Chapter 4 Summary

Benton, originally from Tennessee, moved to Missouri where he became the senior senator from Missouri in 1850, (the first senator to ever serve thirty years in the Senate and the first senator from Missouri), and was known as a fighter and a bit of a thug who actually killed a United States District Attorney in a duel.

His constituency loved him because he did not bow to political pressures and did what he thought was right. He did not share the same popularity with other politicians in his own party because he didn't tolerate corruption or graft, and he advocated for state's issues that were often not popular issues. He did not go out of his way to "network" with younger politicians and elected officials, and for all these reasons his nickname became "Old Bullion" due to his advocacy of "hard money," but also...