Discussion Guide – Successes and Failures
Which success or failure do you feel is the most important and why?
a. Which do you think had the most impact on America?
b. Which do you think had the most impact internationally?
Do you agree Washington made the right decision to sign the “Jay Treaty” which largely reconciled with Great Britain as opposed to more closely aligning with France?
How do you think the Monroe Doctrine helped ensure national security for the United States both in the short and long terms?
Which President’s success had the most significant impact on the country?
Which President’s failure had the greatest impact on the country?
What are some of the factors that go into a President’s decision-making? How do you think the potential popularity of the decision impacts the decision-making process?
When John Tyler was the first person to attain the presidency due to the death of his predecessor, what criteria do you think he used to decide that he must assume the full authority of the presidency, rather than being a caretaker president?
Why do you believe the United States has had so many recessions and depressions? Bad policies, bad circumstances, something else?
Why do you think so many Presidents failed to resolve the issue of slavery?
Why did President Garfield consider the patronage system bad for the country?
How does the Sherman Antitrust Act affect everyday Americans, even today?
Do you think a President would be more successful making quick and deliberate decisions or slower, more thoughtful decisions?
Is it more important for a President to be a great peacetime President or Commander-in-Chief during wartime?
Does Herbert Hoover truly deserve most of the blame for the Great Depression? Why or why not?
Did the Truman Doctrine really prevent the spread of communism?
Many Presidents addressed Civil Rights in different ways. Which were most and least successful?
What do you think might have been the long-term impact if John F. Kennedy had allowed nuclear missiles to be stationed in Cuba?
Which elements of Lyndon Johnson’s “Great Society” have garnered the most success and most failure?
How did the end of the Cold War impact Americans?
How did the advent of personal computing increase productivity and lead to economic improvements in the 1990’s?
How did the unity of the nation after the attacks on September 11, 2001, devolve into the polarized politics of today? Which President’s successes or failures contributed?