Presidential Drinking

historical photo of men drinking at dinner

Presidential Drinking

Part 8: Truman to Nixon

The story of Prohibition is very much the story of America’s relationship with alcohol throughout our history. It has shaped our politics, our culture, and our economy. Changing American tastes and values had enormous influence over just how present alcohol, and what types of it, has been in our society. A fascinating gauge of those changing tastes is looking at how our presidents from the Founding Fathers all the way up to the incumbent have interacted, or not interacted, with beer, wine and spirits.

In this series, Presidential Drinking, we’ve dug deep into what place alcohol had in each president’s life from their favorite drinks to whether it contributed to their business practices throughout their lives to whether they… well… imbibed a little too much from time to time.

harry truman

President Harry S. Truman, served 1945 - 1953

What was his drink of choice?
How do you start every morning? A glass of water? Maybe some orange juice? Our 33rd president, Harry Truman, started many mornings with a shot of bourbon. Every source pegs bourbon as his absolute favorite alcoholic beverage. Remember how his predecessor President Roosevelt forced insultingly weak martinis on his guests? That’s one legacy of his that Truman did NOT carry forward. He would apparently speak up if his staff dared to mix up a weak Old Fashioned.

Was he in the booze business?
Usually, our presidents are too busy lawyering to get into the booze business. Not so for Harry Truman! He did farm and may have made a little bit of stronger drink from his excess crop as farmers often do, but there’s just not record of it. Not only was he not a lawyer, but unlike every other president since William McKinley, he never got a college degree. In a time of Roosevelts and Hoovers, Truman was not only the lowest-earning president of his time, but of all time.

Did he party?
Like we talked about on his post, President Roosevelt loved a cocktail hour. He had three vice presidents over three full terms and, while we haven’t looked at John Nance Garner or Henry Wallace, we’re confident that Truman fit in pretty well. He would have stag poker nights late into the night and drank cocktails with his wife, Bess, too. 

We often talk about how presidents partied, but it’s important to note: every partier needs a recovery. Truman’s start in office after Roosevelt’s death was tumultuous and exhausting. It was affecting his health and his doctor ordered a warm vacation, perhaps the best prescription in the history of medicine. Truman flew south to Key West, Florida and lived in a home owned by the U.S. Navy. Truman’s “Little White House” became increasingly important in his presidency and he ended up spending 175 days in total there while in office. 

Today, the Truman Little White House is open as a museum where you can tour the home, learn about Truman’s legacy, and practice how to relax like a president.

Our 33rd president, Harry Truman, started many mornings with a shot of bourbon. Every source pegs bourbon as his absolute favorite alcoholic beverage.

dwight eisenhower

President Dwight Eisenhower, served 1953 - 1961

What was his drink of choice?
President Eisenhower couldn’t drink too much. Multiple life-threatening heart attacks after consistent smoking led to Dwight’s doctor limiting his consumption. When he did spring for something strong, he chose scotch. Similarly, President Wilson also had health issues and enjoyed scotch, not that one caused the other necessarily.

Was he in the booze business?
There aren’t going to be a lot of presidents left with major stakes in the booze business (but not NONE! Stay tuned!) but we can certainly focus on the ones that make it for the enjoyment of themselves and friends. Back to Eisenhower! While he is often considered a pretty successful president, it’s likely you’ve heard more about his career as one of the most celebrated generals in American history. In more than four decades of military service, Eisenhower earned a five-star rank AND planned the successful invasion of Normandy and… made bathtub gin with George Patton? That’s right! Eisenhower and Patton were stationed together at Camp Meade during Prohibition. They got into all kinds of trouble together, apparently creating their own volatile home-brew and boozy concoctions.

Did he party?
First, we want to say, Ike himself said this story was exaggerated to make him look bad. Even if it’s true, hey, we can’t hold a bit of hard partying against a recent West Point graduate. In 1915, the young future general and president graduated from the famed military school and hit the local bars to celebrate. The story goes that during the festivities, the 25-year-old Eisenhower punched a hole into the wall of one of those establishments. If it is true, the place probably should’ve left the hole there with a frame around it. If only they’d known what this sauced-up soldier would go on to accomplish!

While he is often considered a pretty successful president, it’s likely you’ve heard more about his career as one of the most celebrated generals in American history.

john f kennedy

President John F. Kennedy, served 1961 - 1963

What was his drink of choice?
You can really see just how much Prohibition changed the alcohol landscape with how many the presidents since are into cocktails instead of the straight stuff. John F. Kennedy, believe it or not, wasn’t really into alcohol in any notable way. He reportedly enjoyed Bloody Marys (which would’ve been newly popular with the rising tide of vodka in the United States!) and German beers like Heineken, but he just doesn’t seem to have partaken because he loved the stuff. It was really just part of being the… well… social butterfly that he was.

Was he in the booze business?
Not personally, but his family’s wealth was at least partially soaked in liquor even if it’s not in the way that legend and gossip might lead you to believe.

No, Kennedy’s dad, Joe, was not a bootlegger (for more information on the subject, watch our related KNOW YOUR ONIONS! episode!) BUT his grandfather, Patrick Kennedy was a saloon owner and political boss in Boston, MA back in the time when saloons meant power. Patrick later got into whiskey importing, a trade his son Joseph got into (legally) the second Prohibition ended. Joe Kennedy bought up plenty of gin and scotch contracts right before the 21st Amendment was ratified so that when legal liquor came back to the United States, he’d be perfectly positioned to rake in the cash.

