Dwight D. Eisenhower

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Dwight D. Eisenhower
34th President of the United States
Term of office
January 20, 1953 - January 20, 1961[1]
Political party Republican
Vice President Richard Nixon
Preceded by Harry S. Truman
Succeeded by John F. Kennedy

Born October 14, 1890
Denison, Texas
Died March 28, 1969
Washington, D.C.
Spouse Mamie Doud Eisenhower
Religion Presbyterian

Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces during World War II, and went on to serve as 34th President of the United States of America.

Contents

Early Life

Dwight D. Eisenhower was born in Texas, but was raised in Kansas. Eisenhower attended the United States Military Academy at West Point (class of 1915), which put him somewhat at odds with his upbringing as a Jehovah's Witness [2]. (Eisenhower later became baptized into the Presbyterian church, the timing of which made him the first President to become baptized while in office [3].) Eisenhower was stationed in Texas during World War I. There he met his future wife, Mamie Geneva Doud.

First Term

After Harry Truman decided against running for a third term in the 1952 Presidential Election, Eisenhower ran on the Republican ticket, though he was asked to run as a Democrat as well. He refused to run as a Democrat because they supported a weak U.S. military. With a large amount of popularity from serving as a General in World War II, he won the election against former Illinois governor Adlai Stevenson. His military experience was deemed important, as the United States was perceived by many as being under threat. [4] The Soviet Union had just gotten the atomic bomb several years before, and the Korean War was going on.

During this term, the Korean War ended in a stalemate after a treaty was signed. Eisenhower's term in office is also notable for the creation of the Interstate Highway System, which was funded by the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 [5].

Second Term

Eisenhower was re-elected in the 1956 Presidential Election and served a second term. A popular President throughout his tenure in office, his popularity did not lead to a coattail effect as his Vice President Richard Nixon barely lost his own Presidential bid in the 1960 Presidentail Election and the Republican Party lost 12 seats in the U.S. Senate. Eisenhower's final speech as President was his most well known, in which he warned of the "military-industrial complex". [6]

Miscellaneous

The Eisenhower Presidential Library & Musem is located in Abilene, Kansas. [7]

References

  1. http://home.comcast.net/~sharonday7/Presidents/AP060301.htm
  2. http://www.eisenhower.archives.gov/listofholdingshtml/listofholdingsJ/jehovahwitnessesabilenecongregation.pdf
  3. http://www.classroomhelp.com/lessons/Presidents/eisenhower.html
  4. http://www.utexas.edu/features/archive/2004/election_policy.html
  5. http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/programadmin/interstate.html
  6. http://coursesa.matrix.msu.edu/~hst306/documents/indust.html
  7. http://www.dwightdeisenhower.com/library-museum.html



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