McKinley, Garfield point the way for the 47th president. President Trump foresees “a period of transition” before his tariffs replicate the Gilded Age economic boom. With opponents warning about that “pain,” he can look to predecessors of that era for guidance on America’s nerves.

The desire to recreate the Gilded Age is fueled by Trump’s fondness for tariffs. It’s also why he praises the nation’s 25th president, William McKinley, a Republican who was in office from 1897 until being assassinated in 1901.