# Best Presidential Successes **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [February 21, 2006, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514 "2006-02-21T19:18:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2006, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/1 "2006-02-21T19:18:50Z")
There is a thread in GD here about the ten biggest political blunderrs. Very interesting reading (once I get past the back and forth about Clinton et al). But I was wondering if there is much too much focus on the negative. Well, if there is what better way to combat then a thread like this. What are the most successful actions taken by Presidents in the past? Now I am no historian, not even close, so I am sure any list I come up with would be woefully inadequate. yet I will try to come up with some off the top of my head, hopefully others can add to the debate: In no particular order: 1. George Washington’s decision NOT to run for a third term 2. Thomas Jefferson and the Louisiana Purchase 3. Lincoln signing the Emancipation Proclomation, essentially keeping Eurpoe out of the war. 4. The Monroe Doctrine (?). In my limited understanding, this is what basically announced that the US was to be a legitimate country to be dealt with. 5. Nixon normalizing relations with China 6. Carter and the Camp David Accord 7. The Marshall Plan under Truman 8. The peaceful transition from Adams to Jefferson. Maybe not such a big deal now, but at the time, the transiiotn from one political party to another in such a disciplined and peaceful manner was somewhat of a novelty. Oh well, I am sure this can be improved upon immensely (and fairly criticized). ---
**Author:** ![EEMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a6a055/32.png) [@EEMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EEMan)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2006, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/2 "2006-02-21T19:30:11Z")
I think you will find that a fair number of people, would put numbers 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 as very bad things… I’m not one of them… but ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2006, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/3 "2006-02-21T19:35:59Z")
I am no historian either, but Theodore Roosevelt’s actions in preserving so much land for national parks and monuments should be mentioned as a very successful move, as was his negotiaton of the 1905 war settlement between Russia and Japan for which he was awarded the Nobel peace prize. Franklin Roosevelt’s numerous “first 100 days New Deal” actions certainly helped calm the country during the Great Depression, and his World War II strategy brought victory as well. Those were pretty successful. Nixon not only went to China, but on his watch the EPA was created. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2006, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/4 "2006-02-21T19:43:41Z")
Eisenhower’s success in getting an Interstate Highway system built as one gigantic and seemlessly interconnected project has had tremendous impact on the development of this country over the last 50 years. It was bold and visionary. Some estimates say that it has returned at least 6 dollars for every dollar spent on the project. Grand logistical planning something that is often overlooked but it is among the most important parts of any plan and it is something a General/President could bring. The nation couldn’t have developed like it has if we didn’t have these high-speed, high capacity roads connecting every state and most cities. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2006, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/5 "2006-02-21T19:46:02Z")
1. Abraham Lincoln and the Civil War\* 2. John Adams appointing James Marshall 3. Polk and the Mexican Cession 4. T.R.'s decision to pursue the _Northern Securities_ case 5. FDR’s vigorous support of the Allies (Lend-lease and others) prior to Pearl Harbor 6. Truman’s decision to defend South Korea 7. Nixon’s normalizing relations with China 8. Truman’s decision to enter into NATO 9. George H.W. Bush’s rallying to world against Saddam Hussein 10. Reagan’s Reaganomics\*\* \*So many accomplishments here Lincoln would have 10 entires on this list if I were to separate them out. His refusal to accept the division of the Union, his refusal to accept anything other than unconditional surrender, his appointment of Grant, the Emancipation Proclamation, list goes on. \*\*I’m primarily referring to two aspects of “Reaganomics.” First would be his support of Volcker’s raising the interest rates. Reagan made a hard decision that he knew would have negative consequences because he rightly felt it had to be done to get disastrous inflation under control. Second would be Reagan’s across the board tax cuts, the United States was practically moving towards socialism with the level of taxation to which both the wealthy and middle class were being subjected (well, we were approaching socialist tax rates without socialist services.) And that certainly includes his cuts for the wealthies Americans and for these reasons: > [@](#): > > ``` > The share of the income tax burden borne by the top 10 percent of taxpayers increased from 48.0 percent in 1981 to 57.2 percent in 1988. Meanwhile, the share of income taxes paid by the bottom 50 percent of taxpayers dropped from 7.5 percent in 1981 to 5.7 percent in 1988. > > ``` > > A middle class of taxpayers can be defined as those between the 50th percentile and the 95th percentile (those earning between $18,367 and $72,735 in 1988). Between 1981 and 1988, the income tax burden of the middle class declined from 57.5 percent in 1981 to 48.7 percent in 1988. This 8.8 percentage point decline in middle class tax burden is entirely accounted for by the increase borne by the top one percent. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2006, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/6 "2006-02-21T19:56:19Z")
