President: Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837 - June 24, 1908)

Term: 1st term: March 4, 1885 - March 4, 1889; 2nd term: March 4, 1893 - March 4, 1897

Political Party: Democratic

Vice-President: 1st term: Thomas A. Hendricks (1885), None (1885-1889); 2nd term: Adlai E. Stevenson

Major Domestic Policy: During Cleveland's presidency, there was an astounding growth in labor unions such as the Knights of Labor reaching their highest amount of power in 1886 because of the fact that they had just won a strike against the Southwest Railroad System. The union grew to 700,000 people, but since they tried to involve all employers into one big union, it eventually failed. Another reason for the failure of the Knights of Labor was due to the strike that was planned on May 1, 1886, but after the first day the strike faded away. One of the Chicago policemen fired at the crowd in order to break it up causing the strike to fade. Then there was a meeting at Haymarket Square the next day to protest against the inhumane treatment of protesters. The crowd consisted of anarchists and socialists, but was still peaceful, until the police took action. A bomb was then thrown, killing seven people. This was later known as the Haymarket Riot, and became the reason why the public turned against labor unions. Then in 1887, the Interstate Commerce Act was passed in order to regulate the flow of railroads. It created the Interstate Commerce Commission to enforce the railroad laws and that all rates must be reasonable. This Act prevented rates being changed at last minute, and outlawed pooling and rebates. Up until 1893, the United States seemed to stay calm and out of riots. Then a major railroad company failed, causing 500 banks to go out of business and then resulting in 15,000 businesses to fail. This was known as the Panic of 1893. Other reason for this panic is the fact that farmers were not making money since the end of the Reconstruction, Silver money was putting the treasury in debt, and revenue was not being received from tariffs because of the high rates of the McKinley Tariff. In order to help regain the United States from the depression, Cleveland requested Congress to cancel the Sherman Silver Purchase Act of 1890. Once this bill was passed, it stopped the flow of Silver into the Treasury. Once 1894 came around, labor unions came to arise once again. The Pullman Company released their employees, and then they hired them back with a 25% wage cut. Some of these workers were a part of the American Railway Union and petitioned Eugene v. Debs. Debs then ordered a boycott of the trains and carts except for the United States mail trains. But their plan backfired, and a court order issued to Debs telling him to stop interfering with mail carts, and that it violated the Sherman Anti-Trust Act. The Federal Army was then sent to break up the strike due to the fact that it stopped the flow of U.S. Mail. In order to lower the price of the McKinley Tariff, Cleveland passed the Wilson-Gorman Tariff in 1894 attempting to reduce the high rates. The act may have been put into effect, but after the Senate made more then 600 amendments, the McKinley Tariff rates hardly got reduced.

Major Foreign Policy: Once the McKinley Tariff was put into effect, it increased the price of sugar by 2 cents per pound, causing the Hawaiian Queen to stop depending on the United States for certain goods, and they began to establish an absolute rule. Then an American-sponsored Revolution came about in 1897, and Hawaii asked to join the Union. Cleveland did agree to annex Hawaii, but he felt a need for further investigation of the revolution, and realized the involvement of the United States. Hawaii would be later annexed in 1898 by the joint resolution of Congress. Once 1895 came around, a boundary disagreement occurred in Venezuela. This had happened before, and Cleveland suggested Great Britain and Venezuela should settle it out by choosing an agreement, but both sides resisted the good idea. This time, Great Britain took the effort of using troops to settle this dispute. The United States then threatened the ideas of the Monroe Doctrine, and since neither side wanted to start a war, the argument was settled.

Court Case:

• Kidd v. Pearson (1887)-Held that the state law was valid, and that there was no conflict with the power of Congress over interest commerce.

• Mugler v. Kansas (1887)-Stated that the Kansas prohibition law does not violate the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

• Chicago, Minn. & St. Paul Ry. Co. v. Minnesota (1889)-Held that the Minnesota law to make their commissioner the judge on rates for the railroad companies violated the due process clause of the 14th Amendment.

