Garfield Administration - The Garfield Administration Legacy
The Garfield Administration Legacy
Garfield left to his successor, Chester A. Arthur, little in the way of an ongoing agenda. His term in office was too short to verify first impressions of the path he intended to take the nation. He did show some independence in his dispute with New York Republican Party boss, Roscoe Conkling.
Lasting Impact
The circumstances of Garfield's death suggested that politics by patronage needed to be reformed. The message of reform that he seemed to be delivering was reinforced by the assassination itself. It was an unintended demonstration of the debilitating effect of patronage and graft on U.S. politics. Though the patronage system had been a matter of concern for many years—at least since the Ulysses Grant administration—Garfield's assassination made the public and politicians alike realize how serious the problem...
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