Campaign Trail Results: Game #671913
Play The Campaign Trail
This Game:
- Year: 1844
- Player Candidate: James K. Polk
- Running Mate: George Dallas
- Difficulty Level: Impossible
- Winner Take All Mode?: Yes
- Game Played:
- forafountain
View overall results, or a specific state:
| Candidate | Electoral Votes | Popular Votes | Pop. Vote % |
|---|---|---|---|
| ---- Henry Clay | 260 | 1,530,012 | 56.75 |
| ---- James K. Polk | 15 | 1,056,408 | 39.18 |
| ---- John Tyler | 0 | 59,605 | 2.21 |
| ---- James Birney | 0 | 50,122 | 1.86 |
Answers:
- What points will emphasize in your acceptance letter, as you accept the Democratic nomination for President?I will open with a full-throated defense of the annexation of Texas. I will also express my support for our current banking system, and for large reductions to our tariff rate.
- You are known as a supporter of annexation on the Texas front. Do you have anything you would like to add, now that you have been nominated?I obtained my nomination based on the Texas issue, and people know that. We need to pivot now, and make the case for other parts of our platform.
- John Tyler is pleased with your position on the Texas issue, and is prepared to withdraw his candidacy. Can you give him assurances that certain appointees of his will be safe in their positions, should you be elected?John Tyler lacks any broad base of support. It's more important to reserve these appointments for loyal Democrats.
- Cassius Clay, a cousin of Henry Clay, has published a letter stating Henry Clay is in accord with the abolitionist movement. Should your party disseminate copies of this letter as an attack?Let's not appear too hasty here. We need to run as a national party and avoid alienating Northerners.
- Do you believe that any Southern Whig can call themselves a supporter of slavery, so long as Henry Clay equivocates on the Texas issue?We don't really need to address this question one way or the other. Let's just run our campaign and get our own views out.
- Do you have any statement on the presence of Theodore Frelinghuysen on the Whig ticket, and his association with known anti-Catholic agitators?We won't have much to say about Frelinghuysen. He seems to avoided the vices which have plagued Henry Clay throughout his life.
- For better or worse, many view you as a protege of Andrew Jackson (some call you “Young Hickory”). Is it better to embrace this label, or to distance yourself from it?We don't need to do anything so crazy as to denounce Andrew Jackson, but I think on the banking issue or the tariff issue, my positions are significantly different than what he advocated for.
- Henry Clay supports the idea that the federal government should purchase the telegraph patent and manage the technology. To what extent should you attack him on this?We don't need to hammer on the internal improvements issue. We have other things to talk about which will better unite the party.
- Should your party attack Henry Clay's personal conduct? His gambling, womanizing, dueling, and generally irreligious nature?I don't think that personal conduct is a good issue to bring into this campaign.
- Silas Wright, the protege and successor to Van Buren, has been mentioned as a candidate for Governor of New York. He seems hesitant. Will you write him a letter imploring him to enter the race?I will put my word in as a supporter of Silas Wright.
- There have recently been riots and armed clashes between nativists and Irish immigrants in Philadelphia and elsewhere. Do you have any plans to condemn the nativist violence in these episodes?Our national party should avoid addressing this issue.
- What do you make of Martin Van Buren's 1842 visit to Henry Clay's estate? Is Clay too friendly with Northern interests?This episode shows that Mr. Clay is, at heart, an insider who is overly favorable to Northern politicians. It brings to mind the Corrupt Bargain of a prior election.
- Would you support the annexation of Texas, even without an agreement with Mexico, and a possible war?I would hope that we could negotiate an annexation with Mexico before moving forward, to avoid any diplomatic incidents.
- What should your party's position be on the Tariff of 1842, which increased tariffs?We should avoid taking a strong position on this tariff. There are men in our party who stand on both sides of the issue.
- Do you believe that some revenue should be set aside from our tariffs to finance internal improvements, such as canals and roads?This is one of the key objectives of our current tariff policy, and I would support a strong infrastructure program as President.
- What is your current position on the banking system?I stand for a national bank, broadly similar to the late Second Bank of the United States.
- Do you support an Amendment that would limit the President to a single term in office?This is a necessary step against the overreach and abuse of power of the Executive branch.
- Aside from the issue of Texas, do you support the expansion of the United States in general? Into Oregon, other parts of Mexico, Cuba, etc.?I am against the annexation of Texas. And just to show that this does derive from sectional prejudice, I am also against expansion into Oregon or other regions.
- Would you sign a law that lowered tariffs below the level needed to protect American industry from foreign imports?I would be forced to veto such a measure as President.
- Do you support any changes to our current naturalization laws?Our current laws are in need of great revision, in light of the troubles we have had with recent immigrants.
- Do you support any effort to establish a unified, national currency?I support a national bank, and one clear argument for the bank is the total chaos we've had with our currency since 1837.
- After the unfortunate death of Abel Upshur in the Princeton explosion, John Calhoun succeeded him as Secretary of State. Was this a wise appointment by President Tyler?This is one of the most ill-conceived decisions I have seen in my lifetime.
- Regardless of your personal feelings, would you sign an act which established an independent Treasury for the government's funds?I would prefer a national bank, but I would be willing to sign a bill which created an independent Treasury.
- What is your position on the Oregon boundary question?I would support any agreement, as long as the United States keeps the land that is south and east of the Colombia River.
- Is there a particular state where your party should concentrate its resources and most talented speakers as the election draws near?Pennsylvania