Truman was known for
making tough decisions
Harry S Truman
The Man from Missouri
33rd president
Played the piano
Wore thick glasses from
age 6
Was not allowed to play
contact sports
Endured much teasing
Read every book in the
local library when he was
a kid.
From Lamar, MO
Fought in WWI
Became president when FDR
died during WWII
Lives of the Presidents by Kathleen Krull p58-60
Harry giving Bess a smooch.
Harry was a family man.
Bess-- or “Boss”
All the People Since 1945 by Joy Hakim
• Truman liked to
introduce his wife &
daughter on the
campaign. He would
say “Would you like to
meet the boss?” he’d
say just before Bess
appeared.
• Whistle Stop Campaign
“He’s the president, one
editor wrote, yet he’s just
an ordinary family man
proud of his wife &
daughter. “
Bess told her husband if he
called her the “Boss” one
more time, she’d get off
the train.
Bess, Harry,
& Margaret
Harry referred to Bess as
“the Boss”
Margaret was their only child.
Margaret grew up and became a
singer and a writer of mystery
books. (including Murder in the White House)
Her father supported her singing ambitions, and
when a music critic roasted her in print he fired
off a letter warning that the man would need a
“new nose” if Truman ever met him.
Truman had a peppery nickname for several reasons.
People would talk about Truman and say something like
this, “Give ‘Em Heck Harry!”
It was what he was known for.
The letter that Truman wrote in defense of his daughter's singing
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Post Music Critic Paul Hume's December 6, 1950,
review of Margaret Truman's singing performance
at Constitution Hall, stating,
"Miss Truman is a unique American phenomenon
with a pleasant voice of little size and fair quality
(she) cannot sing very well is flat a good deal of
the time more last night than at any time we have
heard her in past years has not improved in the
years we have heard her (and) still cannot sing
with anything approaching professional finish."
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President Truman responded with the following
letter to Hume:
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
Dec. 6, 1950
Mr. Hume:
I've just read your lousy review of Margaret's
concert. I've come to the conclusion that you are an
"eight ulcer man on four ulcer pay."
It seems to me that you are a frustrated old man
who wishes he could have been successful. When
you write such poppy-cock as was in the back
section of the paper you work for it shows
conclusively that you're off the beam and at least
four of your ulcers are at work.
Some day I hope to meet you. When
that happens you'll need a new nose,
a lot of beefsteak for black eyes, and
perhaps a supporter below!
Pegler, a gutter snipe, is a gentleman
alongside you. I hope you'll accept
that statement as a worse insult than
a reflection on your ancestry.
H.S.T.
Since the letter was sent by President
Truman to Mr. Hume, the original letter
was in Mr. Hume s possession, not
President Truman s, and consequently did
not come to the Library as part of the
President s papers. Hume sold the letter
in 1951, for $3,500. The original letter
continued to reside in private hands as
part of the Malcom Forbes Estate, where
it hung in the family s New York corporate
art galleries. The Estate purchased the
letter in 1983, from an unnamed
individual for an unnamed, but
"substantial" sum. A copy of the letter also
hung in the office of President Bill Clinton.
In 2002, the letter was puchased by the
Harlan Crow Library, a private library at
the Highland Park, Texas, estate of Harlan
Crow, a real estate businessman.
Loyal to his family?
Peppery?
Honest?
He told people what he thought.
Sometimes they didn’t like it. Some
people said that is not how a
president should act. What do you
think?
Responsible? Hard Working? Stubborn?
• It was a tough job taking over as
president when Roosevelt died.
Truman accepted the
responsibility. He did not make
• excuses.
• Stalin, Roosevelt, and Churchill
When that term was over Truman
ran for reelection.
Everyone said Dewey would win and
Truman would lose. But guess
what? He won.
Truman pulled off one of the biggest
upsets in political history.
Fiery? Peppery? Known to pop off?
First Truman was Lieutenant
During WWI. His men were not ready
to take orders from him. He said, “I
didn’t come here to get along with you.
He bluntly told the men. “You’ve got to
get along with me. If there are any of
you that can’t, speak up right now and I
will bust your back right now.”
After that, the soldiers found they could, in
fact, get along with their new commander.
Before long, Truman was promoted to
captain. He and his men were involved in
horrific battles the last year of the war.
Encyclopedia of the Presidents Hargrove p28
What were some of Truman’s
nicknames?
What were some of Truman’s
favorite quotes?
What were some of Truman’s
favorite quotes?
• The BUCK STOPS
here!
• Truman kept a plaque
with this quote on his
desk in the oval office.
-------------------------------------He also kept this sign on his desk.
The BUCK
STOPS here!
More of Truman’s Quotes
“Always do right. This will gratify
some, and astonish the rest.”
Mark Twain
Truman’s Quotes
This sign was on his desk.
Truman seldom backed
away from a struggle.
Do you think the soldiers
who served with him in
WWI knew this?
The BUCK
STOPS here!
Truman kept a plaque
with this quote on his
desk in the oval office.
explain
It meant he accepted
responsibility.
When you make a mistake do you
own up to it?
Or do you try to pass the buck?
decisive: able to make tough decisions
• How did WWII finally end?
• Who are the men?
• What countries do they
represent?
• Who were we fighting?
• How did Truman decide
• to try to end WWII?
tough decisions
• How did WWII finally end?
• Truman made the
decision to drop 2
atomic bombs on
Japan.
• This was one of the
toughest decisions a
president ever faced.
He believed it saved
American lives & ended
WWII.
Some historians say that Harry Truman
made more tough decisions than any
other modern president did.
Courageous? Fair?
• During WWII both black &
white American soldiers
fought & died for the USA.
But black soldiers were not
treated equal to white
soldiers. Truman struggled
to make the Armed Services
• racially fair.
• Nearly every admiral,
general & civilian
advisor tried to talk
Truman out of this. But
in 1948 it became law.
• He knew it was the right thing to
do. (always do right)
• He made the tough decisions
(the buck stops here)
• And he wasn’t afraid of the heat
(if you don’t like the heat get out
of the kitchen)
Some historians say that Harry Truman
made more tough decisions than any
other modern president did.
• Do you agree?
Truman was
known for making
tough decisions
The Buck Stops Here. Truman took
his responsibility seriously.
He had a knack for making hard choices.
He dropped the bomb on Japan. He made
the army racially integrated when most
people opposed it. He could take the heat.
He proved it when Roosevelt died.