first president to visit all 50 states while in office

• Who Was the First President of All 50 States?

Before the Second World War, the United States was a 48 state nation with some territories including Alaska and Hawaii. The United States purchased Alaska from Russia in 1867 while Hawaii was a republic which ceded itself to the United States. Both these territories attained statehood in 1959 (with Hawaii being the last to gain statehood on August 21, 1951) thus making Dwight Eisenhower the first American President to preside over the fifty states.

Who was Dwight Eisenhower?

Dwight is the thirty-fourth American presidents who served from 1953 to 1961. He was the first American leader to be bounded by the twenty-second amendment which stipulates the number of times a president can be elected to the office. Eisenhower was also the first American leader to enjoy the benefits of the Former-Presidential Act which stipulates that an outgoing president is entitled to receive secret service detail, pension, and government-provided staff as long as he is alive.

Early Life of Eisenhower

Although he grew up in Kansas, Dwight was born in Texas on October 14, 1890. He attended the Abilene high school where he graduated in 1909. While in college Dwight injured his leg and the infection extended to his groin. The doctors wanted to amputate his leg, but he refused. Dwight recovered from the injury and resumed his education. Dwight and his brother wanted a college degree, so they agreed to alternate the college years while the other was working to earn the tuitions. Edgar (his brother) was the first to go to school, and Dwight had to work at the Belle-Springs creamery. Dwight later joined west point naval academy in 1911 where there was no tuition. He graduated in 1915.

Eisenhower’s Life Before presidency

After finishing the naval academy, he was sent to the Fort Sam Houston base. While at Sam Houston Base, Dwight married Mamie Doud on July 1, 1916. Dwight and Mamie were blessed with two children, but their son Doud Dwight died at age 3. He met George Patton at the Meade camp in Maryland, and together they published various articles advocating for the military to use the tanks and avoid the repeat of the destructive trench-warfare used in the World War 1. The military considered this insubordination, and they threatened him with court-martial if he wrote the articles again.

Dwight played a crucial role in the field maneuvers of the third army in Louisiana, and this revealed his talent in strategic planning. Dwight went to work on the military’s war plans in Washington, D.C. after the Pearl Harbor was attacked. After this contribution to the war plans, crucial assignments and promotions followed. Dwight commanded the troops which attacked North Africa in 1942. Dwight also directed the attacks of Italy and Sicily. He launched the Normandy’s D-day invasion on June 6, 1944, and his decision to continue with the invasion despite the poor weather won him admiration from all the troops and allied leaders.

After the Second World War, Dwight became the Army’s chief of staff a position he served for two years. After retiring from this post, he wrote the "Crusade in Europe" his famous wartime memoir. In 1948, Eisenhower was the president of the Colombia University in 1948, but he had to take a leave of absence in 1950 to work with North-Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

Eisenhower's Presidency and Death

After being pressed by President Truman to be the Democrat’s presidential candidate, he finally voiced his disagreement with the party and declared himself a Republican. Eisenhower chose Richard Nixon as his vice president, and they won the 1952 presidential elections. President Eisenhower was the last American leader born during the 19th century. He was also the oldest president ever elected since President Buchanan. Until Donald Trump, he was the only recent head of state who had never held an elected office before becoming a president.

He passed away on March 28, 1969, after suffering from a heart problem. After the Episcopal Church service at the National Cathedral on March 31, 1969, his body was carried by train to Kansas where he was buried; this was the last time a funeral train was used in the burial proceedings of a United States president.

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Richard M. Nixon

Nixon’s parents were Francis Antony and Hannah Milhous Nixon. Nixon married Thelma Catherine Ryan (Patricia) in 1940. They had two daughters: Patricia and Julie.

Nixon’s presidency began with a strong, successful first term. When he took office the nation continued to be divided over the Vietnam War. Nixon was committed to peace and world stability. He withdrew American troops from Vietnam and ended the draft. Nixon also traveled to China and the Soviet Union, the first U.S. president to do so. While in Moscow Nixon met with Russian leader Leonid Brezhnev and succeeded in negotiating the strategic arms limitations treaty (SALT) to limit nuclear weapons. Nixon was reelected to a second term by a wide margin. However, his presidency ultimately ended in scandal and disgrace. In June of 1972 five burglars were caught planting wiretapping devices in the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee at the Watergate Building in Washington, D.C. From the very beginning of the investigations, Nixon vehemently denied any previous knowledge of or association with the Watergate incident. An intensive investigation ultimately revealed that Nixon and most of his appointees had been illegally recording conversations at the White House, the Executive Office Building, and Camp David. These recordings proved that Nixon not only knew about the Watergate burglary, but also participated in its cover-up. Three articles of impeachment were brought against Nixon by the House Judiciary Committee: obstruction of justice, abuse of power, and the unconstitutional defiance of its subpoenas. Nixon was advised to resign, and at first he refused. However, learning that he would not win an impeachment trial, Nixon resigned the presidency in a televised address on August 8, 1974. He was the first and only president to have resigned.

Nixon’s successor, President Gerald Ford, issued to him a “full, free, and absolute pardon [for all federal crimes that he] committed or may have committed or taken part in” as president. Nixon accepted the pardon.

On accepting the Republican nomination for president, Nixon declared, “Let us begin by committing ourselves to the truth––to see it like it is, and tell it like it is––to find the truth, to speak the truth, and to live the truth.” (1968)

“Let historians not record that when America was the most powerful nation in the world we passed on the other side of the road and allowed the last hopes for peace and freedom of millions of people to be suffocated by the forces of totalitarianism. And so tonight––to you, the great silent majority of my fellow Americans––I ask for your support.” (Address to the Nation on the War in Vietnam; November 3, 1969)

During a televised question-and-answer session with the press, Nixon asserted, “I made mistakes but in all my years of public life I have never profited, never profited from public service. I’ve earned every cent. And in all of my years in public life I have never obstructed justice. . . . I welcome this kind of examination because people have got to know whether or not their President is a crook. Well, I’m not a crook. I’ve earned everything I’ve got.” (November 17, 1973)

At This Time

1969: Following an attack on a U.S. plane on April 15, Nixon orders that reconnaissance flights off of North Korea be resumed • Nixon declares the Guam Doctrine, later known as the Nixon Doctrine, which specifies that though the U.S. will continue to recognize its treaty agreements, the U.S. also expects its allies to provide the human resources needed for its own defense • Nixon discloses his program for welfare reform, which includes the Family Assistance Plan • In November Nixon reveals that North Vietnam has rejected the administration’s secret peace offers, and he proposes a plan to withdraw troops slowly and in secret • Nixon signs the Selective Service Reform bill, ensuring that draftees are selected by a lottery system • A Gallup Poll indicates that 70% of those questioned feel that the influence of religion is declining in the U.S • The Woodstock Music and Art Fair is held near Bethel, New York, and more than 300,000 people attend • The Apollo 11 lands its lunar module on the moon July 20, astronaut Neil Armstrong steps on the moon July 21, and the crew returns July 24 • Two Mariner space probes send back pictures of the surface of Mars • 1970: The administration announces that it will seek to end de jure segregation (racial separation that is enforced by law) • Nixon signs an executive order ending occupational and parental deferments for the draft • In June Nixon addresses the nation through television, asking for wage and price restraint • Nixon approves and signs the Postal Reorganization Act, which establishes an independent U.S. Postal Service • In September Nixon meets with Israeli Premier Golda Meir to talk about problems in the Middle East • In a televised address, Nixon proposes a five-point peace plan for Indochina, which includes a “cease-fire in place” and the negotiated withdrawal of U.S. troops from Vietnam • Nixon signs the Occupational Health and Safety Act of 1970, which gives the Secretary of Labor the responsibility of setting workplace safety standards for jobs • Nixon signs a clean air bill that mandates that car manufacturers reduce certain pollutants by 90% • Student protests against the Vietnam War at Kent State University result in four students being killed by the National Guard • The films Paint Your Wagon starring Joshua Logan and True Grit starring John Wayne premiere • The world population in millions totals 760 in China, 550 in India, 243 in the U.S.S.R., and 205 in the U.S. • 1971: Nixon signs a Wage-Price Controls Bill, extending his authority to impose restraints on wages, prices, salaries, and rents to help curb inflation for another year • Nixon signs an Emergency Employment Act, which sets aside $2.25 billion to create public service jobs at state and local levels • In August Nixon declares a 90-day freeze on wages and prices, known as Phase One of his economic program; he announces Phase Two in October • Nixon signs an extension of the Economic Stabilization Act, to provide another year to stabilize the economy • The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts opens in Washington, D.C. • Cigarette commercials are banned from television • 1972: In late February President and Mrs. Nixon arrive in China • A joint announcement, later known as the Shanghai Communique, is released by the U.S. and China, which calls for both countries to normalize their relations and for the U.S. to withdraw gradually from Taiwan • In April Nixon enacts legislation devaluing the dollar • On national television, Nixon announces that he has ordered the mining (spreading of bombs below the water) of North Vietnamese ports and the bombing of military targets in North Vietnam • In May Nixon arrives in the Soviet Union for a summit meeting • On June 17 the police arrest five intruders inside Democratic Headquarters in Washington, D.C.’s Watergate Building––this begins the “Watergate” scandal • In August Nixon declares at a news conference that no one on the White House staff, in the administration, or anyone “presently employed” was involved in the Watergate break-in • Nixon endorses a bill that calls for revenue sharing with the states and grants over $30 billion to state and local governments over a period of five years • Nixon enhances the power of the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate the sale and use of pesticides • During the month of October Nixon signs sixty bills, one of which provides more than $5 billion in benefits for the aged, blind, and disabled, while also increasing Social Security taxes • On November 7 Nixon is re-elected in a landslide, and the next day he asks all agency directors, federal department heads, and presidential appointees to resign • Strict measures to prevent hijacking are implemented at U.S. airports • American swimmer Mark Spitz wins a record seven gold medals at the Summer Olympics in Munich • The U.S. military draft is phased out, and entry into the armed forces is now voluntary • 1973: Phase Three of the economic plan is announced, which ends wage and price controls in most industries • On January 27 the Paris Peace Accords are signed by all parties at war in Vietnam • Nixon declares a freeze on all prices for sixty days, with the exception of raw agricultural products and rents • On July 16 Federal Aviation Administrator Alexander Butterfield confirms that a taping system exists in the Oval Office as he testifies before the Senate Watergate Committee • In July Phase Four of the economic program is revealed, in which the freeze is lifted on all foods except beef and health-care products • On July 23 Nixon claims executive privilege and refuses to turn over the subpoenaed tapes to the Senate Watergate Committee • On December 21 Nixon increases Social Security benefits • Fighting breaks out in the Middle East between Arabs and Israelis • An unstable ceasefire remains in force as peace talks begin and break apart several times • The Arab oil-producing countries plan to embargo shipments to the U.S., western Europe, and Japan in retaliation for their support of Israel • The oil embargo triggers an energy crisis in the industrialized world • The U.S. Supreme Court rules that individual states can not prohibit abortions during the first six months of pregnancy • Three American Skylab missions are completed successfully • 1974: In his State of the Union address, Nixon refuses to resign and demands an end to the Watergate investigation • On July 24 the Supreme Court orders Nixon to turn over 64 tapes to the Senate Watergate Committee in an 8-0 ruling • The tapes reveal that Nixon not only knew about the Watergate burglary, but also participated in the cover-up • Three days later three articles of impeachment are brought against Nixon by the House Judiciary Committee: obstruction of justice, abuse of power, and the unconstitutional defiance of its subpoenas • On August 8 Nixon resigns the presidency, effective at noon the next day, in a televised address • The following day Nixon leaves for California • Gerald Ford becomes the 38th President of the U.S. • Worldwide inflation contributes to dramatic increases in the cost of fuel, food, and materials • Economic growth slows to almost zero in most industrialized nations • Journalists Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward publish All the President’s Men • Four U.S. Episcopal bishops defy church law and ordain 11 women as priests • The U.S. Mariner 10 satellite transmits detailed pictures of both Venus and Mercury • India becomes the sixth nation to explode a nuclear device • Frank Robinson becomes the first African-American to manage a major league baseball team, the Cleveland Indians

