# Who would you REALLY like to be president **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [February 16, 2012, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054 "2012-02-16T19:28:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/21 "2012-02-17T00:41:15Z")
1. Barack Obama 2. Bernie Sanders ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/22 "2012-02-17T00:45:04Z")
> [@choie](#): > > (Yeah, like “realism” matters in a thread where we could hypothetically pick Genghis Khan! 😃 Tamerlane. No, not me - the real one. Just imagine how high you could stack towers of skulls with the aid of modern computer models! And if you thought foreign nations were scared of _Ronald Reagan_, well… ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/23 "2012-02-17T00:58:17Z")
Foreigner: Stephen Fry Past: Ronald Regan Current: Not sure. Definitely not any of the current Republican candidates. I’m not thrilled with Obama either. I guess anybody who is socially and economically moderate, or, if Republicans get control of the Senate, keep control of the house, or continue to have a big influence such as being able to threaten filibusters then I’d want a strong democrat in the White House to balance them out. ---
**Author:** ![Tapiotar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3be4f8/32.png) [@Tapiotar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapiotar)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/24 "2012-02-17T01:02:38Z")
> [@choie](#): > > Crapples, I forgot someone on my “Resurrection” list: > > - Carl Sagan. We need more scientists/visionaries/thinkers in positions of power. For budget speeches, he’d have to change his catchphrase from “billions and billions” to “trillions and trillions.” ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/25 "2012-02-17T01:18:09Z")
> [@Tamerlane](#): > > Tamerlane. No, not me - the real one. Just imagine how high you could stack towers of skulls with the aid of modern computer models! > > And if you thought foreign nations were scared of _Ronald Reagan_, well… I thought of Tamurlaine, but decided that was a _bad idea._ Napoleon Bonaparte, now, we could compromise on him, I hope. ---
**Author:** ![Onomatopoeia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/onomatopoeia/32/4145_2.png) [@Onomatopoeia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Onomatopoeia)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/26 "2012-02-17T01:20:49Z")
1st choice - Russ Feingold 2nd choice - Barack Obama 3rd choice - Heck, why not: Bernie Sanders ---
**Author:** ![Mosier](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ea924/32.png) [@Mosier](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mosier)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/27 "2012-02-17T02:17:22Z")
> [@Nobody](#): > > Current: Not sure. Definitely not any of the current Republican candidates. I’m not thrilled with Obama either. Awesome post/username combo. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/28 "2012-02-17T03:01:06Z")
> [@Mosier](#): > > Awesome post/username combo. 🙂 Thanks. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![AtomicDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ac91a4/32.png) [@AtomicDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AtomicDog)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/29 "2012-02-17T03:07:12Z")
Barack Obama Isaac Asimov Carl Sagan ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/30 "2012-02-17T03:12:09Z")
> [@Mosier](#): > > Awesome post/username combo. 🙂 Comes with pre-written campaign songs, too! When life seems full of clouds an’ rain and I am filled with naught but pain, who soothes my thumpin’ bumpin’ brain? ---
**Author:** ![littlespeedysuperbike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@littlespeedysuperbike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/littlespeedysuperbike)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/31 "2012-02-17T03:15:49Z")
Barbara Jordan, Congresswoman from Texas. “We call ourselves public servants but I’ll tell you this: we as public servants must set an example for the rest of the nation. It is hypocritical for the public official to admonish and exhort the people to uphold the common good.” Joe Biden - it’s not a gaffe. It’s a trick play. If I were President Obama, I’d resign the day after the the 2016 elections just to stand back and watch Biden’s moment in the sun. Theodore Roosevelt. No further explanation necessary. Franklin Roosevelt. No further explanation necessary. Harry Truman - the president least tolerant of bullshit. George Washington - Imagine for a moment that Peter B. Lewis was also one of the greatest generals of all time. Reading the history books about the writing of the Constitution and the early days of Federal Government, the authors don’t usually identify Washington as particularly talented - most ascribing his success to dogged dedication. But he was, and he had to have been. “First in war, first in peace, and last in the American League” Pierre Trudeau - great judgement, grand ambition, and total accomplishment. Fun, too. Joe Clark - Duct-taped a functioning government together from the junk drawer. If I were more cynical I’d say he was exactly who we needed. Bill Weld - Massachusetts tried three more Republican governors in a row after him trying to find one that was as good. If you want somebody who’s a top-notch administrator and a true down-the-middle weathervane, they don’t come better. Bill Bradley - A serious heavyweight, capable of controlling the direction of any debate on policy he’s in. Go to the local public library, look at how thick the 1985 “how to do your taxes” book is, and compare it to the 1986 book. Ralph Nader, 1984 version, but he has to win a gubernatorial election in 1980 and serve four years first. One last one. Barack Obama - For all the plodding and backtracking and apparent aimless circling, he’s certainly gotten us a long way forward in three years. It’s a bit like seeing a basketball player only get people’s attention when the announcer calls out that he has just hit 30 points two minutes into the fourth quarter. I’m not going to vote to cut him. Half Bill Weld, half Genghis Khan. ---
**Author:** ![River\_Hippie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/river_hippie/32/26_2.png) [@River\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/River_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/32 "2012-02-17T03:32:24Z")
Barack Obama. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/33 "2012-02-17T03:36:52Z")
> [@Stelios](#): > > Fritzl Well, he _does_ have charisma. ---
**Author:** ![Truman\_Burbank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecc23a/32.png) [@Truman\_Burbank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Truman_Burbank)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/34 "2012-02-17T04:13:34Z")
Adlai Stevenson. ---
**Author:** ![Nobody](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/94ad74/32.png) [@Nobody](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nobody)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/35 "2012-02-17T04:19:23Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Comes with pre-written campaign songs, too! > > When life seems full of clouds an’ rain > and I am filled with naught but pain, > who soothes my thumpin’ bumpin’ brain? I’m picturing this being sung by Eric Idle. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/36 "2012-02-17T04:30:06Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > George Orwell. CS Lewis and Christopher Hitchens wouldn’t be too bad a POTUS either. Too bad British intellectuals are not that interested in becoming politicians. ---
**Author:** ![unsub](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9f8e36/32.png) [@unsub](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/unsub)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 8:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/37 "2012-02-17T08:41:26Z")
Newt Gingrich. The complete elimination of capital gains taxes, dividend taxes, and interest taxes for all American citizens who earn 1 cent or more. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/38 "2012-02-17T14:38:20Z")
Sylvester Stallone. San Angeles seemed like an awfully nice place to live, except for the lack of sex and restaurants that were not Taco Bell. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/39 "2012-02-17T18:29:53Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > CS Lewis and Christopher Hitchens wouldn’t be too bad a POTUS either. Too bad British intellectuals are not that interested in becoming politicians. Not Hitchens, I don’t want a POTUS who drinks **that** much. Lewis . . . interests insufficiently worldly; political issues being transient things of this world, of trivial importance compared to the spiritual states of human souls; and he was expressly against “Christianity and . . .” Democracy or Socialism or anything else, linking faith to politics eventually makes faith an instrument of politics and distracts Christians from keeping their souls right with God. Unlike Orwell, who was agnostic and whose interests were entirely worldly, and sociopolitical. And artistic, but he (almost) always rooted his art in society and used it for commentary. ---
**Author:** ![Malden\_Capell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malden_capell/32/5274_2.png) [@Malden\_Capell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malden_Capell)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2012, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054/40 "2012-02-17T19:49:03Z")
Churchill was a pretty poor peacetime leader. I’d go for Clement Attlee myself, or William Gladstone. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-would-you-really-like-to-be-president/613054.md?page=3)