Judge John McLean's quest for the presidency: expediency or dedication to principle

Abstract

Judge John McLean, who sat on the United States Supreme Court from 1829 to 1861, was driven by his desire to be president. From 1844 to 1856, he sought the nomination of the Whigs, Know Nothings, Free Soilers and Republicans. His movement between these various political parties was controlled by his responses to the questions of his day. Unfortunately, these responses confused many of the electorate.

Although he had withdrawn his name from two previous conventions, soon after Henry Clay's defeat in 1844, McLean's supporters encouraged him to seek the 1848 Whig nomination. This campaign required him to face such issues as the Mexican War, the slavery question and the propriety of a sitting Supreme Court justice seeking the office of the president. McLean also sought the support of parties other than the Whigs. He corresponded with the Know Nothings, and through his agents unsuccessfully worked to unite the Whigs and Know Nothings in his nomination. When both parties rejected him, McLean turned his interest to the Free Soil Party, but the political deals which had given birth to the fledgling party had promised the nomination to Martin Van Buren. In the years following 1848, McLean withdrew from the political arena. During this period, his private correspondence revealed his opposition to political machines and slavery and his dedication to the American legal tradition. McLean, however, could not set aside his desire for the presidency. In the years after the Whigs' disastrous defeat of 1852, he again turned his eyes toward the presidency. He was contracted by the Know Nothings, but the meteoric rise of their American party was matched by its decline. The criticism which had been levelled against him in the 1848 campaign was resurrected. Some newspapers questioned the propriety of his quest for the presidency while remaining on the bench; others questioned his commitment to the opposition of slavery. This was a tumultuous time which was reflected in the rise of a new party, the Republicans. In response to a call by leaders of several state parties for a national convention of all persons who opposed the spread of slavery into the territories, the party met for the first time in Philadelphia in 1856 to select its candidate for presidency. This time, however, it was the ineptitude, or possible treachery, of Judge Rufus P. Spalding, which denied him the nomination. The path of McLean's search for the presidency was directed by his personal philosophy which included three overwhelming principles: conservatism, dedication to the American legal tradition and his opposition to slavery. These principles operated with unequal force. His conservatism and dedication to the legal tradition molded his opposition to slavery, and the three principles provide the key for understanding McLean's relationship with the Whigs, the Know Nothings, the Free Soilers and the Republicans. His philosophy, however, was not apparent and as a result confused many votes and let them to oppose him. He might have set aside these principles and possibly been nominated and elected president. Instead Judge John McLean remained true to his philosophy and never became president.