Presidential Heirlooms

We all know that Abraham Lincoln was assassinated and that former Yankee Civil War General Ulysses S Grant was later elected President.  This is the actual carriage Grant purchased during his first term.

Even after Lincoln's assassination Grant was willing to ride around in an open carriage.  Cool? or not?  Meeks Carriage and Wagon Repository sold it to Grant and then purchased it back when Grant left office.  They held onto it for about a hundred years before donating it to the Smithsonian in 1968.

John Quincy Adams was a chess fan.  Awesome.  But hot pink chess pieces??  What kind of rumors would come out today if Obama played with hot pink?  The table sure is gorgeous though - that's not painted, it's inlay.  Who even takes the time to make furniture like this nowadays?

There was a time when Presidents took home things that were gifted to them as Head of State.  Now they have to leave it all to the American people, and it ends up in a Smithsonian vault somewhere.  Hey!  Maybe that's where they came up with the idea for the TV series, Warehouse 13.

Granpa thought this was a great photo.  Is this what's meant by balance of power?  Two Democrats and two Republicans?  That's America!  I'm so proud of America.  This kind of balance is what keeps the pendulum from swinging too far left or too far right.  It's best to be mostly in the middle, everything in moderation.  My question is, has the fixed point of America's pendulum been moved?