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Introduction | xiii president’s poll numbers ­ really make a difference in governing is difficult to prove, though the press has often covered the trend line of presidential approval as if the fate of each administration hangs in the balance. In addition to presidential approval, many pollsters also inquire as to ­ whether ­ people “like” the president personally often, a president has a higher rating for likability than job approval (both Reagan and Obama are good examples of this). The election of Trump in 2016 has certainly brought the issue of presidential hatred to the forefront, as it raises numerous questions about a president’s ability to govern with such intense hatred, and even contempt (which is often defined as anger minus re­spect) directed at a president. This issue would undoubtedly still be a ­ factor had Hillary Clinton won the 2016 presidential election instead, though for dif­f er­ent reasons. Both Trump and Clinton ­were lightning rods for controversy, scandal, and intense hatred during the campaign, and both experienced high neg- atives in polling throughout 2016. Poll ­ after poll showed that for each candidate, a majority of ­those polled disliked and distrusted both candidates—so much so, in fact, that the contest came to be described by many observers as one in which vot- ers felt that they ­ were choosing between “the lesser of two evils.” The legacy of the 2016 presidential campaign, as well as the early months of the Trump presidency, pres­ents an in­ter­est­ing question that only time, and ­future pres- idencies, may resolve—­does the intense polarization of the current po­liti­cal envi- ronment breed presidential hatred, or is it candidate driven? In other words, was the intensity of hatred for both major party candidates in 2016, which carried over into the Trump presidency, a passing phase, or is this the new normal? PLAN OF THE BOOK To provide a better understanding of the current state of affairs as related to hatred of presidents, this edited volume provides historical and po­liti­cal context to explain how we got to this point. The following pages offer essays written by both po­liti­cal scientists and historians on each of the 44 men who have held the office of presi- dent, beginning with Washington and ending with Trump (though the assessment of Trump’s enemies and hatred directed at him only considers his first few months in office, while a more complete analy­sis is offered of the presidents who preceded him). Although each essay is unique in the story it tells about each individual pres- ident, the common theme in each essay focuses on the most prevalent personal and po­liti­cal lines of attack, each president’s most prominent enemies, and scandals or controversies that generated significant volumes of vitriol ­ toward the president in question. Perhaps the most impor­tant question that is addressed throughout the book is how ­ these issues influenced the president’s ability to govern, as well as the impact on the presidency as a po­liti­cal institution. As ­these essays show, some presidents weathered the storm of hatred better than ­others often, the po­liti­cal