Posted on 02/21/2005 1:27:27 PM PST by ambrose
(Angus Reid Consultants - CPOD Global Scan) Americans rank a Republican as their best head of government, according to a poll by Gallup released by CNN and USA Today.
Bill Clinton, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy were next on the list, followed by George W. Bush, George Washington, Jimmy Carter, Harry S. Truman, Theodore Roosevelt and Thomas Jefferson. The three least popular presidents mentioned on the survey were George H. Bush, Dwight Eisenhower and Richard Nixon.
Polling Data
Whom do you regard as the greatest United States president?
|
||
Feb. 2005 |
Nov. 2003 |
|
Ronald Reagan |
20% |
13% |
Bill Clinton |
15% |
9% |
Abraham Lincoln |
14% |
17% |
Franklin D. Roosevelt |
12% |
11% |
John F. Kennedy |
12% |
17% |
George W. Bush |
5% |
3% |
George Washington |
5% |
7% |
Jimmy Carter |
3% |
3% |
Harry S. Truman |
2% |
3% |
Theodore Roosevelt |
2% |
3% |
Thomas Jefferson |
2% |
3% |
George H. Bush |
1% |
2% |
Dwight Eisenhower |
1% |
2% |
Richard Nixon |
1% |
1% |
Other |
1% |
2% |
No opinion |
3% |
4% |
Source: Gallup / CNN / USA Today
Methodology: Telephone interviews to 1,008 American adults, conducted from Feb. 7 to Feb. 10, 2005. Margin of error is 3 per cent.
I don't share your fondness for Cleveland, but I see Polk, Coolidge and Harding as being underrated.
If you say so. Ha,ha,ha,ha,ha,ha,ha,ha,ha,ah,ah...
I think you've actually touched on something--libs seem to like soap opera "feelings", i.e. if you can fake empathy, if you can do that "I'm stoically trying bot to cry over this touching moment" thing, libs love you. When you actually DO something, though, it's just a shrug of the shoulders. I think it has something to do with the need for "drama" in some people's lives--expressions of emotion mean more to repressed, sad people than the hard fact of passing laws that actually affect people you can't see on your TV screen.
no chance of bias there -
would be interesting to hear how it was worded also
Yup, and that's a disgrace.
"If anyone had been asked to give reasons why, I'll bet the ones who voted for Clinton couldn't have answered the question."
I'll bet they couldn't, either.
It is.
This is a glaring example of the failure of the American education system.
Although I'd have voted for Washington because he helped form a nation out of nothing; Republican partisans could certainly make a strong case for voting for Bill Clinton as "Greatest President". I mean seriously, who thought back in 1990 that the Republicans would ever carry both Houses of Congress? I thank President Bill for this miracle -- and the subsequent implosion of the Socialist (democrat) party.
LOL OK, I can see the logic now. I guess we should give Terry McAuliffe some kind of award to go with this honor.
What don't you like about Grover? He steadfastly refused to use his power in extra-constitutional means; he battled the bloated GAR pension fund dispersal; he fought for the gold standard; and he was OK on defense (maybe a little behind the curve there).
She does now.
Ma Ma, Where's My Pa?
b) That appeared to be a single mistake and not a lifelong character flaw. We have no other record of him ever being implicated in anything similar.
Curious... did he pull an Algore after losing to Bejamin Harrison?
Since you are pressing me, I have to say that the thing I like least about Grover was his treatment of J.P. Morgan when the banker was bailing the U.S. out of a depression. Cleveland was rude to him, and never gave him the proper respect Morgan deserved for saving the economy---even if he made $7 million doing it.
Little off topic, but... ever wondered how different things might have been had Lincoln not dumped Hannibal Hamlin from the ticket in 1864?
Well, MUCHO. NO Republican would have had the trouble that Johnson had, and few individuals were as combative as he was. That, in turn, probably would not have left HH a one-term pres, and would have pushed Grant back. A ripple in the pond.
My top 5:
5. George W. Bush -- he has freed two countries from oppressive regimes, lowered the general tax burden, and may just slay the Social Security pyramid scam.
4. Ronald W. Reagan -- he almost single-handedly defeated communism, slowed (if not halted) the growth of government, and made one proud to be American.
3. Abraham Lincoln -- he loses points for suspending habeus corpus and instituting an income tax, but he did believe in freedom for all and led the country through the Civil War.
2. Thomas Jefferson -- he doubled the size of the country and presided over the first peaceful change of power in history.
1. George Washington -- OK, so I'd give him 1 and 2 if I could. No one did more to limit the power of government than Mr. Washington. He refused a third term after winning his first two unanimously, he refused a salary when he could easily have demanded one, and he championed the cause of liberty at every opportunity.
Furthermore, he governed so well that he once decided to tour the South. He got on his horse and rode off. The federal government spent the next three months trying to find him.
Finally, he is the only Commander-in-Chief to actually see battle as Commander-in-Chief. He once got on his horse (notice a trend here?) and personally led the Army to settle a rebellion without firing a shot. His mere presence calmed all tensions.
There has been, and never will be, a greater patriot than George Washington.
Big bogus. If you can't filter out current popularity you can't discern best or greatest. For goodness sake, Kofi Annan has a Nobel Peace prize and his stewardship sucks. Even having gotten current awards in a context I have to sound out against them. They will be so influenced by irrelevant facts that they cannot be trusted but rather must be validated by future disinterested generations.
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