Did he party?
Not much of a drinker, so no, right? Not quite. John F. Kennedy’s social reputation very much precedes him. Even his own biographer called him “a compulsive womanizer,” a behavior encouraged by his own father, a constant adulterer himself. President Kennedy, while married, regularly seduced women he came in contact with, from airline flight attendants to, of course, Marilyn Monroe. He attended parties any chance he got and would throw plenty of bashes of his own.

His grandfather, Patrick Kennedy was a saloon owner and political boss in Boston, MA back in the time when saloons meant power.

lyndon b johnson

President Lyndon B. Johnson, served 1963 - 1969

What was his drink of choice?
Lyndon Johnson was a scotch man and his preferred brand was Cutty Sark. His favorite way to drink it was simple: a scotch and soda. He apparently would request his staff in the Senate to make his drinks much weaker than that of whoever he was meeting with. That was his way of having a leg up in negotiations, which feels like a very Lyndon Johnson thing to do.

Was he in the booze business?
No. Lyndon Johnson’s entry into politics was almost immediate. During Prohibition, he began serving as a legislative secretary to Congressman Kleberg. The politician had little interest in his duties, allowing the young Johnson to cut his teeth picking up his slack. His early support for the New Deal put the ambitious Texan in a great place to make important alliances within the Democratic Party. As president, Johnson spent about a fifth of his time down at his ranch, doing a lot more drinking than distilling. While there was a pool on the property, there doesn’t seem to have been any facilities for making liquor.

Did he party?
Every day is a party when you don’t have any regard for what people think of you! This true-blue Texan had a mouth that could make a sailor blush and was well-known for dirty jokes, bodily functions, and disregard for personal space. Congressman Richard Bolling described him as not vulgar, but “barnyard.” However, anybody who’s seen the quotes might be inclined to disagree about the not vulgar part. Not an insignificant number of reporters and staff personally witnessed him use the bathroom while continuing on with their conversation. 

Back at the LBJ Ranch, Johnson was well-known for driving around the dirt roads in a convertible with a scotch in his hand. When he ran out, he’d stick his cup out the window for Secret Service to refill. We make no excuses for Johnson’s scotch-fueled joyrides, the opposite of responsible drinking and rightfully against the law. In this case, he may have had a small sliver of common ground with his immediate successor who said, “Well, when the president does it, that means that it is not illegal.”

This true-blue Texan had a mouth that could make a sailor blush and was well-known for dirty jokes, bodily functions, and disregard for personal space.

richard nixon

President Richard Nixon, served 1969 - 1974

What was his drink of choice?
Buckle up, y’all. Profiling Richard Nixon’s drinking habits isn’t the feel-good experience of chronicling Jefferson’s wine snobbery or Andrew Jackson’s wild inauguration. If you know anything about Nixon, you’re probably already thinking about his scandals and his vindictive demeanor. Even reports about his favorite drink have some cruelty mixed in. Nixon reportedly enjoyed incredibly expensive red wines for himself… and served the cheap stuff for his guests.

Was he in the booze business?
No. Nixon had originally sought a career in the fledgling Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) but lost admittance after some budget cuts. He ended up, like so many presidents, in law school, but also served in the Navy during World War II. Nixon cut his teeth as a politician using anti-Communist rhetoric to topple a solid incumbent in his home state, California. In Congress, Nixon served on the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) working to round up suspected Communists. The future president exhibited his political savvy early on as he both befriended and kept at arm’s length the controversial Joseph McCarthy.

Eventually, he went to the Senate and then served as fellow WWII veteran, Dwight Eisenhower’s, vice president before running for president himself. He lost to Kennedy in 1960 and then eventually won the presidency in 1968. Not a lot of time to operate a distillery!

Did he party?
Richard Nixon was not only a lightweight, but he was often known to drink to excess while alone. Nixon remains the best example for why it’s a supremely bad idea for a president to have a drinking problem. There are existing accounts that allege an inebriated Nixon ordered a nuclear strike on North Korea. Luckily, Secretary of State Kissinger supposedly intervened. That may be the scariest example, and a disputed one at that, but it’s far from the only reported indiscretion. 

Nixon regularly would call staff members, fire them, and not remember firing them. The president’s drinking combined with his use of sleeping pills made for a very unpredictable head of state at times, all the worse during extreme stress like Watergate and his resulting resignation. There were even times a drink or two rendered the president too drunk to conduct business as was the case during the Yom Kippur War between Egypt and Israel. When the United Kingdom tried to contact Nixon about it, Henry Kissinger stalled them, telling other staff members that the president was “loaded.”

Back at the LBJ Ranch, Johnson was well-known for driving around the dirt roads in a convertible with a scotch in his hand. When he ran out, he’d stick his cup out the window for Secret Service to refill. We make no excuses for Johnson’s scotch-fueled joyrides, the opposite of responsible drinking and rightfully against the law. In this case, he may have had a small sliver of common ground with his immediate successor who said, “Well, when the president does it, that means that it is not illegal.”

If you know anything about Nixon, you’re probably already thinking about his scandals and his vindictive demeanor. Even reports about his favorite drink have some cruelty mixed in.

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