.

The only asset he had when he died was the house he lived in, which was in Independence, Missouri. His wife had inherited the house from her mother and father and other than their years in the White House, they lived their entire lives there.

When he retired from office in 1952, his income was a U.S. Army pension reported to have been $13,507.72 a year. Congress, noting that he was paying for his stamps and personally licking them, granted him an 'allowance' and, later, a retroactive pension of $25,000 per year.

After President Eisenhower was inaugurated, Harry and Bess drove home to Missouri by themselves. There was no Secret Service following them.

When offered corporate positions at large salaries, he declined, stating, "You don't want me. You want the office of the President, and that doesn't belong to me. It belongs to the American people and it's not for sale."

Even later, on May 6, 1971, when Congress was preparing to award him the "Medal of Honor" on his 87th birthday, he refused to accept it, writing, "I don't consider that I have done anything which should be the reason for any award, Congressional or otherwise."

As president he paid for all of his own travel expenses and food.

Modern politicians have found a new level of success in cashing in on the Presidency, resulting in untold wealth. Today, many in Congress also have found a way to become quite wealthy while enjoying the fruits of their offices. Political offices are now for sale.

Good old Harry Truman was correct when he observed, "My choices in life were either to be a piano player in a whore house or a politician. And to tell the truth, there's hardly any difference!"

Let's dig him up and clone him!

[RaleighNCDUer]

1. I'm reading "Plain Speaking - An Oral Biography" now.

He was an amazing figure.

Somehow I had never quite gotten how much he loathed Eisenhower and, even more so, Nixon. Nixon, that's understandable - everybody loathed him, even his friends - but the image of Eisenhower is so far removed from Truman's assessment of him that it is astonishing. It makes me re-examine my contention that Eisenhower was the last decent Republican president. (Of course, Eisenhower left office when I was 7, so he was ancient history by the time I got interested in politics.)

[lazarus]

2. the very first ex-president to truly cash in on being Pres

Was Gerald Ford, Republican. Even Nixon was aghast that he was taking speaking fees.

[Cyrano]

3. Yep. When even Nixon thinks it's outrageous, it probably is.