james k polk

James K. Polk was the overachiever nobody invited to the party — a sickly math nerd who somehow failed his way into the presidency. He started as Tennessee’s biggest political flop, worshiped Andrew Jackson like a hype man on retainer, and still managed to expand the country like he was playing Manifest Destiny: The Home Game.

Ambitious, exhausting, and tragically competent, Polk turned being forgettable into a superpower. By the time he left office, America was bigger, angrier, and way more complicated — just like Polk probably wanted it.