What presidents do after they leave office is a relatively underrated part of the crafting of presidents’ long-term image. As President Obama contemplates his next moves and historians start contemplating his legacy, the complicated path John Quincy Adams took to becoming America’s best ex-president is worth considering. Those who have a general knowledge that former president Adams became an antislavery hero in Congress may find it surprising and instructive to know that he did not simply or immediately morph into “Old Man Eloquent” against the Slave Power.
Unlike Barack Obama but very much like Jimmy Carter, Adams left office after one term and found himself widely regarded as a failed president. During his term of office between 1825 and 1829, opponents in Congress coalescing as the Jacksonian Democrats repeatedly foiled his domestic agenda and even his foreign policy goals. Adams came to office, for instance, announcing a bold program of government support for internal improvements (what we call infrastructure), and education. He also wanted to lead a campaign of moral reform.
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