The Presidents (song)

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Animaniacs song
"The Presidents"
Season no.	3
Episode no.	75
Orig. airdate	November 11, 1995
Episode theme	The Presidents of the United States of America
Sung by	Rob Paulsen, Tress MacNeille, Jess Harnell
Written by	Randy Rogel & Tom Ruegger
List of all Animaniacs episodes...

"The Presidents" is a song from the children's television series Animaniacs, sung by Yakko, Wakko, and Dot Warner. The melody of the song is set to the William Tell Overture, with slight variations. The Warners sing about every United States President that had been in office up to the time that this episode aired in 1995 (every president up to and including Bill Clinton). To make the song entertaining and educational, the Warners include interesting facts about each president as the song progresses. "The Presidents" was later featured on the Animaniacs album Variety Pack (albeit with slightly altered lyrics), released on Rhino Records.

The song begins with Yakko asking if the listener knows the names of United States Presidents who resided in the White House, and thus had a good view of Pennsylvania Avenue from the White House bathroom.

Although the song attempts to make both historical, political and personal references for each president, many presidents receive only a cursory mention, as though the only notable thing about them was that they were president. The decision of what to include or leave out was probably driven primarily by what would fit nicely in tune with the music.

President	Historical references in lyrics
George Washington	Repeats the rumor that George chopped down his father's cherry tree.
John Adams	None, other than that he was "number two".
Thomas Jefferson	Recognizes Jefferson's role in composing the Declaration of Independence. One version of the song incorrectly refers to him authoring the Constitution.
James Madison	Notes that the War of 1812 occurred during Madison's presidency, and that he didn't have any sons at the time.
James Monroe	A reference to Monroe's very large nose.
John Quincy Adams	Mentions the highly contentious 1824 election, in which Adams beat Jackson in an election decided by the House.
Andrew Jackson	Notes that Jackson later regroups and wins the presidency next time around.
Martin Van Buren	None, except that he served only one term.
William Harrison	Mentions his untimely death 30 days after taking office.
John Tyler	Tyler, as a Southerner, liked "country folk".
James Polk	None.
Zachary Taylor	The song references that Taylor liked to smoke.
Millard Fillmore	None, other than the year (1850).
Franklin Pierce	Mentions the smallness of his chin.
James Buchanan	The song references that Buchanan served one term and that division arose between the North and the South, ultimately leading to the Civil War. The lyrics also suggest that the South was the instigator, as well as making a reference to the South being referred to as Dixie.
Abraham Lincoln	Refers to Lincoln as a visionary who took control of the country and saved it from a potentially permanent split.
Andrew Johnson	Notes that Johnson's "defects" led to his impeachment by both the upper and lower houses of Congress.
Ulysses S. Grant	Besides informing us that Grant's middle name was Simpson, the song also tells of his rowdy behavior and often drunken state.
Rutherford Hayes	Explains that, in 1877, there was a tie in the electoral college, forcing a Congressional vote to choose the president. In a tremendous surprise to the Democrats, Hayes, a Republican, won by a single vote.
James Garfield	Mentions Garfield's assassination.
Chester Arthur	None, except that he served only one term.
Grover Cleveland	The lyrics refer to Cleveland as a "really fat" individual who was elected to two terms as a Democrat.
Benjamin Harrison	None.
William McKinley	None.
Teddy Roosevelt	Mentions that Roosevelt "charged up San Juan Hill" (while he fought in the Spanish-American War).
William Howard Taft	References the Payne-Aldrich tariff, which increased tariffs and increased tensions between producers and consumers across the country.
Woodrow Wilson	Wilson, president in 1913, brought the United States into World War I.
Warren Harding	None.
Calvin Coolidge	None.
Herbert Hoover	References the Wall Street Crash of 1929 and how Hoover is blamed for it, thus losing his opportunity to a second term.
Franklin D. Roosevelt	Notes that Roosevelt "helped us win in World War II".
Harry Truman	Refers to Truman as a "weird little human," probably because he was then considered to possess a very strange demeanor. He served two terms.
Dwight D. Eisenhower	The song mentions that he served from 1953 to 1961.
John F. Kennedy	There are two version of the lyrics. One mentions the analogy of the Kennedy family to Camelot, while the other brings up his assassination.
Lyndon B. Johnson	None, except that he took office following an assassination.
Richard Nixon	Tells that Nixon was "caught" (in the Watergate scandal).
Gerald Ford	References how Ford "fell down a lot," probably describing the event where he tripped on the stairs during his swearing in.
Jimmy Carter	Mentions Carter's penchant for campaign trips.
Ronald Reagan	Refers to Reagan's history as an actor, suggesting that his speeches derived from movie clips.
George H.W. Bush	Quotes Bush's famous line, "No new taxes," spoken Republican National Convention on August 18, 1988, as he accepted the Republican nomination.
Bill Clinton	Refers to Hillary Clinton's status as a strong force in her husband's presidency, going so far as to say that she was the president. A revised version states that the country was run by "the Clintons, Bill and Hillary."

The song then continues on to say that it doesn't know who will be president next, but no matter who it will be, the press will "distort anything he or she might say" anyway. It then recommends that the president take advantage of Air Force One to escape the press.