Grover Cleveland

Cleveland’s second term was dominated by the Panic of 1893 and a severe economic depression. He responded by defending the gold standard, supporting the repeal of the Sherman Silver Purchase Act, using federal authority to stabilize the economy, and vetoing what he saw as excessive pension and spending measures.

On foreign policy he invoked the Monroe Doctrine in the Venezuela boundary dispute with Britain and resisted the annexation of Hawaii. Remembered as a reform-minded, fiscally conservative leader, Cleveland’s choices during crisis shaped late-19th-century debates over federal power, currency, and the role of government.

Led the nation through the Panic of 1893 and its economic depression; backed repeal of the Sherman Silver Purchase Act to defend the gold standard; authorized federal troops to break the 1894 Pullman Strike; arranged a private bond subscription to replenish Treasury gold reserves in 1895; invoked the Monroe Doctrine in the 1895 Venezuela arbitration with Britain; opposed immediate annexation of Hawaii and sought restoration of its monarchy