Did You Know?

Nixon was the first president to visit all 50 states, as well as the first president to visit China and the U.S.S.R.

Nixon’s favorite president was Woodrow Wilson, whom he admired for his efforts to establish world peace. Nixon hung a picture of Wilson in his own office. After his inauguration, Nixon had Wilson’s presidential desk moved into the Oval Office so he could also use it. Nixon apparently was in the habit of working at the desk with his feet resting on it. His heels marred the surface, and a White House aid sent the desk to be refinished while Nixon was traveling abroad. When Nixon returned, he was not happy to see the repairs: “I didn’t order that. I want to leave my mark on this place just like other Presidents!”

In addition to the Watergate Scandal, other controversies damaged Nixon’s administration. Vice President Spiro Agnew was involved in bribery and tax-evasion schemes. He subsequently resigned in October 1973. Nixon’s own personal finances were later scrutinized, and it was determined that he had also been involved in tax evasion and owed more than $400,000 in taxes.

• NixonFoundation.org Research resources and information about the Richard Nixon Library & Birthplace Foundation in Yorba Linda, California.
• pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/nixon Biographical and career information about Nixon sponsored by PBS.
• MillerCenter.org/president/nixon Biographical information, essays, and access to Nixon’s presidential speeches sponsored by the Miller Center at the University of Virginia.

Field Trips for Richard Milhous Nixon

Richard Nixon Library and Birthplace Yorba Linda, California NixonLibrary.gov

The twenty-two galleries of the museum memorialize Richard Nixon’s political career. Interactive video and touchscreen technology present the highlights and timeline of important events of his presidency, including the Watergate scandal. On the grounds are the gravesites of Mr. and Mrs. Nixon, which are surrounded by a beautiful English country garden, and the restored 1912 farmhouse where Nixon was born.

[Back to Presidential Fact Files]

With South Dakota trip, Obama has visited all 50 states

President Obama in Florida last month. With his visit Friday to South Dakota, he has visited all 50 states.

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When then-Sen. Barack Obama publicly claimed the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008 after a long primary season, there was one blemish — he’d lost the South Dakota primary that day to Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Obama also would lose the state twice in general elections.

That bit of political history, according to the White House, is not what kept Obama from visiting South Dakota during the nearly 2,300 days he’s been president — although he has managed to visit all 49 other states.

Finally, on Friday, Obama became the fourth president to have visited all 50 of the United States, when he delivered the commencement address at a community college here. For the loyal-blue Democratic president and deeply red state, it was a cause for celebration.

Many local residents lined the short motorcade route from the airport to the local high school, some looking as if they’d camped out for hours and others holding welcome signs.

“It’s good to be in South Dakota,” Obama told the commencement crowd.

“I was saving the best for last,” he added. “To the other 49, I hope you take no offense.”

Richard Nixon was the first president to visit all the states, achieving the milestone within his first three years.

It took President Clinton until his final weeks in office to visit No. 50, Nebraska — a trip planned only after he learned he was one short. President George H.W. Bush managed to visit all 50 states in his only term. His son ended his two-term presidency without having set foot in Vermont.

As Obama entered his last two years in office, his itinerary this year conspicuously included other states he’d been absent from during his presidency.

After his State of the Union address in January, he went to Idaho to discuss advanced manufacturing. Just over a month later, he went to South Carolina for a town-hall-style meeting. And in April he stopped in Utah for remarks on the economy.

The common factor: They were all states he’d lost twice in general elections. But the White House prefers to argue that he’s championing ideas that have bipartisan support, and visiting red states to help illustrate that point.

Obama continued that theme in Watertown, promoting his proposal to provide free community college tuition.

Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) noted that the school Obama visited, Lake Area Technical Institute, has one of the highest graduation and job-placement rates in the state.

“For the young men and women that are at the technical school, this is an experience of a lifetime for them,” said Rounds, who attended as the uncle of a graduate.

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Twitter: @mikememoli

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Michael A. Memoli worked in the Los Angeles Times’ Washington, D.C., bureau from 2010-17, where he covered the White House, the 2016 presidential campaign, and national politics based in D.C. (plus a dozen or so swing states in presidential election years). A New Jersey native, he graduated from Loyola University in Maryland.

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Who Knew? U.S. Presidential Trivia

Which president was the first to visit all 50 states? How many presidents died while in office? Put your knowledge to the test and read up on these historical fast facts.

Just 11 weeks remain in the race for the White House. Thousands of Republican Party faithful will gather in New York City next week to nominate George W. Bush as their candidate for a second term as U.S. President. Last month Democrats anointed Massachusetts Senator John Kerry as their party's choice to lead the country. Ralph Nader, meanwhile, leads the list of independent and third-party candidates who are seeking the nation's top political job.

Getting into the campaign spirit, we compiled the following presidential trivia:

How They Measured Up

The smallest President was James Madison (Presidential term 1809-17). The fourth President, Madison stood 5 feet, 4 inches (163 centimeters) tall and weighed less than 100 pounds (45 kilograms).

The tallest President was Abraham Lincoln (1861-65). He stood 6 feet, 4 inches (193 centimeters) tall.

The heaviest President was William Howard Taft (1909-13), who sometimes tipped the scales at more than 300 pounds (136 kilograms) during his tenure. After he became stuck in the White House bathtub, Taft ordered a new one installed. The replacement was big enough to hold four grown men of average size.

The oldest President ever elected was Ronald Reagan (1981-89). The 40th President took office at the age of 69.

Summer Flash Sale – Up to $20 off!

The youngest elected President was John F. Kennedy (1961-63), who reached the White House at 43. But the youngest President to ever serve was Theodore Roosevelt (1901-09), who was elected Vice President on a ticket with President William McKinley . In September 1901 a deranged anarchist shot McKinley twice in Buffalo, New York, and Roosevelt assumed the top office at 42.

Benjamin Harrison (1889-93), the 23nd President, was the first President to attend a baseball game. He saw the Cincinnati Reds beat the Washington Senators 7 to 4 on June 6, 1892.

William Taft started the tradition of the Presidential "first pitch" of baseball season. The event took place on April 4, 1910, during an opening day game between the Washington Senators and the Philadelphia Athletics.

Since Taft's first pitch, every President but one has opened at least one baseball season during their tenure. The exception: Jimmy Carter (1977-1981).

John Quincy Adams (1825-29), the sixth President, customarily took a nude early morning swim in the Potomac River.

George Washington (1789-1797), Thomas Jefferson (1801-09), and John Adams (1797-1801) were all avid collectors and players of marbles.

Assassination and Death

Four sitting Presidents have been assassinated while in office: Abraham Lincoln, James Abram Garfield (1881), William McKinley (1897-1901), and John F. Kennedy (1961-63).

Six other Presidents were luckier and survived their assassination attempts: Andrew Jackson (1829-37), Theodore Roosevelt (1901-09), Franklin Roosevelt (1933-45), Harry Truman (1945-53), Gerald Ford (1974-77), and Ronald Reagan (1981-89).

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Other Presidents have died while in office:

• William Henry Harrison (1841), the ninth President, died of pneumonia one month to the day after making—in the snow—the longest U.S. presidential inauguration speech on record.

• Zachary Taylor (1849-50), the 12th President, died in 1850 of an inflamed stomach and intestines just 16 months after he took office.

• Warren Harding (1921-23), who presided over a scandal-plagued administration, died suddenly on August 2, 1923. Medical records suggest Harding battled high blood pressure and died of a heart attack. But rumors at the time claimed Harding either took his own life or was poisoned by his wife, who sought to end Harding's notorious philandering.

• John Adams (1797-1801), the second President, and Thomas Jefferson (1801-09), the third President, both died on July 4, 1826. Calvin Coolidge (1923-29), the 30th President, was born on July 4, 1872.

The first President born a U.S. citizen was Martin Van Buren (1837-41). Van Buren was delivered on December 5, 1782, making him the first President born after the Declaration of Independence was signed.

Virginia is the birthplace of the greatest number of Presidents. It boasts eight. Thirty-one states have never claimed a native son as President.

Teddy Roosevelt was the first President to travel abroad while in office; he visited the Panama Canal in 1906.

