Channels, Fall 2020

Page 52 Caldwell • Eisenhower provided him with the opportunity to invest in the younger generation’s education, and it gave him time to form his own philosophical, political, and social views. 38 Unfortunately, Eisenhower served as a rather distant president for most of his tenure at Columbia. He took leave in December of 1950 to “assume supreme command over the new NATO forces being assembled.” 39 While serving in his role at NATO, he tried to maintain political neutrality, but faced growing pressures from both Democrats and Republicans to run for President (for their respective parties) in the 1952 election. Despite his initial reluctance, the influence and pressure of “several Republican emissaries to his headquarters near Paris persuaded him to run,” along with the grassroots “Draft Eisenhower” movement that sprang up within the Republican party. 40 Eisenhower announced that he was a Republican, and “returned home to seek the nomination personally.” 41 H e now perceived his entrance into the race as a “matter of duty.” 42 Eisenhower “was not ready to retire or abandon his country to others… he wanted what was best for his country, and in the end he decided that he was the best and would have to serve.” 43 He won the nomination handily at the RNC and continued on to pursue national victory against Democratic opponent Adlai A. Stevenson. Eisenhower ran on the campaign slogan “I Like Ike,” “endeared himself to the American people with his plain talk, charming smi le, and sense of confidence,” and won a sweeping victory against Stevenson. 44 His first term was mostly uneventful. It was, as mentioned before, a peaceful time for America. Eisenhower signed an armistice that ended the Korean War in 1953. The economic growth America experienced during this peaceable time also helped his record. His approval ratings ranged between 68% and 79% in 1955. 45 When it came time to run for reelection, despite health problems that had cropped up in the preceding year, Ike announced he would be running again. His platform focused on his political track record, as well as some of the personable qualities that put him in office in the first place. With little real competition, the reelection campaign for Eisenhower resulted in an even broader victory than before. 38 Ibid, 559. 39 Frank Freidel and Hugh Sidey , “Dwight D. Eisenhower,” The White House, accessed March 20, 2020, https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/presidents/dwight-d-eisenhower/. 40 Ibid. 41 Fred I. Greenstein, The Presidential Difference: Leadership Style from FDR to Barack Obama, 3 rd ed. (Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2000), 47. 42 Ambrose, Eisenhower: Volume 1, 527. 43 Ibid, 528. 44 Pach, Jr., “Dwig ht D. Eisenhower: Life in Brief. ” 45 Ibid.