A、He was well known on the West Coast. B、He served as James Polk’s Vice President. C、He supported financial aid to farmers. D、He

Zachary Taylor was elected as the 12th President in 1849. (23) It’s surprising because he was the first president that didn’t have any previous political experience. (24) The main reason he was chosen as a candidate was because he was a war hero. In the army, his man called him old, rough and ready, I guess, because of his rough address. He was kind of blunt and he didn’t really look like a military hero. He liked to do things like wear civilian clothes instead of uniform even in battle. And he was so short and plump, he had to be lifted up onto his horse. But he did win a lot of battles and he became more and more popular. So the Whig Party decided to nominate him for the Presidency, even though no one knew anything about where he stood on the issues. (25) I couldn’t find much about his accomplishments probably because he was only in office about a year and a half before he died. But one thing, he pushed for the development of a transcontinental railroad because he thought it was important to form a link with the west coast. There was a lot of wealth in California and Oregon from commerce and minerals and stuff. Also, he established an agricultural bureau in the Department of the Interior and promoted more government aid to agriculture. He died in office in 1850. So his Vice President took over.
Questions 23 to 25 are based on the passage you have just heard.
23. Why was Zachary Taylor chosen by his party as a candidate for President?
24. According to the speaker, why is it surprising that Taylor was elected President?
25. Why did Taylor accomplish relatively little as President?