In 1943 Franklin Roosevelt made the first Presidential flight.

Richard Nixon was the first President to visit all 50 states.

Bill Clinton set a record for the most trips abroad: 133.

Elections and Politics

George W. Bush, the 43rd and current President, lost the popular vote to Al Gore in 2000. Bush is the fourth President to attain the highest office in the U.S. without the backing of the majority of the people. He shares the distinction with John Quincy Adams, Rutherford B. Hayes (1877-81), and Benjamin Harrison.

James Monroe (1817-25), the fifth President, received every Electoral College vote except one. The holdout: a New Hampshire delegate who wanted to preserve the legacy of George Washington, the first and only President elected unanimously by the Electoral College.

Gerald Ford (1974-77) was the only President to serve who was not elected by U.S. voters either as President or Vice President. In 1973 then-President Richard Nixon (1969-74) appointed Ford Vice President after former Vice President Spiro Agnew resigned. When Nixon resigned from the White House on August 9, 1974 (the only President to do so), Ford became President.

Bill Clinton (1993-2001), the 42nd President, was the second President to be impeached. In 1998 Clinton was impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives but acquitted by the Senate. Andrew Johnson was impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives in 1868, but he was also later acquitted by the Senate.

George W. Bush is the second President to follow in the footsteps of his father. George Herbert Walker Bush was the 41st President. John Quincy Adams (1825-29), the sixth President, was the son of John Adams (1797-1801), the second President.

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What president visited all 50 states while in office?

According to the information available, President Richard Nixon was the first to visit all 50 states while in office. He achieved this milestone during his previous campaign. Other presidents who have achieved this feat while serving as president include Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, and Barack Obama.

Who was the first president to travel to all 50 states?

The first president to travel to all 50 states was President Richard Nixon. He accomplished this during his previous campaign, making him the first president ever to visit all 50 states.

Who was the first president to visit a foreign country while in office?

The first president to visit a foreign country while in office was President Theodore Roosevelt. He traveled to Panama to inspect the construction of the Panama Canal. This marked the first visit abroad by any President or President-elect.

Who was the youngest president of the United States?

The youngest person to become U.S. president was President Theodore Roosevelt, who assumed office at the age of 42 after the assassination of President William McKinley. The youngest president at the time of his election to the office was President John F. Kennedy, who was 43 years old.

What countries did Obama visit as president?

During his tenure, President Barack Obama visited various countries around the world. Some of the countries he visited include Australia, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Portugal, Russia, South Africa, Turkey, and Vatican City. He also made multiple visits to Canada, China, Poland, Afghanistan, Japan, and South Korea.

Which president had 15 kids?

President John Tyler had the most children among all the American presidents. He had a total of 15 children and two wives. He married Letitia Christian in 1813, and they had eight children together.

Which President served 3 terms?

President Franklin D. Roosevelt served for three terms as the President of the United States. He won a third term by defeating Republican nominee Wendell Willkie in the 1940 presidential election. He remains the only president to have served more than two terms.

Which President died at the youngest age?

President John F. Kennedy was the youngest U.S. president to have died. He was assassinated at the age of 46 years, 177 days. In terms of natural causes, President James K. Polk died at the youngest age of 53 years, 225 days due to cholera. President George H.W. Bush, who died at the age of 94 years, 171 days, is the oldest living former U.S. president.

Who is the oldest living U.S. president?

The oldest living former U.S. president is President Jimmy Carter. At the age of 99, he holds the record for being the longest-lived president in U.S. history. Carter served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981.

Which founding president never owned slaves?

Among the founding presidents of the United States, John Adams and his son John Quincy Adams were the only two who never owned slaves. John Adams famously said that the American Revolution would not be complete until all slaves were freed.

Who was the smallest president?

The tallest U.S. president was Abraham Lincoln, standing at 6 feet 4 inches (193 centimeters), while the shortest was James Madison, who stood at 5 feet 4 inches (163 centimeters).

Who were the 4 presidents that were assassinated?

There have been four U.S. presidents who were assassinated in American history. They are:

• Abraham Lincoln, assassinated in 1865 by John Wilkes Booth.
• James A. Garfield, assassinated in 1881 by Charles J. Guiteau.
• William McKinley, assassinated in 1901 by Leon Czolgosz.
• John F. Kennedy, assassinated in 1963 by Lee Harvey Oswald.

Who is the only president buried in Washington DC?

President Woodrow Wilson is the only U.S. president buried in Washington, D.C. He was interred at the Washington National Cathedral, also known as the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul.

What president was a bartender?

President Abraham Lincoln was a licensed bartender before becoming president. He was also a part-owner of a store in Illinois called Berry and Lincoln, which sold various items including liquor.

Who is the only president who resigned from office?

President Richard Nixon is the only U.S. president who resigned from office. He resigned following the Watergate scandal, making him the first and only president to do so.

Has a sitting president ever died of old age?

No president has died of old age while in office. However, there have been four U.S. presidents who died in office due to natural causes: William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, Warren G. Harding, and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

How many presidents have been assassinated?

Four sitting U.S. presidents have been assassinated in American history. They are Abraham Lincoln, James A. Garfield, William McKinley, and John F. Kennedy.

How many terms did Obama serve?

President Barack Obama served two terms as the President of the United States. He was elected in 2008 and re-elected in 2012. His presidency lasted from January 20, 2009, to January 20, 2017.

Whose presidency was the shortest in United States history?

President William Henry Harrison holds the record for the shortest presidency in U.S. history. He served for only 32 days before passing away due to pneumonia.

Which president had a child at 70?

President John Tyler had a child when he was 70 years old. His youngest child was born in 1860.

What president had his sister as first lady?

President Grover Cleveland had his sister, Rose Elizabeth “Libby” Cleveland, serve as acting first lady from 1885 to 1886. She filled this role during President Cleveland’s first term in office.

Who was the only unmarried president?

President James Buchanan remains the only U.S. president who never married. He served as the 15th president of the United States from 1857 to 1861.

Who was the president who visited all 50 states while in office?

President Richard Nixon was the first to visit all 50 states while in office, achieving this milestone during his previous campaign. Other presidents who have accomplished this feat while serving as president include Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, and Barack Obama.

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The Presidents of the United States - Timeline and Trivia

Last updated July 11, 2017

Other Trivia:

• Four presidents had no Vice President: John Tyler, Millard Fillmore, Andrew Johnson and Chester Arthur.
• Who married a future president and was the daughter of a president? Sara Taylor, the daughter of President Zachary Taylor, was the wife of Jefferson Davis, the future president of the Confederacy, but she died of malaria after being married only 3 months.
• Who was our tallest president? Abraham Lincoln at 6 feet four inches.
• Who was our shortest president? James Madison, at 5 feet and 4 inches and 100 pounds.
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President Obama's Milestone: The Commander-in-Chief Visits All 50 States

Joining Richard Nixon, George H.W. Bush, and Bill Clinton, President Barack

— -- Joining Richard Nixon , George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton , President Obama has finally traveled to his 50th state -- South Dakota -- today as he visited the Lake Area Technical Institute in Watertown to deliver a commencement address.

"I can’t let my South Dakota friends feel neglected,” Obama told KSFY-TV, ABC’s Sioux Falls affiliate, at the White House in April.

Though Obama visited the state as a senator, seeing Mount Rushmore with wife, Michelle Obama , and kids, Sasha and Malia, this is his first time returning as Commander-in-Chief.

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“Finally, there should be spring in South Dakota,” he quipped during his interview.

Luckily, spring has arrived. While it may not be Florida weather, South Dakota will reach a high of 68 while he’s there.

This visit comes on the heels of some pleading by 11-year-old, Rebecca, of Vermillion, South Dakota.

Rebecca sent a letter to Obama asking him to "visit the warmest of the Dakota's," and so he did.

To celebrate this rarely accomplished achievement, we've compiled seven pretty awesome photos of the president and the beautiful states he’s visited:

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• Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/obama-hits-milestone-s-dakota-visit-makes-50-states

With South Dakota visit, Obama is the fourth president to visit all 50 states while in office

PORTLAND, Ore. — South Dakota is losing a special distinction.

Until Friday it was the only state still awaiting a visit from President Barack Obama.

But there is no Mount Rushmore on the schedule. The president is delivering the commencement address on the eastern end of the state at a two-year technical institute, a chance to promote his proposal for free community college and to become the fourth president to set foot on all 50 states.

It was a milestone the White House was observing by posting an online exhibit of photographs from each state taken by White House photographer Pete Souza. In at least one case, a visit is a liberal description. Obama flew into Nebraska in August 2012 to make a drive to Council Bluffs, Iowa. He was in the Cornhusker state less than a half hour.

“I can’t let my South Dakota friends feel neglected,” Obama told KSFY-TV last month when he announced the last stop.

Texas, Aug. 9, 2010. Trying on a pair of cowboy boots at the University of Texas in Austin. Photo by Pete Souza/White House

At the start of the year, Obama had visited 46 states. The White House promptly set up appearances in two of the four remaining states — Idaho and South Carolina — followed by Utah in April. It’s no coincidence that the four are reliably Republican states.

Still, Obama did visit South Dakota as a candidate in 2008 while campaigning for the party’s nomination. Last year he spoke in North Dakota on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation that straddles South Dakota.

The only other presidents to hit the 50-state mark were Richard Nixon, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton.

Obama will deliver the commencement address at the Lake Area Technical Institute graduation ceremony in Watertown.

The school is among the nation’s top community colleges, recognized for rigorously preparing its students and for having a two-year graduation rate that’s higher than the national average.

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Who Was the First President to Visit All 50 States?: Unveiling the Trailblazer

• International Relations

Richard Nixon was the first president to visit all 50 states during his tenure. This accomplishment was particularly notable as it happened during a winning campaign.

Nixon’s achievement paved the way for other presidents like George H. W. Bush and Bill Clinton to follow in his footsteps. It wasn’t until Nixon’s presidency that a president had successfully visited every state in the country, solidifying his place in history.

This feat demonstrated Nixon’s dedication to connecting with the American people and understanding their needs and concerns across the nation. His commitment to visiting every state set a precedent for future presidents to prioritize nationwide representation and engagement.

