We’ve been enjoying the “worst president ever” discussions, here and elsewhere. Anyone want to talk about the good ones?
Here’s a list I hope will start discussion. Without trying to rank them, I broke them into 8 groups – and discovered that by my count only 10 to 12 out of the 42 (counting Grover Cleveland only once) have done the job at all well. Each group is in chronological order, not ranked.
Great: Washington, Lincoln, FD Roosevelt. They speak for themselves. I guess I’d rank Lincoln first, but these three are clearly the best of the lot.
Very Good: T Roosevelt (conservationist and regulator), Truman (his postwar administration set the foundation for 20 years of prosperity, but also for the Cold War. Integrated the military. Some condemn him for dropping the atomic bombs.)
Overall Good: Jefferson, Monroe, Eisenhower, Kennedy, LB Johnson. Putting these in order should be good for an argument. Many will disagree with me about rating LBJ positively; I think the Civil Rights and Voting Rights acts and the Great Society
were the most important legislation since the New Deal.
Talented But Infuriating: Wilson, Clinton. Like LBJ, they combined big positives and big negatives. Unlike LBJ, they couldn’t get their best ideas through Congress.
Very Soggy Middle: Madison, JQ Adams, Van Buren, Hayes, Arthur, B Harrison, Taft, Carter. It’s hard to think of anything they did, good or bad (and I have read plenty of history!). Madison survived the War of 1812, I guess not getting captured by the British was an accomplishment. Carter was the most ineffective president in recent memory and if he wasn’t so nice I’d probably rate him “bad” (like JQ Adams he has been a great ex-President).
Overall Bad: J Adams, Jackson, Tyler, Polk, A Johnson, Cleveland, McKinley, Ford, GHW Bush. Several of these were mentioned in some people’s 5 worst, but I think they aren’t quite as awful as those below. Ford would be up a notch if he hadn’t pardoned Nixon. I’m conflicted about Polk – most liberals dislike him for starting a war to steal the best parts of Mexico; but as a Californian I don’t think I should complain.
Unquestionably Awful: Fillmore, Pierce, Buchanan, Grant, Harding, Coolidge, Hoover, Nixon, Reagan, GW Bush.
Unrateable: WH Harrison, Taylor, Garfield
Comments?