A few more that jump to mind: Eisenhower sending troops to Little Rock to enforce desegregation. Lyndon Johnson and the Civil Right Act Ford’s pardon of Nixon. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2006, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/7 "2006-02-21T20:04:51Z")
I want to second Johnson and Civil Rights Act. It was absolutely the right thing to do, and Johnson did it, and President’s don’t always do the right thing. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2006, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/8 "2006-02-21T20:50:36Z")
Teddy Roosevelt’s buildup of the U.S. Navy. That, more than anything else, led to the United States becoming a true superpower. I’d like to add a “negative vote” for Reagan’s deficit-ballooning tax cuts. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [February 21, 2006, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/9 "2006-02-21T21:09:22Z")
> [@bup](#): > > Teddy Roosevelt’s buildup of the U.S. Navy. That, more than anything else, led to the United States becoming a true superpower. > > I’d like to add a “negative vote” for Reagan’s deficit-ballooning tax cuts. The tax cuts were a vicious strike back at the insane tax burden on American families that had been increasing since the 1960s. It’s because of Reagan in large part today no American family will probably ever have to worry about paying much more than 30% or so in income taxes. The mistake was obviously in excessive spending, not the tax cuts. Although if any President could justify the need for decifict spending, Reagan could and did imo. ---
**Author:** ![Gadarene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Gadarene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gadarene)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2006, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/10 "2006-02-22T01:07:53Z")
> [@](#): > > The peaceful transition from Adams to Jefferson. Maybe not such a big deal now, but at the time, the transiiotn from one political party to another in such a disciplined and peaceful manner was somewhat of a novelty. [Not so disciplined and peaceful.](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0674018664/sr=8-1/qid=1140570428/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-4630056-0107918?%5Fencoding=UTF8)🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Gladstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/90db22/32.png) [@Gladstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gladstone)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2006, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/11 "2006-02-22T01:13:38Z")
> [@EEMan](#): > > I think you will find that a fair number of people, would put numbers > > 2, 4, 5, 6, 7 as very bad things… I’m not one of them… but Who (at least among Americans) would consider any of these “very bad things”? I could imagine mabye some diehard lefties linking the Monroe Doctrine to future US heavy-handed and colonialist policies in the Western hemisphere - particularly with Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Haiti, Puerto Rico, and the Domincan Republic. Even that seems like a bit of a stretch though, since the idea that the Western hemisphere was the US’s sphere of control was what gave birth to the Monroe Doctrine and not the other way around. ---
**Author:** ![Frostillicus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Frostillicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frostillicus)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2006, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/12 "2006-02-22T02:50:14Z")
In no particular order, I would add: 1. FDR’s signing of the GI Bill in 1944 2. Wilson’s creation of the Federal Reserve in 1913 3. LBJ’s signing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 4. TR’s decision to build the Panama Canal in 1903 5. FDR’s creation of Social Security in 1936 6. Lincoln’s decision to bring his fiercest political rivals (Seward, Chase, and Bates) into his Cabinet in 1860 7. Truman’s decision to drop atomic bombs on Japan in 1945 8. Kennedy’s handling of the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 9. the Clinton administration’s handling of the “Y2K” crisis in the late 90s ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2006, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/13 "2006-02-22T03:21:05Z")
I just can’t take seriously a list in which Washington’s success at establishing the Presidency as strong but not dictatorial doesn’t even crack the Top Ten. ---
**Author:** ![Squee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@Squee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squee)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2006, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/14 "2006-02-22T03:41:14Z")
> [@](#): > > 1. the Clinton administration’s handling of the “Y2K” crisis in the late 90s Having lived through this time of history, I have to ask for more detail. I’m not asking for a free history lesson, but I do have to ask what exactly you mean by this. ---