Credit: www.nhbr.com

Overview Of Presidential Travel History

George Washington holds the title of being the first president to visit all 50 states during his tenure.

Introduction To Presidential Travel

Presidential travel has been an integral part of American history. It not only showcases the leaders’ commitment to the nation but also allows them to connect with citizens from all walks of life across different states. The first president to embark on a journey to visit all 50 states was George Washington, setting an example for future presidents to follow.

Notable Historical Events In Presidential Travel

Presidential travel has witnessed several significant events that have shaped the course of history. From state visits to international trips, presidents have made remarkable contributions to diplomatic relationships. Notable historical events include President Woodrow Wilson’s visit to Europe during World War I to advocate for the League of Nations, and President Richard Nixon’s groundbreaking visit to China, which paved the way for diplomatic relations between the two nations.

Other notable events include President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s travel to Yalta for the Yalta Conference, where he discussed post-World War II plans with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin. President John F. Kennedy’s visit to Berlin, where he famously declared “Ich bin ein Berliner” in support of West Berlin during the Cold War, also stands out as an iconic moment in presidential travel history.

Firsts In Presidential Travel

Apart from George Washington’s achievement of visiting all 50 states, there have been other noteworthy presidential travel firsts. For example, President Theodore Roosevelt became the first president to make a trip outside the continental United States when he visited Panama to oversee the construction of the Panama Canal.

President Jimmy Carter made history by being the first president to visit Sub-Saharan Africa during his term. He aimed to promote human rights and establish stronger ties with African nations. Similarly, President Barack Obama became the first sitting president to visit Cuba in almost a century, marking a significant milestone in diplomatic relations between the two countries.

These firsts in presidential travel demonstrate the evolving role of presidents in shaping global affairs and the ever-expanding horizons of their responsibilities.

George Washington’s Historic Achievement

George Washington achieved a significant milestone in his presidency by becoming the first to visit all 50 states of the U. S. during his tenure.

Overview Of George Washington’s Presidency

George Washington served as the first President of the United States from 1789 to 1797. His presidency marked a crucial time in American history as the nation sought to establish its independence and forge a new path forward. Washington’s leadership and dedication to the welfare of the young nation set a strong precedent for future presidents to follow.

Importance Of George Washington’s Travel

During his presidency, George Washington embarked on a remarkable journey that would forever be etched in American history. His commitment to visit all 13 original states was not just a symbolic gesture but also a testament to his desire to unite the nation and understand the unique challenges faced by each state. This travel allowed Washington to connect with the people, listen to their concerns, and gain valuable insights into the diverse needs and aspirations of the citizens he served.

Impact Of George Washington’s Accomplishment

George Washington’s achievement of visiting all 13 states holds immense significance even today. It showcased his dedication to ensuring a strong and unified nation, regardless of the geographic and political boundaries that existed at the time. By traveling extensively, he laid the foundation for future presidents to engage with each state and foster a sense of unity and cooperation, which continues to shape the fabric of American democracy. Washington’s accomplishment also set a precedent for future leaders to prioritize connecting with citizens and understanding the unique perspectives of each state.

Other Presidents Who Visited All 50 States

Aside from George Washington, who was the first president to visit every single state during his tenure, there have been three other presidents who accomplished this impressive feat. Richard Nixon, George H.W. Bush, and Bill Clinton all left their mark on each of the 50 states. Let’s take a closer look at their achievements:

Richard Nixon

Richard Nixon is not only known for being the 37th President of the United States but also for being the first president to visit all 50 states. Despite not achieving this milestone during a winning campaign, Nixon’s accomplishment in visiting every state during his previous campaign was a historic moment in presidential history. This display of determination and dedication showed his commitment to meeting and connecting with the American people across the entire country.

George H.w. Bush

George H.W. Bush, the 41st President of the United States, also joined the exclusive club of presidents who visited all 50 states. His achievement is particularly noteworthy given that he accomplished this feat during his time as president. Bush’s commitment to understanding the diverse needs and concerns of Americans in each state highlighted his dedication to serving the entire nation.

Bill Clinton

Bill Clinton, the 42nd President of the United States, is another member of the prestigious group of presidents who have visited all 50 states. Clinton’s travels not only showcased his desire to connect with Americans from all walks of life but also allowed him to gain firsthand knowledge of the diverse cultures, economies, and landscapes that make up the United States. His visits fostered a sense of unity and understanding among the states, emphasizing the importance of shared experiences and collaboration.

Let’s compare the achievements of Richard Nixon, George H.W. Bush, and Bill Clinton in visiting all 50 states:

In conclusion, Richard Nixon, George H.W. Bush, and Bill Clinton have all made significant contributions to the history of presidential travel by visiting all 50 states. Their achievements demonstrate their commitment to understanding and connecting with the American people from coast to coast.

Credit: www.amazon.com

Credit: www.bostonglobe.com

Frequently Asked Questions For Who Was The First President To Visit All 50 States

Who was the first person to visit all 50 states.

The first people to visit all 50 states were Richard Nixon, George H. W. Bush, and Bill Clinton. Nixon achieved this during his campaign, making him the first president to accomplish this task before winning the presidency.

Who Was The First President To Visit All 50 States And The Country Of China?

The first president to visit all 50 states and China was Richard Nixon.

Who Was The First President To Visit Another Country While In Office And Where Did He Go?

The first president to visit another country while in office was President Richard Nixon, who visited China and the Soviet Union.

Who Is The Youngest American President?

The youngest American president is Theodore Roosevelt, who assumed office at the age of 42.

In the history of the United States, George Washington holds the distinction of being the first president to visit every single state during his time in office. This impressive achievement showcased his commitment to understanding and connecting with the diverse regions of the country.

While subsequent presidents like Richard Nixon, George H. W. Bush, and Bill Clinton have also visited all 50 states, it was Washington who set the precedent for presidential travel and engagement with the nation. Washington’s accomplishment remains a testament to his dedication to serving the entire nation, regardless of geographic boundaries.

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Who was the first U.S. President to visit all 50 states?

Question #149407. Asked by psnz . Last updated Jun 11 2023 . Originally posted Jun 08 2023 8:09 PM.

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Kamala Harris is officially running for president. Will any Democrats challenge her?

WASHINGTON — Soon after President Joe Biden dropped out of the presidential race, Vice President Kamala Harris accepted his endorsement and announced she will seek the Democratic Party’s nomination to face Donald Trump in November.

“I am honored to have the President’s endorsement and my intention is to earn and win this nomination. Over the past year, I have traveled across the country, talking with Americans about the clear choice in this momentous election. And that is what I will continue to do in the days and weeks ahead,” Harris said in a statement. “I will do everything in my power to unite the Democratic Party—and unite our nation—to defeat Donald Trump and his extreme Project 2025 agenda.”

In a way, Biden’s momentous decision Sunday moves up a long-anticipated 2028 Democratic primary campaign that was expected to feature a broad cast of rising stars in the party. But the sudden start and a shortened four-month timeline mean Harris starts out with a massive advantage — a campaign apparatus and millions in funds she can inherit, as well as rapid endorsements from broad swaths of the party eager to quickly settle on a nominee.

It’s far from clear any prominent Democrats will challenge Harris in what could be a murky process to replace Biden. And if the party coalesces around her, some of those future presidential prospects could become contenders for her vice presidential pick.

A source close to the Harris campaign effort said she has been working phones hard to get support from all the short-listers. “She’s already rallying all the potential candidates behind her,” this person said. “You’re going to see everyone fall into place.”

While some quickly endorsed Harris on Sunday, other rumored or would-be candidates are keeping their cards close to the vest, with most of them refraining from discussing Biden's succession.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is term-limited and has well-known national ambitions, endorsed Harris Sunday afternoon, posting on X that “no one is better to prosecute the case” against Trump than Harris.

Earlier he heaped praise on Biden, calling him “an extraordinary, history-making president” who “will go down in history as one of the most impactful and selfless presidents.”

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro also issued a statement praising Biden “and his unwavering commitment to delivering for Pennsylvania” before backing Harris .

“The best path forward for the Democratic Party is to quickly unite behind Vice President Harris and refocus on winning the presidency,” said Shapiro, who won his competitive state in a blowout against a strongly pro-Trump Republican in 2022 . “The contrast in this race could not be clearer and the road to victory in November runs right through Pennsylvania — where this collective work began. I will do everything I can to help elect Kamala Harris as the 47th President of the United States.”

Two-term Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, whom many have discussed as a future presidential candidate, praised Biden in a statement that did not mention Harris and said on social media that she’ll keep working to stop Trump.

“My job in this election will remain the same: doing everything I can to elect Democrats and stop Donald Trump, a convicted felon whose agenda of raising families’ costs, banning abortion nationwide, and abusing the power of the White House to settle his own scores is completely wrong for Michigan,” she said.

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker posted a statement praising Biden, attacking Trump and promising to work to defeat Trump, without discussing possible replacements.

“As we extend our gratitude to President Biden and reflect on his many accomplishments, we must not ignore the threat posed by Donald Trump’s potential return to the White House,” he said. “I will work every day to ensure that he does not win in November.”

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, a Biden rival in 2020-turned-Cabinet secretary, said : “Joe Biden has earned his place among the best and most consequential presidents in American history. I am so proud to serve under his leadership, and thankful for his unwavering focus on what is best for our country.”

He later endorsed Harris, saying he'd "seen her extraordinary leadership firsthand" as a 2020 candidate and in the White House, adding: "I will do all that I can to help her win this election to lead America forward as our next President."

Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., a former astronaut who won two back-to-back statewide elections in battleground Arizona, has been rumored as a possible vice presidential contender. Kelly endorsed Harris on Sunday to take the mantle from Biden this fall.

The source close to the Harris campaign effort said Kelly is the “dark horse” in the contest for vice presidential candidate, given his military experience and personal narrative and that he comes from a swing state.

North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper also issued a statement praising Biden and the “transformative legislation” he steered through Congress. He then endorsed Harris, posting : "I’ve known @VP going back to our days as AGs, and she has what it takes to defeat Donald Trump and lead our country thoughtfully and with integrity."

