US history questions re: Trump scandals and those of previous presidents

[Middle-aged Europe]

It seems certainly unique that he started his presidency with scandal and controversy right off the bat. Then again, a lot of these contoversies originated from his presidential campaign and were merely carried over into his presidency.

Keep in mind that he lost the popular vote and started his presidency with a 45% approval rating, the latter of which was also unprecedented. You don't start your presidential term with such low approvals for no reason. Trump basically arrived in the White House as damaged goods.

In addition, Trump and his team never showed any true effort to actively avoid scandal. For instance, look at the decision to appoint Michael Flynn national security advisor despite the fact that they knew that he was under investigation.

For a time during the transition there had been a bit of a uncertainty whether President Trump would be like the candidate Trump or whether he would shred off his abrasive "campaign mode" personality and become more statesman-like. As it turned out, people who expected the latter were mistaken.