# Who was the last US president not to bomb another country? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 5, 2021, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-last-us-president-not-to-bomb-another-country/937294 "2021-03-05T21:22:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-last-us-president-not-to-bomb-another-country/937294/1 "2021-03-05T21:22:48Z")
It was Joe Biden for a whole 36 days… who was the last to get through an entire term without doing this? ---
**Author:** ![snfaulkner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snfaulkner/32/433_2.png) [@snfaulkner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snfaulkner)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-last-us-president-not-to-bomb-another-country/937294/2 "2021-03-05T21:32:29Z")
If by “bomb” you mean specifically from an airplane, then I’d bet it would be the last president before airplanes were a thing. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-last-us-president-not-to-bomb-another-country/937294/3 "2021-03-05T21:38:42Z")
Carter. His administration wasn’t without military action (Eagle Claw would have killed a lot of Iranians had it succeeded,) but that mission, AIUI, wouldn’t have involved any air-dropped bombs. ---
**Author:** ![Bayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bayaker/32/3454_2.png) [@Bayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-last-us-president-not-to-bomb-another-country/937294/4 "2021-03-05T21:41:48Z")
If you mean as _snfaulkner_ suggests it seems that FDR was the last with a complete term(his second), and Hoover the last without an overseas bombing during his presidency. Before him Harding and Coolidge didn’t either. But there have been many, many ‘interventions’, it’s just that the vast majority consisted of landing some Marines and escorting/guarding/evacuating U.S. citizens and interests during localized unrest in foreign lands. ---
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-last-us-president-not-to-bomb-another-country/937294/5 "2021-03-05T22:18:01Z")
> [@Bayaker](#): > > But there have been many, many ‘interventions’, it’s just that the vast majority consisted of landing some Marines and escorting/guarding/evacuating U.S. citizens and interests during localized unrest in foreign lands. Let’s say last without an ‘intervention’, then. Unless it really was Carter? ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2021, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-last-us-president-not-to-bomb-another-country/937294/6 "2021-03-05T22:38:28Z")
I hate the idea that Carter wins this prize because his Department of Defense couldn’t coordinate a moderately complex specops operation. He fully intended that as many Iranians as necessary would die. The attempt should count. Also, does the hypothetical exclude covert action? Only military (armed forces) action, excluding paramilitary (CIA, etc.) activity? ---
**Author:** ![Asuka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@Asuka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asuka)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2021, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-last-us-president-not-to-bomb-another-country/937294/7 "2021-03-06T06:46:34Z")
It actually did plan to drop bombs, the entire plan would have had AC-130’s laying waste to Iranian defenses as well as carriers based off-shore launching fighter-bomber sorties. There would be a massive air strike campaign in a very short period of time to basically let the rescue convoy get to the embassy. ---
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2021, 10:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-last-us-president-not-to-bomb-another-country/937294/8 "2021-03-06T10:36:12Z")
So what happened? ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2021, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-last-us-president-not-to-bomb-another-country/937294/9 "2021-03-06T10:40:20Z")
It’s my understanding that David Rice Atchison made no plans or attempts to bomb anyone during the entirety of his term. ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2021, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-last-us-president-not-to-bomb-another-country/937294/10 "2021-03-06T11:57:56Z")
And I can think of at least three reasons why. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [March 6, 2021, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-was-the-last-us-president-not-to-bomb-another-country/937294/11 "2021-03-06T12:04:55Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > It’s my understanding that David Rice Atchison made no plans or attempts to bomb anyone during the entirety of his term. Considering he was never president, it’s irrelevent whether he did or didn’t.