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, who won two elections in Republican-friendly Kentucky,  released a statement praising Biden’s decision as being “in the best interest of the country, and our party.”

“Now it is time for our nation to come together. We need to dial down the anger, rancor and noise,” Beshear said, while also praising Harris as his partner in leading the country through crises.

First-term Maryland Gov. Wes Moore tweeted a statement heaping praise on Biden as “an exemplar of true leadership,” without mentioning Harris or discussing a replacement nominee.

Sahil Kapur is a senior national political reporter for NBC News.

Watch CBS News

What to know about Kamala Harris' record as California attorney general

By Brandon Downs , Richard Ramos

Updated on: July 21, 2024 / 5:45 PM PDT / CBS Sacramento

President Biden announced Sunday that he was dropping out of the 2024 presidential race and would endorse Vice President Kamala Harris for the Democratic Party nomination.

Before her rise to the vice presidency, Harris began her career in the Bay Area, where she worked as an Alameda County prosecutor, and was later elected San Francisco district attorney in 2004. 

She served two terms in that role from 2004 to 2010, becoming the first woman to be elected San Francisco district attorney and the first Black and South Asian American woman to hold the office. 

In 2010, she succeeded Jerry Brown as California attorney general, becoming the first female, Black and South Asian attorney general in the state's history. 

She was sworn into the role in January 2011 and served until 2017, when she joined the U.S. Senate after being elected in 2016.

Here are some things to know about Harris' record as California's top prosecutor.

Homeowner protections

One of Harris' key accomplishments as attorney general came in 2012 when she, along with 40 other attorneys general, reached a multi-billion dollar deal with five U.S. banks that settled over flawed mortgage foreclosure practices. The deal provided relief to those affected by those practices, with the average eligible homeowner receiving $20,000 in mortgage aid.

As the attorney general of the nation's most populous state, Harris had a leading role in the deal, calling the initial settlement figure "crumbs on the tabl e."

In 2013, Harris announced more protections for homeowners facing foreclosure when the California Homeowner Bill of Rights was signed into law by then-Gov. Brown.

Opposition to the death penalty

Harris has previously said she personally opposes the death penalty, declining to pursue it earlier in her career. However, she announced in 2014 that she would appeal a federal court ruling that declared it unconstitutional on the grounds that delays in capital punishment in the state rendered it cruel and unusual.

"I am appealing the court's decision because it is not supported by the law, and it undermines important protections that our courts provide to defendants," Harris said in a statement at the time. "This flawed ruling requires appellate review."

Years later, as a senator and during her 2020 run for president, Harris pushed for a federal moratorium on the death penalty after California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order halting executions in the state.

Criminal justice reforms

Building off her Back on Track initiative as San Fransico's district attorney, Harris launched an initiative that was designed to curb recidivism . The initiative consisted of three subdivisions that focused on program development, evaluations and grants. 

In 2015, the California Department of Justice became the first statewide agency to adopt a body camera program, which required all special agents to wear the devices. Later that year, Harris launched a f irst-of-its-kind law enforcement training on implicit bias and procedural justice in an effort to allow for more neutral policing.

Harris also launched a criminal justice open data initiative that aimed at increasing transparency to "strengthen trust, enhance government accountability and inform public policy." 

The initiative included a dashboard that made public criminal justice data on arrests, in-custody deaths and officers killed or assaulted in the line of duty. 

Anti-truancy efforts

Harris has long had a strong stance against truancy since her early days as a Bay Area prosecutor. As attorney general, Harris released the annual In School and On Track report from 2013 through 2016, which detailed truancy and absenteeism rates in the state.

Harris called for parents of truant children to face harsher consequences during her first year as attorney general, something she did while serving as a prosecutor. In 2010, legislation backed by then-District Attorney Harris was signed into law, allowing prosecutors to criminally charge parents of students who excessively missed school.

Critics argued that the law unfairly targeted low-income families and people of color. The criticism Harris has faced for her anti-truancy efforts followed her throughout her career , from when she was a prosecutor in San Francisco through her 2020 presidential run.

Environmental initiatives

In 2016, Harris was one of 17 attorneys general to stand behind efforts to fight climate change by addressing power plant greenhouse gas emissions. She joined a coalition led by then-New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman to investigate whether fossil fuel companies misled the public on the impact of climate change.

The year prior, she defended President Obama's Clean Power Plan , which aimed to reduce emissions by 2030. 

She also supported the Environmental Protection Agency's standards to limit gas emissions from oil and natural gas operations . 

Over the course of her tenure as attorney general, she reached several settlements with oil companies over alleged violations of state laws . In 2011, she announced a $24.5 million settlement with Chevron over allegations it violated state hazardous materials and waste laws. Harris later reached a settlement with BP West Coast in 2016 for alleged violations of state laws governing the operation and maintenance of underground gasoline tanks.

Harris also defended in court California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard and the state's cap-and-trade program, which charges businesses for carbon emissions.

Student borrowers and for-profit colleges

In 2013, Harris began an investigation into California-based Corinthian Colleges and its subsidiaries, alleging that the for-profit college engaged in false and deceptive advertising, securities fraud and misrepresented its programs and success rates to prospective students. 

Harris announced  in 2016 that her office obtained a $1.1 billion judgment against Corinthian Colleges. In 2022, the U.S. Department of Education discharged debt for 560,000 borrowers who took out loans to attend Corinthian Colleges, totaling about $5.8 billion in student loan discharges.

• Kamala Harris

Brandon Downs is a digital content producer at CBS Sacramento.

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15 vice presidents who became president themselves

• Fifteen former vice presidents have gone on to become president themselves.
• Some were unexpectedly inaugurated after the president's resignation, assassination, or illness.
• Others, like Joe Biden, ran for office after their terms as vice president ended.

Throughout US history, 15 men who served as vice president have gone on to become president themselves.

Some vice presidents had no choice but to assume office due to the death or resignation of their predecessors, like Lyndon B. Johnson after John F. Kennedy's assassination. Others, like Joe Biden, chose to run for president after serving as second-in-command in the White House.

As Kamala Harris launches her presidential campaign following Biden's exit from the race , she could join the ranks of vice presidents who went on to serve as president.

Here are 15 vice presidents who became president of the United States.

After serving as the nation's first vice president under George Washington, John Adams became the second president of the United States in 1797.

Adams wasn't fond of the vice president role. He described it to his wife, Abigail Adams, as "the most insignificant office that ever the invention of man contrived or his imagination conceived," according to the White House 's official website.

Thomas Jefferson served as President John Adams' vice president, then defeated him in the election of 1800.

After losing a bitter contest, Adams did not attend Jefferson's inauguration, according to the White House Historical Association .

Martin Van Buren served under President Andrew Jackson before being elected president in 1836.

Van Buren was 5 feet and 6 inches tall, earning him the nickname "Little Magician." He served one term, defeated by the Whig party's William Henry Harrison in 1840.

John Tyler was the first vice president to assume the presidency due to the death of a president.

William Henry Harrison died in 1841, making Tyler the president. His opponents called him "His Accidency," according to the White House .

Tyler was the first president to marry while in office. After his first wife, Letitia Christian Tyler, died in 1842 — the first wife of a president to die in the White House — he secretly wed Julia Gardiner Tyler in 1844.

Millard Fillmore became president when President Zachary Taylor died in 1850.

Fillmore was a member of the Whig party. He was the last president who was neither Democrat nor Republican, according to the White House . He served as president until 1853.

Andrew Johnson took over the presidency after President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated in 1865.

Johnson fought with the Republican-controlled Congress, vetoing their legislation to protect freed slaves, so much so that the House of Representatives voted to impeach him. The Senate acquitted him by one vote, according to the White House .

Chester A. Arthur succeeded President James Garfield after he was assassinated just six months into his presidency in 1881.

Arthur's wife had died in 1880, so his sister, Mary Arthur McElroy, served as first lady and White House hostess, according to the White House .

After President William McKinley was assassinated, his vice president Theodore Roosevelt took over in 1901.

At 42 years old, Roosevelt became the youngest president to assume office, according to the White House .

Calvin Coolidge became president after President Warren G. Harding died in 1923.

Coolidge learned he had become president at 2:30 a.m. while visiting his family in Vermont. His father was a notary public and swore him in with the family Bible, according to the White House .

Franklin Delano Roosevelt died of a cerebral hemorrhage in 1945, making Harry S. Truman the new president.

Truman's presidency included the end of World War II, the outbreak of the Korean War, and the beginning of the Cold War.

Lyndon B. Johnson took office after President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.

Despite enacting landmark legislation such as Medicare, Head Start, the Voting Rights Act, and the Civil Rights Act , Johnson couldn't end the Vietnam War and decided not to run for a second term. He retired in 1969.

Richard Nixon served as vice president from 1953 to 1961, and then as president from 1969 to 1974.

Nixon was the first president to ever resign from office. He did so after the Watergate scandal came to light in 1974.

Gerald R. Ford assumed office after Nixon resigned in 1974.

Nixon's former vice president granted him a full pardon for the events of the Watergate scandal, according to the White House . Ford ran for another term in 1976, but lost to Jimmy Carter.

George H.W. Bush served as Ronald Reagan's vice president from 1981 to 1989 before serving one term as president.

Bush , who was president between 1989 and 1993, lost his reelection campaign to Bill Clinton.

President Joe Biden served as President Barack Obama's vice president for eight years before winning the 2020 presidential election himself.

Biden and Obama's "bromance" became an internet phenomenon. Their relationship reportedly soured when Obama discouraged Biden from running for president in 2016 and threw his support behind Hillary Clinton, who lost to Donald Trump.

CNN also reported that Obama and Nancy Pelosi had discussed their concerns about Biden winning the 2024 election.

Biden announced his withdrawal from the race on Sunday and endorsed his vice president, Kamala Harris .

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How the vice presidency went from an 'insignificant office' to a political powerhouse

Joe Hernandez

The White House is seen in the early morning before Inauguration Day ceremonies on Jan. 20, 2021. David J. Phillip/AP hide caption

John Adams called the vice presidency "the most insignificant office that ever the invention of man contrived or his imagination conceived."

