Happy Birthday JB!

As we all sit at our desk working off our Earth Day hangovers, let's not forget to celebrate the 217th birthday of our 15th President, James Buchanan, Jr. He was born in Pennsylvania, the state where Hillary Clinton kicked Obama's ass.

This is the state that Obama says that white blue-collared working people cling to their religion and their guns because they are so miserable. I take that to mean that if we elect Obama, we won't be miserable and we can get rid of our guns and religion. But I digress.



During the War of 1812 (which started in the year 1812), Buchanan was assigned to a dragoon unit to help defend the great city of Baltimore.

Buchanan has the distinction of being a President who was nominated by his party, though he never ran for the position. Buchanan defeated the first-ever Republican candidate, John C. Fremont. Fortunately, a fairly popular Republican ran after him...Abraham Lincoln.

Buchanan had the lovely pleasure of dealing with Supreme Court Justice Roger B. Taney, who was from Maryland. Justice Taney wrote the Dread Scott Decision, which stated that people of African decent could never be citizens of the United States, could never vote, and that the U.S. Congress had no jurisdiction to outlaw slavery. Yeah, that guy was wrong and fortunately he died and the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments came along.

Okay, I know you wondering - the Thirteenth Amendment abolished slavery and the Fourteenth Amendment guaranteed the right to vote regardless of race.