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New York Governor Daniel Tompkins caught the eye of Democratic-Republicans in 1816 when they decided they were not just looking for an old geezer to “geographically balance the ticket” anymore. (After all, that certainly didn’t help James Madison whose two VP selections — George Clinton and Elbridge Gerry — both croaked in office at age 72 and 70, respectively).
A True Patriot
Tompkins had the unlucky task of having to protect his home state during the War of 1812 when the borders between Quebec, Ontario and the US were erupting in skirmishes. Not many people remember our nation’s 6th VP as a great fundraiser, but as governor, he had successfully drummed up $4 million to finance the state’s defense against Britain. Heck, he even threw in several thousand of his personal finances out of sheer patriotism. All this was done based on a handshake with little records to show. “We’re at war. We’ll sort this out later,” he said.
A Terrible Record-Keeper
Only… later, he was attacked by New York Federalist party boss DeWitt Clinton who accused Tompkins of using the war funds for his own personal gain. With no tangible evidence to prove otherwise, the state demanded that the defenseless Tompkins pay them $130,000 in remuneration. The creditors hounded him and he fell to the drink. At an unexpected time, he found himself elevated to the land’s second-highest office and he saw a faint glimmer of hope that he may finally redeem himself.
A Poor Drunk Sot
Instead, Daniel D. Tompkins became the only VP in history to work for free — when his entire salary (a $5,000 pittance back then) was withheld to pay toward his outstanding debts. By this time, he was truly a broken man. He had difficulty coping with his sullied reputation, not to mention his new-found poverty, and so he drank himself silly. In 1821, Martin Van Buren called him “the most injured of men.” Another quoted observer said that he had “degenerated into a degraded sot” and that he was too drunk to sit up straight in his chair. One 1822 observer on Capitol Hill said of Tompkins, “I don’t think he was perfectly sober during his time here.”
A Redeemed Man
Poor Tompkins died just a few months after his term ended — when an official audit uncovered that the state may have actually owed Tompkins $100,000 just as he had originally claimed!