Another vice president, John Nance Garner, was famously quoted as saying it wasn't "worth a bucket of warm spit" (though his exact phrase remains in dispute ).

Yet vice presidents, who are first in the line of presidential succession, have also been integral to some of the most consequential chapters in U.S. history. Eight presidents have died in office, and one — Richard Nixon — resigned, all leaving their vice presidents in control of the White House.

Other vice presidents have used their position to notch some major political accomplishments, such as the Clinton administration initiative led by Vice President Al Gore to rethink how the federal government operates.

For more than a century, early vice presidents largely spent their time on their other constitutional responsibility: presiding over the Senate and concentrating on legislative matters.

But more recent vice presidents have taken an active role in the executive branch, serving as trusted aides to the president and representing the administration on key domestic and foreign policy issues. In other words, they've gone well beyond the few specific duties outlined in the U.S. Constitution.

"For most vice presidents, the successor role remains contingent, whereas the operational and advising role is really their significant functional role," said Joel Goldstein, a professor emeritus at the Saint Louis University School of Law, who has written two books on the vice presidency.

Biden’s in trouble. That puts more scrutiny on Harris too

"That's where a vice president can make a difference, as a fellow politician who can talk truth to power, as an operator who can help the president cover more ground," Goldstein told NPR.

But it isn't just about agreeing on politics or policy. Because presidents can't simply fire their vice president as they might a Cabinet secretary or other government official, the working relationship between the two is critical.

Vice President Harris speaks as President Biden looks on during a White House Rose Garden event to mark National Small Business Week on May 1, 2023. Alex Wong/Getty Images hide caption

"It's at least a four-year marriage," Goldstein said. "So you better be cautious with who you select, and compatibility and establishing and maintaining a relationship matters."

The origins of the vice presidency

In 1789, John Adams became the first vice president of the U.S. under the country's first president, George Washington.

This painting shows John Adams, the first and second vice president of the United States. Adams called the vice presidency "the most insignificant office that ever the invention of man contrived or his imagination conceived." AP hide caption

Adams would go on to set another historical precedent: the first sitting vice president to be elected president. (Three other sitting vice presidents have been elected president since then, as well as two former vice presidents, including Joe Biden.)

The vice president has two official roles laid out in the Constitution. The first is to succeed the president if the president dies, resigns or is removed from office. The vice president may also act as president if the president can't discharge the powers and duties of the office.

The second responsibility is to serve as president of the Senate and break any tied votes. This is how vice presidents largely spent their time from the position's inception through roughly the middle of the 20th century.

Read NPR's full interview with former Vice President Mike Pence

As vice president, Adams reportedly lobbied senators on legislation he opposed, while Vice President John C. Calhoun was known as an enforcer of the Senate's written rules.

The modern vice president

The first big change to the vice presidency came well into the 20th century during the administration of President Dwight Eisenhower, who moved the office into the executive branch.

But the vice presidency was truly elevated to the status it holds today by President Jimmy Carter, who integrated his vice president — Walter Mondale — into the daily operations of the West Wing for the first time in history, according to Goldstein.

Vice President Walter Mondale speaks with President Jimmy Carter at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in St. Paul, Minn., on Jan. 16, 1978. ‎/AP hide caption

Carter met with Mondale privately each week, invited him to government meetings, gave him staff support and told White House aides to treat a request from Mondale the same as one from himself.

"Because Mondale matters to Carter, he matters to everybody else in the American government and he matters to international leaders," Goldstein said. "If you are talking to Mondale, you know you are talking to somebody who is worth persuading, because he can go talk to Carter and he has influence with Carter."

After Ronald Reagan beat Carter in the 1980 presidential election, Reagan's vice president, George H.W. Bush, suggested in an interview with The New York Times that he hoped to emulate his predecessor's approach to the job, saying that the "Mondale model is a very good model."

In Historic Vice Presidency, Harris Starts Off With A Traditional Approach

The idea of a more active, more influential vice president would become the blueprint for administrations to come and would produce some of the most powerful vice presidents in U.S. history, such as Dick Cheney .

Biden, Pence and Harris

Before becoming president, Biden served as President Barack Obama's vice president for eight years and acknowledged the importance of being both an active participant in the Oval Office and second chair to the president.

"It seems to me the most significant thing that has to occur," Biden said on MSNBC in 2016, "is you have to be simpatico ideologically with the president and you have to understand there's a 'V' in front of your name. You're the vice president."

Under President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence acted as "sort of a liaison to traditional Republican officeholders," Goldstein said, and Pence did some things that other vice presidents had done, including foreign travel.

President Donald Trump listens as Vice President Mike Pence speaks during a meeting on the coronavirus in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on March 10, 2020. Evan Vucci/AP hide caption

Pence also famously stood up to Trump in the waning days of Trump's presidential term, when on Jan. 6, 2021, Pence refused to block the certification of the 2020 presidential election results, which had made Biden the victor.

When Kamala Harris assumed the vice presidency in 2021, she became the first woman, the first Black American and the first South Asian American to hold the job.

During her tenure, Harris increasingly became an outspoken advocate for reproductive rights following the Supreme Court's Dobbs decision and represented the administration on trips across the world. In December, Harris also broke the record for the most Senate deadlocks broken by a U.S. vice president when she cast her 32nd tie-breaking vote.

The Coronavirus Crisis

For pence, coronavirus task force is a high-profile assignment with political risk.

According to Goldstein, many early vice presidents wouldn't go on to get the top job, but modern vice presidents often run for president after serving in the vice presidential role.

Both Biden and Pence ran for president after being vice president. Harris ran for president in 2020, before dropping out of the race and later becoming Biden's vice president. She is seen as having presidential ambitions for 2028.

The office of vice president has become a "very appealing — and I think the best — presidential springboard," Goldstein said.

"It doesn't mean that you're going to get nominated," he said. "It doesn't mean that you're going to get elected. But it puts you in a better position than being a senator from Ohio or a senator from California or any other position."

President Biden Becomes the First to Visit All 50 States

President joe biden achieves his goal of visiting all 50 states.

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — President Joe Biden is making his way to the Beehive State this week and Utahns have mixed feelings about it. As President Biden visits Utah, he achieves a significant milestone by becoming the first president to visit all 50 states. This achievement marks a major item checked off his bucket list and sets a new record for presidential travel.

President Obama's visit to South Dakota on Friday means he'll be able to strike a major item from his bucket list: visiting all 50 states while in office. President Obama's visit to South Dakota brings him to the last state he had yet to visit during his presidency, completing his goal of traveling to every state. This accomplishment highlights the dedication and commitment of our presidents to connect with Americans across the nation.

Joe Biden will become the eighth sitting U.S. president to visit Ireland this week. Following in the footsteps of his predecessors, President Biden seeks to strengthen ties between the United States and Ireland. This visit to Ireland showcases the importance of maintaining relationships with international partners and fostering diplomatic connections.

President Joe Biden's visit to tornado-battered Rolling Fork, Mississippi, on Friday holds historical significance. He follows in the footsteps of a previous president who also visited this location. By visiting this devastated area, President Biden shows his commitment to supporting and uplifting communities in times of crisis.

While George Washington may receive fanfare for being the first commander-in-chief, there are numerous presidential milestones that deserve recognition. President Biden's achievement of visiting all 50 states adds to the rich tapestry of presidential accomplishments throughout history. It demonstrates the dedication of our leaders to engage with citizens from every corner of the country.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky is on his way to Washington, where he will meet US President Joe Biden. This visit marks President Zelensky's first foreign trip and signifies the importance of international relations. President Biden's meeting with President Zelensky demonstrates the United States' commitment to supporting its global allies and fostering cooperation on the world stage.

The personal experiences of individuals who have interacted with various presidents also contribute to the historical narrative. From horseback riding with Ronald Reagan to yachting with Bill Clinton and sipping tea with Joe Biden, these encounters provide unique insights into the personal lives of our leaders. Such experiences showcase the diverse relationships between presidents and individuals from different walks of life.

Over seven decades, the late queen met with 13 of the last 14 American presidents, emphasizing the close friendship between the United States and the United Kingdom. These moments symbolize the enduring bond and strong ties between the two nations. The interactions between the queen and American presidents reflect the importance of maintaining strong diplomatic relationships.

When then-Sen. Barack Obama publicly claimed the Democratic presidential nomination in 2008, it marked a significant moment in history. This event solidified his path to becoming the first African American president of the United States. The Democratic presidential nomination announcement represented a pivotal moment in American politics and set the stage for Obama's groundbreaking presidency.

In conclusion, President Joe Biden's achievement of visiting all 50 states is a historic milestone in presidential travel. This accomplishment showcases his commitment to engaging with Americans from all corners of the country. It also highlights the importance of maintaining relationships with international partners and supporting communities in times of crisis. President Biden's visit to Utah brings mixed feelings from Utahns, reflecting the diverse opinions surrounding his presidency. Overall, this milestone adds to the rich tapestry of presidential achievements throughout history.

How many US presidents have only been in power for one term? Complete list

M any presidents of the United States have sought to stay in power by seeking a second term , and many are successful because there is a high chance for an incumbent to once again win the ballot.

Only a handful of them have chosen not to run for re-election because they earlier promised voters that they would not do so , or due to some unfortunate event.

Aside from those who did not campaign to extend their stay at the White House, other presidents have been limited to serving only once either because they did not win on their second attempt, or they died while still in office .

Complete list of one-term presidents

The United States has elected 46 presidents in all. 21 of them served a second term , eight of them died in office , while the rest lost their re-election bid or did not run a second time .

Here is the list of presidents who stayed at the White House for only a single term, or less.

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Biden endorses Kamala Harris: What her California years reveal

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Is she on track to be the first Democratic president from California? Here are nine ways that California shaped Kamala Harris and that Harris has shaped California.

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As President Joe Biden today bowed to the growing chorus of elected Democrats and Democratic voters calling for him to exit the 2024 race, everyone is taking another good hard look at Kamala Harris . “Today I want to offer my full support and endorsement for Kamala Harris to be the nominee of our party this year, ” Biden wrote in a social media post , calling his selection of Harris to be his vice president “the best decision I’ve made.”

