Investor's Business Daily, August 14th, 2007
Before Martin Van Buren was even a teenager, he knew what he wanted to be: president of the United States.
That's a big ambition for anyone. But for the son of a poor tavern-keeper, it looked impossible.
Van Buren (1782-1862) decided nothing would deter him on his quest. Any obstacles he encountered, he'd treat as opportunities.
When he was 14, he had to drop out of school to help support his family. Van Buren took the time to choose his job carefully.
He knew that many of the nation's great political leaders had been lawyers. So he approached the leading lawyer in his hometown of Kinderhook, N.Y., and asked if he could apprentice with him.
Despite Van Buren's youth, his zeal impressed Francis Sylvester, who took Van Buren on.
By day, Van Buren swept the offices, brought in logs for the fire and ran errands.
At night, he studied law books.
He taught himself so much that soon he was copying legal documents and helping Sylvester draft contracts and wills. Before he turned 18, Van Buren had started arguing cases in court under Sylvester's supervision.
During this time, Van Buren also became active in the local Democratic-Republican Party. This was the forerunner of the Democratic Party.
In 1803, Van Buren passed the bar and started his own legal practice. Wanting to have a greater effect on the law, he ran for his first elected office as a county surrogate five years later and won.
In 1812, Van Buren won election to the New York Senate.
Van Buren knew that as just one senator, he wouldn't have much influence. So he sought other senators who shared his belief in small, decentralized government.
They formed a solid bloc of votes in the Senate. They used their power to reward supporters with government jobs and grants. Those who crossed them could lose their jobs.
This organization, with Van Buren at its head, became the nation's first political machine. The so-called Albany Regency dominated state politics for decades.
The Regency took care to nurture younger politicians. As their power grew, Van Buren and his allies could use friendly newspapers to endorse their favored candidates and could get those candidates large contributions from donors.
"Meanwhile, parades, rallies and other means of mass appeal made campaigning an exciting spectacle, not unlike religious revivals," said Major Wilson, author of "The Presidency of Martin Van Buren."
Van Buren learned that, in politics, today's enemy might be tomorrow's ally. He tried to keep cordial relations with other politicians, no matter how much they disagreed on issues. To leave room for compromise, he refused to commit his vote until the last minute.
His skill at personal politics earned him the nickname "The Little Magician."
With the Albany Regency backing him, Van Buren was named state attorney general in 1818. Three years later, he took office as a U.S. senator from New York. In 1828, voters elected him governor. In 1829, President Andrew Jackson named him secretary of state.
"Van Buren's alliance with Jackson started as a marriage of convenience," wrote Jerome Mushkat and Joseph Rayback in "Martin Van Buren: Law, Politics and the Shaping of Republican Ideology." Jackson needed Van Buren's organizational skills. Van Buren needed a man with Jackson's fame and respect to advance his own career.
The two soon grew to like and respect each other. When Jackson ran for re-election in 1832, he asked Van Buren to be his running mate.
Van Buren's relationship with Jackson worked because he played his role well. In public, Van Buren was Jackson's greatest defender. In private he could be candid and critical of Jackson, particularly when the president's famous temper got the better of him.
In 1836, Van Buren ran for president on his own. Many Democrats grumbled about his choice of running mate, war hero and former Sen. Richard Johnson.
Johnson was a Kentuckian. He outraged fellow Southerners by openly living with his family's slave and their two daughters.
Van Buren advised Johnson to tackle the complaints head on.
"Unlike Jefferson, Clay, Poindexter and others, I married my (common-law) wife under the eyes of God and apparently he has found no objections," Johnson said.
Van Buren was elected the country's eighth president, but he took office just as a depression hit.
Van Buren dealt with the crisis by slashing government spending. He also resisted efforts to abandon planned cuts in tariffs.
He made it easier for Americans to buy public land. As a result of these policies, the depression was deep but short.
He continued focusing on diplomacy. His ability in that arena helped avert war after several skirmishes broke out along the disputed Canadian border.
Southern Democrats, however, viewed Van Buren with suspicion because of his opposition to slavery.
His principled stand cost him dearly. Even Jackson turned his back on his former friend.
Van Buren lost his bid for re-election in 1840.
This story originally ran Jan. 29, 2002, on Leaders & Success.
