Non-fiction: First Annual Message to Congress (1845)

Overview
James K. Polk's First Annual Message to Congress (1845) lays out a forceful program of expansion, fiscal reform, and strict constitutionalism at the outset of his presidency. He frames the year as one of national growth and renewed prosperity, credits republican institutions for stability, and signals a policy agenda centered on annexation, negotiated boundary settlements, revenue-based taxation, and the restoration of hard-money discipline in federal finance.

Texas and Relations with Mexico
Polk presents the annexation of Texas as both lawful and inevitable, grounded in the consent of Texas and the constitutional authority of the United States. He recounts Mexico's protests but emphasizes his preference for peace and negotiation. To that end, he sent a minister with full powers to settle all differences, including boundary questions, while ordering General Zachary Taylor to a defensive posture on the Texas frontier and deploying a naval presence to deter invasion. Polk treats the Rio Grande as the boundary claimed by Texas and therefore protected by the United States, yet he keeps open the possibility of adjustment by mutual agreement. He insists that strength and readiness, coupled with sincere diplomacy, offer the best path to an amicable settlement.

The Oregon Question
Polk asserts that the American title to Oregon is "clear and unquestionable", assembling a case from discovery, exploration, cession, and settlement. He reviews the chain of claims, from early voyages and Robert Gray’s entry into the Columbia River to the Lewis and Clark expedition and Spain’s relinquishment of rights, to argue for U.S. sovereignty. While affirming that negotiation with Great Britain should be pursued in good faith, he recommends giving the treaty notice required to end joint occupation and urges practical steps: extending American laws to settlers, erecting forts, and supporting migration along the overland route. The tone blends firmness on principle with a stated willingness to resolve the dispute through peaceful adjustment.

Revenue, Tariffs, and the Treasury
Turning to economic policy, Polk condemns the protectionist Tariff of 1842 as unequal and burdensome, favoring a revenue-only tariff assessed on a fair ad valorem basis. He calls for simplicity in the customs code and a neutral taxation system that does not grant artificial advantages to particular industries. Central to his financial program is the restoration of the Independent Treasury, segregating public funds from private banks to ensure safety, accountability, and a stable currency anchored in specie. He promises economical administration and warns against the dangers of paper credit and federal favoritism.

Internal Improvements and Constitutional Limits
Polk takes a strict-construction view of federal power over internal improvements. He questions the constitutionality of general appropriations for roads, canals, and local works, and cautions that such spending breeds sectional jealousy and corruption. Where national defense or clearly national purposes are implicated, he is more open to targeted measures, but he urges restraint and fidelity to enumerated powers.

Public Lands, the Military, and Indian Affairs
On the public domain, Polk favors policies that convert land into settled homesteads and productive farms, including preemption and a graduated price for parcels long on the market. He portrays the Army as small but efficient and the Navy as in need of modernization, especially steam power, to protect commerce and project force. Indian affairs are treated within the familiar framework of removal, treaties, and efforts to maintain peace on the frontier, with the government obligated to fulfill existing compacts.

Diplomatic Posture and National Aims
Beyond Mexico and Britain, Polk notes generally cordial relations with other powers and a posture of noninterference coupled with vigilant defense of American rights. The message knits together territorial ambition and republican economy: a larger nation governed at lower cost, financed by neutral taxes, and administered under a disciplined treasury. He closes with confidence that firmness in principle, prudence in negotiation, and adherence to constitutional limits will secure peace, prosperity, and the continued expansion of American liberty.