Essay: Dwight D. Eisenhower

“One American put it this way: “Every tomorrow has two handles.  We can take old of it with the handle of anxiety or the handle of faith.”  This is what Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th President of the United States of America, stated during his address for the Accepting of the Nomination of the Republican National Convention at the Cow Palace, on August 23, 1956.  He was born in Denison, Texas, grew up in Abilene, Kansas, attended West Point, and served in the United States military, as eventually a five-star general, the highest rank.  He decided to run for president as a Republican in 1952.  During his two terms as president, the economics of the US prospered, and there was some peace.  Dwight D. Eisenhower served in the military during part of his life, and after becoming an achieved five-star general, he became the President of the United States, and served for two terms, bringing prosperity in the area of economics and peace to the nation.
Dwight D. Eisenhower was born on October 14, 1890 in Denison, Texas, and when he was almost two years old, he moved to Abilene, Kansas.  He spent the majority of his childhood growing up in Abilene as the third of seven sons in his family.  His parents, David Jacob Eisenhower and Ida Elizabeth Stover Eisenhower, were pacifists.  The Eisenhower family was poor, but believed in working hard, so Eisenhower grew up in this way.  His nickname was Ike, and this nickname had a major role in his presidential campaign, including the moto, “We like Ike.”  As a child, he was very interested in the military, and he read numerous books of the vibrant history of the military, but this study often took time away from chores and homework.  As a punishment, Mrs. Eisenhower once even locked his history books away, because he had been reading them rather than completing his responsibilities.  However, he also enjoyed playing various sports in high school, such as football and baseball.  Additionally, he fished, trapped, hunted, boxed, played poker, and camped.  Dwight D. Eisenhower graduated high school in 1909, and when reflected on his years of living in Abilene in a homecoming speech, he declared, “The proudest thing I can claim is that I am from Abilene.”  Dwight D. Eisenhower spent the majority of his childhood in Abilene, which helped to form his personality.
Eisenhower had an excellent education that helped him achieve much success in his military career and presidency.  Once he graduated from high school, he his father and uncle, worked at Belle Springs Creamery. At  night, Dwight D. Eisenhower also worked as a fireman, so he could pay the tuition for his younger brother, Edgar Eisenhower, to go to the University of Michigan.  They had made an agreement, that after two years, Edgar would work and pay for Dwight D. Eisenhower’s education, but Edgar Eisenhower never had to fulfill his part of the deal. Dwight Eisenhower earned an appointment, in 1911, to the United States Military Academy, West Point, in New York, where attendance was free.  At West Point, Eisenhower played football, and was a star, but he was forced to stop playing football, after numerous knee injuries.  He graduated proudly from West Point in 1915.  Later in his life, just after the end of World War Ⅰ, he obtained an appointment, to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, at the Command and General Staff College, where he graduated with a class of 245.  He then attended the United States Army War College, where he graduated two years after attending the Command and General Staff College.  West Point is different from the Command and General Staff College and the US Army War College because West Point is where the United States Military Academy is, because the actual West Point is a military post, whereas the Command and General Staff College was, for the US Army a graduate school, and the US Army War College was for civilians and officers of the military, as preparation to have a leadership responsibility.  Eisenhower’s experiences at West Point, the Command and General Staff College, and the US Army War College would lead to new opportunities and experiences, that would change his future.
Eisenhower had an intense experience in the military, which led him to his political career as President of the United States of America.  After West Point, he was commissioned to be second lieutenant, and he was stationed in Texas.  While in Texas, he met Mamie Geneva Doud, who was 18 years old and from Denver, Colorado.  On July 1, 1916, they got married.  On that same day, he was promoted to be first lieutenant.  Together, he and Mamie moved often, during the initial years of Dwight D. Eisenhower’s career in the military, to various places such as Texas, Pennsylvania, and Georgia.  He also served in the Army under numerous generals, including Douglas MacArthur, John J. Pershing, and Walter Krueger.  Eisenhower was called to Washington D.C. by General George C. Marshall, after Pearl Harbor, for an assignment during WWII   During World War ⅠⅠ, the Allied forces that landed, in November of 1942, in North Africa, were commanded by Dwight D. Eisenhower.  Also during World War ⅠⅠ, on D-Day in 1944, when the Allied forces that had invaded France, he was the Supreme Commander.  Once World War ⅠⅠ had ended, Dwight D. Eisenhower filled the position of president at Columbia University.  He left, however, because he was asked to be in supreme command over NATO forces that were being assembled in 1951.  In 1952, at Eisenhower’s headquarters close to Paris, France, emissaries of the Republican party convinced him to run for the presidency.  With the slogan of, “I like Ike,” he won the presidency in 1952, with Richard M. Nixon, who was from California, as his vice president.  During his presidency, he continued the programs of the New Deal and Fair Deal, as well as strengthening the program of Social Security.  He also increased the minimum wage and started the Departments of Welfare, Health, and Education, in addition to creating 41,000 miles of roads with the Interstate Highway System.  The Interstate Highway System was the largest program of public works, in US history.  Also during his time as president, the ruling of Brown vs. Board of Education occurred, which ruled that the segregation of schools was unconstitutional.  Unfortunately, Dwight D. Eisenhower thought that the process of desegregating schools  should happen slowly, and he did not want to use his authority as president of the United States to to enforce it.  Although in 1957, he did send forces to Little Rock, Arkansas to enforce integration at a high school, that usually was not open to people of all races.  Then, in 1957 and 1960, a civil rights legislation was signed, which ensured that African American voters would have the federal government’s protection, which was the first legislation that was like this passed in America since the era of Reconstruction.  Also during his presidency, Hawaii and Alaska became states and the US Information Agency was created.  Eisenhower’s military experience led him to his impactful political career as President of the United States.