US presidents have a habit of dividing the public. Recently, Joe Biden upset the former Trump administration by breaching the terms of a clemency they had granted. This is not the first time presidents have divided public opinion in the US. Let us look back through time to examine the bigger splits in the senate and what caused them.
Presidents Who Split America
Recent headlines claim that Joe Biden is setting a dangerous legal precedent with his actions regarding interfering with clemency. His Department of Justice is overturning a decision which the Trump administration made regarding Florida businessman Philip Esformes. Esformes stood trial for various offences, including money-laundering. Despite the presiding judge branding prosecutors as ‘deplorable’ during the trial, Biden has reopened the case.
Regardless of your opinion on the matter, Joe Biden is not the first US ruler to split democracy. Here are three other US presidents who turned the system on its head with their demands.
1 – Donald Trump’s Rule Incites Rioting
None of us are too young to remember the riot in the White House. The globe stayed gripped to the tv set as armed extremists stormed the building. In an ongoing investigation, the prosecution recently presented evidence that Donald Trump refused to stop the riots as they happened. The riots came as Joe Biden stepped into his position as President of the US. Trump supporters stormed the building causing untold damage. The riots happened on January 6th, 2021. Since then, prosecutors have worked hard to prove that the former president incited the riot instead of stepping down peacefully.
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2 – Ronald Reagan and his Subsequent Attempted Assassination
When creating articles about the most polarizing presidents in America, it would be unwise to leave out Ronald Reagan. His ideologies so split the country he ruled that he died for it. Reagan announced that the USA sold weapons to the Islamic Republic of Iran to free hostages in Lebanon. The attempt was unsuccessful, but the scandal remained. Reagan spoke too freely about the problems within America for the Republicans to fully support him. He led the country against communism, so that now the Reagan Doctrine dictates how the US interacts with communist resistance.
3 – Barack Obama – the First Colored President
When Barack Obama first entered the White House, he was simultaneously the most loved and most hated man in the country. Although nobody would say it outright, the color of his skin upset as many as it pleased. While liberals relished the idea of this breakthrough, the republican party did all they could to see him removed from office. What followed was several attempts to impeach Obama, a man of infinite calm and accountability. Those unsuccessful attempts reflected public opinion of the man, who remains one of the most stable presidents to this day.