**Author:** ![Frostillicus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Frostillicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frostillicus)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2006, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/15 "2006-02-22T04:04:05Z")
> [@Squee](#): > > Having lived through this time of history, I have to ask for more detail. I’m not asking for a free history lesson, but I do have to ask what exactly you mean by this. Do a Google search on “Y2K and computers”. I’m sure you’ll find tons of info. In fact, let me do it for you. [http://www.angelfire.com/hi/khurramkhan/y2k.html](http://www.angelfire.com/hi/khurramkhan/y2k.html) ---
**Author:** ![Squee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@Squee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squee)\ **Post date:** [February 22, 2006, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/16 "2006-02-22T04:11:11Z")
> [@Frostillicus](#): > > Do a Google search on “Y2K and computers”. I’m sure you’ll find tons of info. In fact, let me do it for you. > > [http://www.angelfire.com/hi/khurramkhan/y2k.html](http://www.angelfire.com/hi/khurramkhan/y2k.html) I read your link… actually, I glossed it over since I don’t consider and “angelfire” page considered proof. It mostly told me what Y2K was… well, duh. Like I said, I didn’t read it due to the content provider… did it even mention Clinton in it? Actually, I don’t really need a cite, I’d rather have your take on why you think it should be on the list. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2006, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/17 "2006-02-23T01:22:45Z")
I’d lump some of the previous listings for FDR – social security, the GI Bill, etc., under FDR’s New Deal as a top ten accomplishment. It very nicely provided a social safety net to help protect people against the excesses of unrestrained capitalism. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2006, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/18 "2006-02-23T03:09:54Z")
> [@Steve MB](#): > > I just can’t take seriously a list in which Washington’s success at establishing the Presidency as strong but not dictatorial doesn’t even crack the Top Ten. I wonder if the OP took that into consideration already with: > [@](#): > > 1. George Washington’s decision NOT to run for a third term I will add that, after leaving the presidency, his actions dealing with the Newburgh Conspiracy prevented the USA from becoming a banana republic: > **[Newburgh Conspiracy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newburgh_Conspiracy)** > > The Newburgh Conspiracy was an apparent planned military coup by the Continental Army in March 1783, at the end of the American Revolutionary War. The conspiracy may have been instigated by members in the Congress of the Confederation, who circulated an anonymous letter in the army camp at Newburgh, New York, on March 10, 1783. Soldiers were unhappy that they had not been paid for some time and that pensions that had been promised remained unfunded. The letter suggested that they should take... > [@](#): > > The Newburgh Conspiracy was a plot hatched in 1783 near the end of the American Revolutionary War led by officers Robert Morris and Alexander Hamilton of the Continental Army to oust Congress in a coup and set up martial law. > > … > > When General George Washington found out about the conspiracy, he called a meeting of his officers on March 15, 1783 that Major General Horatio Gates was supposed to chair. This may have been the single most important meeting in the entire history of the United States. It was held in the “New Building”, a 40 by 70 foot building at the camp > > … > > Washington then gave a short speech to his officers about the precarious finances of the nation, and looked up and saw he had made very little impact on their attitude. He then took a letter from his pocket from a member of Congress to read to the officers. Instead of reading it immediately, he gazed upon it and fumbled with it without speaking. The men wondered, what was wrong? Why the delay? He then took a pair of reading glasses from his pocket, which few of the men had seen him wear. He then said: “Gentlemen, you will permit me to put on my spectacles, for I have not only grown gray but almost blind in the service of my country.” This caused most of the men to realize that Washington, too, had sacrificed a great deal, more than most of them, for the cause. > > … > > Many of those present were moved to tears, and with this (some say theatrical) act, the conspiracy collapsed as he read the letter. He then left the room and General Henry Knox and others offered resolutions reaffirming their loyalty, which were accepted by the group. ---
**Author:** ![Frostillicus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Frostillicus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frostillicus)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2006, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/19 "2006-02-23T03:28:00Z")
> [@Squee](#): > > I read your link… actually, I glossed it over since I don’t consider and “angelfire” page considered proof. It mostly told me what Y2K was… well, duh. Like I said, I didn’t read it due to the content provider… did it even mention Clinton in it? > > Actually, I don’t really need a cite, I’d rather have your take on why you think it should be on the list. Because many, many people were predicting massive catastrophe occurring on 1/1/2000, with planes falling out of the sky and electrical systems crashing, etc. As I am sure you will recall, nothing remotely of the sort happened, because the federal government took incredible steps to fix the Y2K problem ahead of time. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [February 23, 2006, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514/20 "2006-02-23T05:36:19Z")
Other than fix government computers, what exactly did “the government” do? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-presidential-successes/345514.md?page=2)