[originaltext] So, uh, as Jim said, James Polk was the eleventh president. A

So, uh, as Jim said, James Polk was the eleventh president. And, um, my report is about the next president Zachary Taylor. Taylor was elected in 1849.(9)It’s surprising because he was the first president that didn’t have any previous political experience.(10)The main reason why he was chosen as a candidate was that he was a war hero.
    In the army his men called him old, rough and ready. I guess because of his rough edges. He was kind of direct and he didn’t really look like a military hero. He liked to do things like wearing civilian clothes instead of uniform even in battle. And he was so short and plump that he had to be lifted up on his horse. But he did win a lot of battles and he became more and more popular. So the Whig party decided to nominate him for the presidency, even though no one knew anything about where he stood on the issues.(11)I couldn’t find much about his accomplishments, probably because he was only in office about a year and a half before he died. But one thing,he pushed for the development of the transcontinental railroad because he thought it was important to form a link with the west coast. There was a lot of wealth in California and Oregon from commerce and minerals and stuff. Also he established an agricultural bureau in the Department of the Interior and promoted more government aid to agriculture.
    Well, that’s about all I found. Like I said, he died in office in 1850, so his vice president took over. And that’s the next report. So, thank you.
Questions 9 to 11 are based on the conversation you have just heard.
9. Why is it surprising that Taylor was elected president?
10. Why was Zachary Taylor chosen by his party as a candidate for president?
11. Why did Taylor accomplish relatively little as president?