If he had finished his presidency? How do you think he would have deal with the defeated Confederate states? Pretty much any way of dealing with them would probably be more controversial than just he would have done good/right/better than his successors. And especially if he had lived for decades more, would he have resisted, prevented the Republicans growing less interested in, eventually abandoning the freed slaves or was that pretty inevitable, nearly the whole country choosing to abandon them?
And what would his economic approaches and policies be like? Would his Presidency, at least the second term of it be regarded, like Grant's presidency later actually was, as the start of the Gilded Age? Or would the continuing association with the greatness of the first term lend that whole era a less negative appraisal than just Gilded Age, more like Best of times, Worst of times, both greatness and pilfering rather than mostly just pilfering?
I think he would generally be regarded more like, closer to Jefferson and/or Grant or FDR than Washington, though still pretty close to Washington, at least widely regarded as still being in top 5 presidents with many still regarding him as still second best or even still best.
And what would his economic approaches and policies be like? Would his Presidency, at least the second term of it be regarded, like Grant's presidency later actually was, as the start of the Gilded Age? Or would the continuing association with the greatness of the first term lend that whole era a less negative appraisal than just Gilded Age, more like Best of times, Worst of times, both greatness and pilfering rather than mostly just pilfering?
I think he would generally be regarded more like, closer to Jefferson and/or Grant or FDR than Washington, though still pretty close to Washington, at least widely regarded as still being in top 5 presidents with many still regarding him as still second best or even still best.