Second term

• Pollock v. Farmers' Loan & Trust Co. (1894)-Held that the Tax Act of 1894 was unconstitutional because it violated the fact that direct taxes could be divided and given out as planned.

• United States v. E.C. Knight Co. (1894)-Stated that Congress is not eligible to regulate manufacturing due to the commerce clause.

• Plessy v. Ferguson (1895)-Held that the statement "separate but equal" is constitutional under the Equal Protection Clause.

• Wong Wing v. United States (1895)-Declared that hard labor and deportation of a Chinese immigrant for a penalty without a trail by jury is a violation of the Fifth and Sixth Amendments.

• United States v. Wong Kim Ark (1896)-Held that a child born in the United States to foreign born immigrants would be considered a United States citizen.

Intellectual and Social Developments:

-First Term

• The American Federation of Labor came about in 1886.

• The issue of Native Americans was still brewing, especially overland. In order to figure out the land issue, the United States created the Dawes Act in 1887, which divided up the tribal lands.

• The First Social Register defines high society in 1888.

-Second Term

• With the economy suffered dramatically, the United States began one of the worst economic Depression in 1893.

• William Randolph Hearst's New York Journal led the way to yellow journalism.

Cleveland's Legacy: Cleveland will always be remembered for the man who served to Presidencies. As president, he was no Lincoln, but he did help to achieve Southern respect to the White House. His stubbornness and hostility towards the agrarian populists almost caused the Democrats to split and contributed to their defeat in 1896. He did dissociate himself with political machines, making himself seem imperial and king-like. Cleveland also helped strengthen the power of the executive brand, when he refused to give department files to Congress during the fight over presidential appointments. There had been no president who practiced his power prior to Richard M. Nixon. Cleveland will also be remembered for the president who called for troops during the Pullman Strike, and also threaten Britain and Venezuela with war in order to end the boundary dispute.

Two non-consecutive terms

Grover Cleveland was the only President to be elected to two non-consecutive terms as President. In 1884 Grover Cleveland was elected as the 22nd President of the United States and served from March 4, 1885 to March 4, 1889. In 1888 he was defeated by the 23rd President of the United States Benjamin Harrison. He won the election in 1892 to become the 24th President of the United States from March 4, 1893 to March 4, 1897.

1881 Election Results for Mayor of Buffalo, New York:

• 15,120 votes - 56.74% - Grover Cleveland (D)
• 11,528 votes - 43.26% - Milton C. Beebe (R)

1882 New York Gubernatorial Election Results:

• 535,318 votes - 58.47% - Grover Cleveland (D)
• 342,464 votes - 37.41% - Charles J. Folger (R)
• 25,783 votes - 2.82% - Alphonso A. Hopkins (Prohib.)
• 11,974 votes - 1.31% - Epenetus Howe (Greenback)

1884 U.S. Presidential / Vice Presidential Election Results:

• 219 votes - 54.6% - Grover Cleveland (D-NY) / Thomas A. Hendricks (D-IN)
• 182 votes - 45.4% - James G. Blaine (R-ME) / John A. Logan (R-IL)

1888 U.S. Presidential / Vice Presidential Election Results:

• 233 votes - 58.1% - Benjamin Harrison (R-IN) / Levi P. Morton (R-NY)
• 168 votes - 41.9% - Grover Cleveland (D-NY) / Allen G. Thurman (D-OH)

1892 U.S. Presidential / Vice Presidential Election Results:

• 277 votes - 62.4% - Grover Cleveland (D-NY) / Adlai E. Stevenson I (D-IL)
• 145 votes - 32.7% - Benjamin Harrison (R-IN) / Whitelaw Reid (R-NY)
• 22 votes - 5.0% - James B. Weaver (Pop.-IA) / James G. Field (Pop.-VA)