Kakuei Tanahaka was born to a Japanese family that had been struggling with poverty in 1918. Tanaka started working as a construction worker at age 15. Later, he moved to drafting and architecture. Tanaka joined the Morioka Cavalry in 1939 as an enlisted clerk. After two years, he was hospitalized with pneumonia/lung problems and spent the rest of his life in this unit. On his return, he created the Tanaka Civil Engineering Corporation. Hana Sakamoto became his wife. Their son Masaho was born and Makiko their daughter. Makiko, his only child, lived to five years.

Tanaka began his involvement in politics when he donated a significant amount to The Japanese Modern Progressive Party. He failed to win a Diet Seat, but he won a second attempt and was now a member of the Democratic Party. He then joined what is now the Democratic Liberal Party. Soon after, he was taken into custody and sentenced to prison for receiving bribes in relation to coal mining. Tanaka was first tried and found guilty. He appealed, however, and was eventually found innocent. While he resigned as Vice Minstrel, he retained his DLP seat. The DLP was transformed into the Liberal Democratic Party in 1955. Tanaka moved around from one cabinet seat after another, getting political experience and also becoming involved in the Black Mist scandal. The Black Mist scandals, which occurred during Sato’s tenure as Prime Minister, involved fraud on government land sales and the misused of government funds for personal travel. Tanaka won election to the presidency of the LDP and was made Prime Minister of Japan in 2002. Tanaka was a popular Prime Minister throughout his tenure. He is best known for his good relations with the People’s Republic of China. In an effort to build good relations with other European countries, he met with the U.S. and Indonesia. His foreign policies may have been successful. However, his economic policy did not do as well. He was also greatly affected by the 1973 oil crises. Tanaka was later accused of even more illegal business dealings and resigned as Prime Minister in 1974. After the Lockheed scandal, Tanaka was again arrested and sentenced on bribery counts. (He appealed and avoided jail). His political status continued its decline for the next two centuries, but Makiko, his child, was elected to support him in 1993, the year Kakuei Tataka’s death.

Although Tanaka’s tenure as Prime Minister lasted only two years, it was an impressive political impact and his legacy is still significant today. When I saw the strength of Tanaka’s support, the term “personality-cult” was what came to mind. A group called Etsuzankai, formed during Tanaka’s campaign, was established solely to financially support Tanaka. Etsuzankai gives us an example for patron-client relationships. The group was home to nearly 100,000 members at one time. Tanaka assisted in putting government-funded projects in place for members’ villages in exchange for their money. These included a highspeed train, a project to generate hydroelectricity, and the construction of a tunnel. Etsuzankai was disbanded in 2012, just three years after its founding. Tanaka’s group stayed with LDP for some time and carried on his legacy. Tanaka’s campaigning strategies are still being used by many politicians today, including Junichiro Kizumi and Ichiro Ozawa. Tanaka’s legacy can be traced back to his daughter’s dynastic role in Japan after his death.

Makiko Tanaka currently belongs to the Democratic Party of Japan. She served previously as Japan’s Minister of Foreign Relations. She then resigned from her position as Minister for Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in 2012. Naoki Tanaka, her husband, gave her his name and continued their legacy. He also served as Japan’s Minister of Defense in 2012. They have two children, Yuichiro and Manako. Although neither of them have political ties, it is possible that they will eventually join Japan’s Democratic Party to make the Tanaka Dynasty an important part of Japan’s history. This could be a possibility, but it is not likely due to the scandals that surround Tanaka.

Comparing Asia’s politics to America’s, we can see that Asian politicians are often influential in government. It is not common in America for a President to be convicted on fraud or bribery charges. Americans do not want someone like that to be our president. However, Japan is different. Tanaka’s poor business deals, multiple mishandlings with government money, and his inability to win election as Prime Minister were all factors that made him eligible. However, I’m not certain how widely the Black Mist and Lockheed scandals were in the country. The public would likely have known about the scandals.

Overall, Tanaka The Making of Post-War Japan: James Babb was a great read that taught me a lot about the functioning of Japanese political leaders. Kakuei Tanahaka’s entire life will be remembered by Japanese people, including the patron client relations and personality cult built around him. His legacy continues through his daughter’s political and future roles as well as his grandchildren.