Vice presidents rarely get much attention. What attention Harris has gotten on the job hasn’t been particularly positive. Counter to the reputation she cultivated early on in her career as a pragmatic politician and sharp-minded prosecutor, public opinion on Harris soured in the summer of 2021 and had mostly stayed sour. 

That was in part thanks to the White House saddling her with a series of unenviable and intractable tasks . Beyond that her role, like that of most vice presidents, has been high on profile, but low on actual responsibility. It’s a job perhaps best described by fictional Veep Selina Meyer as the political equivalent of being “declawed, defanged, neutered, ball-gagged, and sealed in an abandoned coal mine.”

Nor was Harris faring much better with voters in her home state. Last year 59% of California voters in a Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll said they would not welcome her on the top of the ticket. 

Why Nancy Pelosi was key to nudging Biden out: ‘For her, it’s all about winning’

But as Harris emerged as the favored substitute for Biden, more voters seem to be warming to her. A Washington Post poll found that the vast majority of Democratic voters nationwide would be “satisfied” with Harris at the top of the ticket. The same poll found her narrowly beating Trump in a head-to-head election among registered voters.

Today she issued a statement saying she was honored to have Biden’s endorsement and “my intention is to earn and win this nomination….We have 107 days until Election Day. Together, we will fight. And together, we will win.” And so the nation is catching itself back up to speed on all things Harris — and that means catching up on a life of accomplishment and controversy here. More than any other vice president in generations, Kamala Harris’ biography is singularly Californian. 

Born in Oakland, bussed to school in Berkeley, tested by San Francisco’s cutthroat municipal politics and propelled onto the national stage as the state’s top law enforcement officer and then its first female senator of color, Harris’ approach to politics and policymaking were honed here.

Now that voters are reconsidering whether Harris has what it takes to be president of the United States — and as Donald Trump and JD Vance train their oppo-machine upon her — we’re resurrecting this look at her California years and career. Here are nine ways that California shaped Kamala Harris, and that Harris shaped California.

1. A child of Berkeley

In a state full of transplants, Harris is a lifelong Californian.

She was was born in 1964 in Oakland — the hospital a little over a mile from the city hall where, more than half a century later, she would announce her short-lived 2020 bid for the presidency.  Born to immigrant parents who met while getting their PhDs and protesting for civil rights at UC Berkeley, she spent her childhood in Berkeley. Harris’ father, Donald Harris, is from Jamaica and her mother, Shyamala Gopalan, is from India. The couple split when Harris was 7, and Harris and her sister Maya were raised mostly by her mother, who died in 2009.

In the first Democratic presidential debate in 2019, Harris famously skewered Joe Biden — then her campaign rival — for his past opposition to federally mandated busing to desegregate public schools. For Harris, she said, the issue was “personal.”

Specifically, Harris rode the “red rooster” from Berkeley’s working-class flatlands to Thousand Oaks Elementary School at the base of the affluent north Berkeley hills. This was 1969, just one year after Berkeley Unified introduced its “two-way” busing program across its elementary schools. Berkeley being Berkeley, unlike local integration plans across the country, the city had undertaken this one on its own accord. 

After the debate dust-up, Harris clarified that she does not support federally mandated busing , a policy stance not so dissimilar from the one she needled Biden over.

Traversing back and forth between different strata of society — black, white and Asian; well-off and working-class — is a familiar trope in Harris’ biography.

“It wasn’t a homogenous life,” said Debbie Mesloh, a friend who has also worked for Harris as a communication director and a consultant. “She’s a very resourceful person in that she can move in between these worlds.”

Harris spent her teenage years in Montreal, moving there with her sister and mother when Gopalan accepted a university research position there. She earned a political science and economics degree at Howard University in Washington D.C. but returned to California to get her law degree in 1989 at the University of California, Hastings in San Francisco.

Until her most recent move to Washington, she called California home.

Fresh out of law school, she joined the Alameda County district attorney’s office in 1990, serving there eight years before crossing the bay to San Francisco. In 2003, she unexpectedly won election as San Francisco district attorney, where she served two terms before her narrow election as state attorney general in 2010. She was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2016.

2. The influence of king/queen-maker Willie Brown

Former state Assembly Speaker and San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown has helped accelerate many a successful political career in California (including that of Gov. Gavin Newsom ). Harris got a boost from Brown, too.

In March 1994, San Francisco Chronicle’s legendary columnist Herb Caen described the scene at Brown’s surprise 60th birthday party. Clint Eastwood was there, wrote Caen, and he “spilled champagne on the Speaker’s new steady, Kamala Harris.” Brown had a reputation for dating much younger women. In his column, Caen described Harris, then a deputy district attorney of Alameda County, as “something new in Willie’s love life. She’s a woman, not a girl.” 

The relationship ended after two years, but her connection to Brown, three decades her senior, did have an outsized effect on her career.

“I would think it’s fair to say that most of the people in San Francisco met her through Willie,” John Burton, who used to be president pro tem of the state Senate, former chair of the California Democratic Party and a San Francisco political powerhouse in his own right, told Politico .

The speaker gave Harris a couple plum positions on two state regulatory boards — the Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board and the California Medical Assistance Commission. “If you were asked to be on a board that regulated medical care, would you say no?” Harris told SFWeekly a few years later.

Harris’ connection to Brown also helped her make connections across San Francisco high-society and California political elite. In 1996, a year after Brown became mayor and Harris broke off the relationship, she joined the board of trustees at San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. 

When Harris ran for San Francisco district attorney nearly a decade later, her first contribution came from Elaine McKeon, chair of the museum’s board . More — much more — poured in from donors with last names like Fisher, Getty, Buell, Haas and other noble houses of the Bay Area.

But from the beginning of her political career, Harris has seen her connection with Brown as a liability — a cudgel that opponents can use against her and, at worst, a tired, sexist trope used to question the legitimacy of her ascendant career. In the first run to be San Francisco’s district attorney, Harris deliberately hired a campaign consultant known for working with clients outside the Brown political machine. During that same campaign, she described her past relationship with the former speaker and mayor as “an albatross hanging around my neck.” And in 2020, Brown wrote that if Biden offered her the chance to be his running mate, she should turn him down — noting that “the glory would be short-lived, and historically, the vice presidency has often ended up being a dead end.”

He recently told a reporter, regretfully, that he and Harris are no longer in touch .

3. A lack of clarity

You saw it in the presidential race. You’ve seen it in her as vice president . As the New York Times once put it : “the content of her message remains a work in progress.” We saw it before in California.

While running the California Department of Justice, Harris was often loath to wade into the political battles taking place just a few blocks away in the state Legislature. 

There was the bill that would have required her office to investigate police shootings. She did not take a formal position (though she did tell a reporter it would be bad policy). The bill died. 

There was the proposal to force police departments to gather data on the ethnicity and race of the civilians they stop. Harris also declined to take a position. It passed anyway. 

California Democratic delegates, with more sway in wild election, rally behind Harris

And on the biggest criminal justice overhaul in California in a generation, Harris also kept mum. 

Prompted by a judicial decree that the state had to dramatically cut the population of its overcrowded prison system, “realignment” was a package of state policies passed in 2011 that shifted tens of thousands of inmates out of state custody and into county jails or onto the rolls of local probation systems. 

Despite in many ways reflecting the lessons described in her book “Smart on Crime,” which argued that non-violent criminals can be redirected into less punitive systems without jeopardizing public safety, Harris, the state’s top law enforcement officer, was silent on the policy. 

“The idea that she would have consistent positions on issues informed by ideology isn’t who she is.” Corey cook, political scientist and provost of St. Mary’s College

That earned a rebuke from the Los Angeles Times Editorial Board, which wrote in its endorsement of her 2016 Senate candidacy that Harris “has been too cautious and unwilling to stake out a position on controversial issues, even when her voice would have been valuable to the debate.” 

What some critics call prevarication or flip-floppery, her supporters call pragmatism. Those are just two ways of describing the same quality, said Corey Cook, a political scientist and provost at St. Mary’s College, and a longtime observer of San Francisco politics.

“She’s not an ideologue,” he said, meaning rather than stake out the boldest, ideologically-coherent agenda, she tends to focus on individual fixes to specific problems. Hence the “ 3am agenda ” of her presidential campaign, a collection of policy changes designed to address the problems that keep the average voter up at night.

“The idea that she would have consistent positions on issues informed by ideology isn’t who she is,” said Cook. Harris may appear to pick her battles, he said, because for her “the only lasting solutions are going to be the ones that are able to sustain a majority coalition of support.”

4. Making a mark: sex crimes, domestic violence, child abuse

Harris has never shied away from the “tough on crime” label when it comes to a certain class of criminals: domestic violence perpetrators, child abusers and sex traffickers.

After nearly a decade in Alameda County and a short stint as a deputy district attorney in San Francisco (she left, calling the leadership there “ dysfunctional ”), in 2000, Harris joined the San Francisco city attorney’s office under Louise Renne.

Renne said she was looking for someone to head the office’s Child and Family Service unit, which investigates child abuse cases. This was not considered a prestigious post. Prosecutors inside the unit had taken to calling it “kiddie law.”

Renne thought Harris, who had focused on child abuse and sexual exploitation cases in Alameda County, would be a good fit.

“She comes into my office and says ‘Come on, Louise, we’ve got to go over to court. There are going to be adoptions today,’ and she had all these teddy bears.” Louise Renne, former SF City attorney

That instinct was confirmed on Harris’ first day on the job, Renne said, when a number of children who had been separated from their parents were formally adopted into new families.

“She comes into my office and says ‘Come on, Louise, we’ve got to go over to court. There are going to be adoptions today,’ and she had all these teddy bears,” Renne recalled. “She knew the occasion. She knew it was an important one and it should be celebrated.”

Harris’ focus on the victims of abuse and exploitation continued after she was elected as San Francisco’s District Attorney.

“I don’t know what the term ‘teenage prostitute’ means. I have never met a ‘teenage prostitute.’ I have met exploited kids,” Mesloh, then Harris’ communications director, recalls her boss saying at her first all-staff meeting. Harris then ordered her prosecutors not to use the term in court. A year later, Harris sponsored a bill putting the crime of human trafficking into the state criminal code.

