I’d be interested in all opinions, whether American or not. (But please identify if you’re not, thanks.)
My picks…
Best: Herbert Hoover
Worst: Franklin D. Roosevelt
Best: Lincoln/FDR
Worst: Buchanan
Best: Lincoln/Washington
Worst: Buchanan/Harding
Nationality: Australian, poermanently resident in the US.
Best: Lincoln
Worst (and getting worse day by day): George W. Bush
Best: Theodore Roosevelt
Worst: FDR/LBJ
We just did this!
Best/Worst US President. Thread started by El Elvis Rojo, last post 6/7/04.
I’ll stand by my previous answer.
Best: Andrew Jackson, because he pushed expansion of democracy towards the common man away from the “only rich land-owning white men can vote” theory of the early Federalists, and because he insisted upon a strong sense of fiscal responsibility in the federal government, possibly the last president to do so.
Worst: Andrew Jackson, because he openly and quite jubilantly disobeyed a direct court order from the United States Supreme Court in order to commit one of the worst crimes ever committed by the Federal Government, that of the almost total ethnic cleansing of the Native American tribes from the southeast United States. Also a slave holder and strong advocate of slave holding.
On the whole, his “worst” outweights his “best” attributes, because many of the positive things attributed to him were already happening and his temporary enforcement of fiscal responsibility was a blip on the radar that can’t really be said to have affected the federal government in the long run, while we’re living with the effects of his ethnic cleansing to this very day.
So really, my choice for best would be George Washington. A trite choice, perhaps, but only because it is so obvious. History has shown sooooo many emergent democracies destroyed by their first presidents, we really have to consider how damned lucky we are to have had a man who truly, honestly, wasn’t concerned with the power of the office and merely considered it a huge responsibility and thus a huge pain in the ass.
Best: George Washington. No one else could have commanded as much respect from so many VERY different factions, and that was essential if the new government was to work. That we have a functioning republic today is largely a matter of George Washington’s sheer will, and his ability to set good precedents.
Worst: Speaking as a consistent voice of the far right, my answer often surpriuses people. It’s Richard Nixon, without a doubt. WHAT did Richard Nixon ever do to deserve the loyalty of conservatives? Was it his imposityion of price and wage controls? His appointment of Harry (Roe vs. Wade) Blackmun to the Supreme Court? His kowtowing to Chairman Mao and Leonid Brezhnev? His mind-boggling expansion of the federal government (far beyond where even LBJ would have dared go)? His presidency would have been an utter disaster even if he HADN’T been a crook, an embarrassment and a disgrace to his country.
I’d really be interested in knowing why you think this.
I think people are made “great” mostly by the times they live in and the events they live through, not so much by virtue of anything innate to themselves. Of course character counts for something, but only up to a point. There may have been a thousand guys just as brave, strong, honest and true as George Washington back when it came time to pick the first President, but he was the one whose life circumstances put him where he was at that time, and thankfully he managed to do an allright job.
So, the worst time in our country’s history was probably the Civil War, and therefore I’m going with Lincoln as the greatest. He had a tremendous aptitude for leadership and his resolve kept the country intact, for better or for worse.
Harding’s presidency was probably the most spectacular failure. And he died in office, not even having the decency to go down in flames with the rest of his administration.
Sorry about that. Czar or Veb, you can close this one, and I’ll research the other one. Thanks.
Because he refused to use government to “rescue the economy”.
Instead of naming my favorite & least favorite presidents, I’ll list my favorite & least favorite people who held the office.
Favorite people who held the office of President
Thomas Jefferson
Teddy Roosevelt
George Washington
Least favorite people who held the office of President
Bill Clinton
Abraham Lincoln
Richard Nixon
FDR
Jimmy Carter
Huh. I guess it’s fitting that a Libertarian would pick a “Greatest President” on the basis of something he didn’t do rather than something he did.
So Hoover was the best because he didn’t use the government to rescue the economy and Roosevelt was the worst (presumedly because he reversed this policy). I can see how a libertarian might support these selections from a theoretical point of view. But in reality, Hoover’s lack of action prolonged the depression and Roosevelt’s subsequent intervention demonstrated that government action was capable of ending the depression when market forces were not. So I’d think libertarians, who generally claim government action is incapable of solving any problems, would be the last people to mention Hoover in mixed company.
I can’t speak for others, but this libertarian does not believe that government cannot solve problems. What I believe is that it should not. Its solutions lead often to unintended consequences and create more problems than were already there. It is sufficient that government enforce a social context of peace and honesty so that we may solve our problems ourselves without fear of coercion. If it is a matter you care to debate, feel free to open one. Meanwhile, I’m satisfied with my own opinion and am willing to allow you yours.
I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again: No President who has been out of office for fewer than 25 years (everyone since Ford) should be placed under consideration, as partisanship will hold an undue influence on judgements.
That said:
Best: Lincoln/FDR/Washington, in that order
Worst: Buchanan/Pierce/Harding, shuffle that deck as you wish.
Best: FDR
Worst: Nixon
Closing thread per request of OP.