Essay On Political Cronyism

A little known fact among the American people is that on August 24th, 1814, the White House was burned to the ground all because of political and military failings (Smithsonian Institute). The main reasons for the destruction of the nation 's capital were rooted in the inexperience of the Americans at running a country, coupled with an intense Anglophobia, which led to bickering and lack of direction as politicians intentionally made poor decisions in an effort to move away from British practices. In addition, political cronyism through the spoils system and mismanagement were rampant in the Early Republic because each new President and party that came to power appointed government positions to party members who may or may not have been qualified …show more content…
Political cronyism caused by the spoils system lead to gross mismanagement of important government offices. The inexperience and lack of decisiveness in America 's military and political leaders at the time lead to failures and small, indecisive victories that were not enough to win the war. The War of 1812 could have been a great turning point in American history as the international climate provided great opportunities for advancement and expansion. As a result of inexperience, the spoils system, and the lack of decisive action, the War of 1812 fell into the dustbins of history as it rightly should have as a pointless war that accomplished nothing of value. At a time of great opportunity, America 's leaders who were inexperienced and indecisive, missed an astronomical opportunity because they did not have the ability to direct their efforts through governmental positions. The War of 1812 was an attempt and defeat, though no one person 's fault, but through the small failures and second guesses of hundreds of people who were trying to do the best for their fledgling