Some Democrats say Harris’ prior life as a prosecutor with a focus on sex crimes would be a key advantage in a potential general election contest against Trump, who has been found liable in a civil case for sexual assault and recently became the first former president to be convicted of a felony. In that case, the 34 counts were related to the falsifying of business records in connection to an alleged sexual encounter with a pornographic film actress. 

But using the full force of the law to penalize pimps, traffickers and other abusers has earned Harris some criticism from civil libertarians and from advocates for sex workers .

In one of her final acts as California’s attorney general, Harris had the CEO of Backpage.com, Carl Ferrer, arrested on pimping charges. Backpage was an online classifieds site known for its “adult services” section, which prosecutors had long warned served as a marketplace for sex traffickers.

The arrest was based on a contentious legal argument that pit anti-trafficking fervor against the First Amendment. Since Backpage was merely a platform for ads, its lawyers argued, it was protected by the same law that protects Google from being held liable for illicit websites listed in its search results. A superior court judge agreed and threw out the case, though an amended charge, pursued by Harris’ successor, then-Attorney General Xavier Becerra, led Ferrer to plead guilty to money laundering and conspiracy to facilitate prostitution and to the shuttering of the site.

5. The Harris mantra: ‘Smart on Crime’

One of the reasons Harris became known as a rising-star District Attorney was her focus on prevention, which she explained in her book, Smart on Crime , written in 2009, the year before she ran for attorney general. 

“Public health practitioners know that the most beneficial use of resources is to prevent an outbreak, not to treat it,” Harris wrote. “Instead of just reacting to a crime every time it is committed, we have to step back and figure out how to disrupt the routes of infection.”

Harris’ “Back on Track” program, considered the most successful implementation of this idea, redirected first-time, non-violent drug offenders into supervised education, job training courses, therapy sessions and life skills classes. It was a modest program, but a novel one compared to what most other big city law enforcement officers were doing in 2005. 

“In that time period, I think that she was a radical,” said Mesloh. The program has since been emulated by cities around the country. When Harris became attorney general, she launched a similar pilot program for Los Angeles County.

Harris’ focus on prevention produced some of her key accomplishments as district attorney. But in the context of the 2020 presidential primary, some of those same accomplishments struck many critics on the left as overly punitive.

The year after launching Back on Track, Harris introduced an anti-truancy initiative. Based on a statistical correlation that chronic class skippers are more likely to be both perpetrators and victims of homicide, Harris’ office began threatening the parents of persistently absent students with prosecution. 

Harris has been quick to point out that the “stick” in this carrot and stick approach only came out after a series of escalating interventions, including mandatory meetings with school staff and social workers. No one went to jail under the program, though a handful of parents were fined. Within a few years, city truancy rates fell by a third and Harris took credit. 

In 2010 her office sponsored a bill to take the program statewide. In the hands of other district attorneys, the statute was used in at least a handful of cases to put parents behind bars. Critics have said that the policy has been disproportionately wielded against poor parents of color .

In a 2019 interview , Harris said she regretted any “unintended consequences” of the state law.

6. Harris has (almost) always opposed capital punishment

Her opposition to the death penalty has been one of the most controversial stands in her career, but it’s also an example for those who criticize her lack of consistency.

On April 10, 2004, three months after her inauguration as San Francisco’s new district attorney, 29-year-old police officer Isaac Espinoza was gunned down by a 21-year-old with an AK-47. Three days later, Harris made good on a campaign promise and vowed not to seek the death penalty for the shooter. David Hill was later convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.

The decision engendered a predictably fierce backlash from the police union and rebukes from politicians. “This is not only the definition of tragedy,” Sen. Dianne Feinstein said at Espinoza’s funeral, “it’s the special circumstance called for by the death penalty law.” The assembled officers cheered while Harris remained seated. 

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Some of Harris’ critics say she has wavered in tougher political circumstances.

In 2014, when a federal court judge ruled that California’s administration of the death penalty was unconstitutional, Harris appealed the decision as state attorney general, arguing that it was “not supported by the law.”

Harris later said that she was obligated to defend capital punishment as the legal representative of the state. Many have pointed out that she was happy not to defend a constitutional ban on same-sex marriage that voters passed in Proposition 8 when it was challenged a year earlier. Harris’ response: She was merely reflecting the position of her client, Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration.

She also explained that the judge’s ruling, which held that the long delays between sentencing and execution in California amounted to “cruel and unusual punishment,” could be used to justify speeding up the state’s system of capital punishment.

7. Prosecutorial overreach controversies

Both as district attorney and as state attorney general, Harris led offices that criminal justice advocates say was overly aggressive in pursuing convictions and lacked transparency in a way that belies Harris’ brand as a “ progressive prosecutor .”

In March 2010, just as Harris was campaigning to become California’s attorney general, San Francisco authorities shut down a police department crime lab in the city’s Hunters Point naval yard. A technician named Deborah Madden was accused of skimming drugs, raising broader questions about the lab’s ability to appropriately handle evidence in criminal cases. (Madden later pleaded guilty). 

Harris immediately dismissed 20 drug cases, but the number eventually grew to over 1,500 after documents showed that prosecutors within Harris’ office had known about Madden’s potential unreliability months before the lab was closed, but had neglected to tell defense attorneys. 

A superior court judge later excoriated Harris’ office, writing that the violations infringed on the defendants’ constitutional rights. 

Afterward, Harris formed a unit to handle the sharing of evidence with criminal defense attorneys. She has also said that she did not know about the problems at the crime lab until after the scandal blew up.

But that hasn’t done much to assuage the concerns of critics who say Harris had a tendency toward prosecutorial overreach , which continued once Harris became the state’s attorney general.

In 2015, for example, lawyers for an inmate convicted of murder attempted to have the case thrown out after new evidence suggested that Riverside County prosecutors lied on the stand during the initial trial. Harris’ office, representing the state prison system, resisted, only backing down after footage of one of her deputies being eviscerated by three federal judges went viral. 

A spokesperson for her since-abandoned presidential campaign said Harris ordered her office to drop the challenge as soon as “she became aware” of the case.

Critics point to other examples. There was her office’s decision to defend a molestation conviction that local prosecutors had secured with a false confession.

Asked about that case, the spokesperson said that it was “long-standing practice” for prosecutors within the Californian Department of Justice to file legal motions without the express approval of the Attorney General, implying that, again, Harris was not aware that her office was making the argument. But in this case, the spokesperson added, state prosecutors believed “the original case…was valid and that the victim in the case deserved justice.”

Another example: her office’s refusal to take over a 2011 Seal Beach mass shooting case after a judge recused the entire Orange County District Attorney’s office for widespread prosecutorial misconduct. Harris defended her decision: “it was being handled at the local level.”

Such a track record is to be expected of any prosecutor, said Sally Lieber, who worked with Harris on human trafficking legislation while representing Mountain View in the state Assembly.

“It is an adversarial system and so she was filling a particular role, but I think that she was able to do it in a very sophisticated, smart and responsive way,” she said.

8. As California’s AG: Playing hardball

Harris’ biggest accomplishment while California’s attorney general was to secure a financial settlement with some of the country’s largest banks accused of illegally foreclosing on homeowners.

In September 2011, Harris pulled out of ongoing negotiations between attorneys general from nearly every US state and the five banks, calling the proposed deal of $2-to-$4 billion “crumbs on the table.”

Harris was not the first attorney general to walk away, but the departure of the country’s largest state seemed to have its intended effect.

A few months later, with California back in the mix, a new deal was struck. This time, California got $20.2 billion in debt reductions and direct financial assistance.

Still, some consumer groups and outside experts were critical of the deal, arguing that the banks would have been forced to write off much of that bad debt eventually. “ All sizzle, no steak ,” is how Georgetown law professor Adam Levitin put it. 

But Harris’ willingness to play hardball did result in a bigger settlement, said Rob McKenna, former Washington attorney general who was part of the negotiations.

“It’s possible for states to overstate the impact they had on the final settlement. The former New York Attorney General (Eric Schneiderman) would sometimes make claims about the settlement and improvements he had obtained,” he said. “But it’s fair to say that Attorney General Harris negotiated and obtained some improvement in the settlement for California.”

9. Kamala the campaigner

Harris launched her 2020 presidential campaign high on fanfare and hype, only to flame out less than a year later before even making it to Iowa. It was a historically stark underperformance from a candidate that many Democratic insiders believed would be a formidable contender. 

In California, Harris’ electoral track record has been mixed.

Her first spin on the campaign trail was a superlative success. In her 2003 race for San Francisco District Attorney, she pushed out a two-term incumbent and won more votes than any other candidate running for a city-wide office that year. 

Harris’ first run for statewide office didn’t go quite smoothly. Her race for Attorney General against Republican Steve Cooley wasn’t called until weeks after Election Day . Yes, Harris won. But she did so by less than a percentage point. 

Now, after 18 years in which not a single Republican has won statewide office in California, it’s easy to look back at that nail-biter of an election and see an early sign of Harris’ weakness as a candidate. But at the time, the calculus was a little different. Cooley, a relative moderate, was considered the favorite to win against Harris, a San Francisco liberal. This was 2010, which proved to be a historic landslide election for the GOP. The fact that Harris eked it out despite those headwinds, and as the first woman and person of color to hold that office no less, cemented her status as a rising star in the Democratic Party. 

Also rising was Gavin Newsom. The two were San Francisco friends and ran in the same social circles even before their political careers ignited. They share the same political consultants. And when the two most prestigious California elective offices opened up — for governor and U.S. senator — they sidestepped a ballot rivalry when she successfully ran for the Senate, as did he for governor.

Newsom has said — and recently reiterated — that he would not challenge Harris for the Democratic presidential nomination should Biden withdraw. Although Newsom’s name frequently appears on lists of hypothetical Biden replacements, Biden’s endorsement indicates she is the heir-apparent.

This story incorporates prior reporting and interviews from CalMatters’ 2020 election coverage.

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Ben Christopher Housing Reporter

Ben Christopher covers housing policy for CalMatters. His favorite reporting assignment so far: Touring the various two- and three-story structures that have sprouted up across San Diego under the regulatory... More by Ben Christopher