STORIES OF HARRY S TRUMAN’S FINANCIAL RECTITUDE WERE GREATLY EXAGGERATED: “Using recently released and until now unexamined archival evidence, this Article demonstrates that, in a complete contravention of the existing standard historical record, Harry Truman was, as a direct result of being president, a very wealthy man on the day he left the White House, with an estimated net worth, in relative economic terms, of approximately $58 million in 2021 dollars. The Article reveals that this wealth was a result of both Truman’s enormous presidential salary — several times larger, in real terms, than the current salary for the office — and, more problematically, of the evident fact that Truman misappropriated essentially all of the multi-million dollar — in 2021 terms — presidential expense account that was set up for him by Congress at the beginning of his second term. The Article also reveals that, again contrary to the current historical understanding, Truman made another fortune after he left the presidency, by doing precisely what he claimed he was not doing, that is, exploiting his status as a former president to maximum economic advantage.”

Stories of Democrats’ financial rectitude are usually bogus. Also, he was a product of the Pendergast Machine, making financial rectitude on his part improbable.

UPDATE (From Ed): Jeff Jacoby: Harry Truman conned us all.