Posted on 02/22/2010 8:03:19 PM PST by Steelers6
He was the best in my opinion for several reasons.
1. Respected God, the People, and the Constitution.
2. He had no prior President in history to use as a guide to lead a country. All those who followed have had him as an example and he still has beaten them all up to this point.
3. He could have been President for Life or King. Had the ability based on leading the Colonial Army and the Constitutional Conventions to have enormous power. But he didn't want that and walked away after 8 years and set the standard for Presidents to serve 2 terms until FDR broke the unwritten rule.
4. Farewell Address that is great Advice for Presidents and the Country today.
5. Paid off a lot of National Debt in his first 2 terms.
5. Respected God and the Constitution.
The Boland amendment? Forbidding aid to the pro-freedom Contras and giving aid and comfort to the communists?
I believe George Washington to be the greatest President of the past, and the greatest President of all, will be the future President who ends abortion.
I'm sure that Ronaldus Magnus would give you a quizzical look with a steely eye, then vote for Washington.
I recently finished reading "1776" by David McCullough. Much of the book revolves around George Washington's efforts to build the Continental Army, all while fighting our first battles with the British at the same time.
The sheer enormity of the task that our first CIC confronted, and successfully dealt with, is unparalleled in our history. There was little guarantee that he would succeed in that task at the time, and most Americans gave him small odds of doing so, yet he and other patriots did the impossible, and won our people's freedom.
He went on to serve admirably as our first President, and with the sort of dignity and integrity to the office that has rarely been seen since.
It's too easy to call any modern American president, "the greatest of all time". Only a thorough reading of history can bring out the lives and deeds of our former presidents vividly enough for a real comparison to those we remember from our lifetimes.
James K Polk has always been my favorite. Did everything he said he would do and only served one term and didn’t run for re-election.
As a side note to that, when it was proposed by some in Congress that he be addressed as "His Excellency, the President", Washington humbly requested that he simply be referred to as "Mr. President".
Every US president since that time has been addressed in that way.
With that one small act, Washington underscored the concept that the presidency is the office of The People, and that the President is their servant. Not the other way around.
Indeed. Though I can’t resist calling Washington, ‘His Excellency’ ...its befitting of the man.
Impact and Legacy
Among George Washington’s critics are those who wonder how the nation might have developed had he sided with Jefferson in the partisan debates that swirled all around him as President. By identifying himself with Hamilton, he actually furthered the partisanship he so vigorously denounced in his farewell speech to the nation. In the eyes of those historians who doubt his greatness, this is Washington’s most significant failure as President.
He has also been criticized, along with other members of the founding generation, for his ownership of slaves. At one point, he expressed the sincere desire to see “a plan adopted for the abolition” of slavery, but he backed away from initiating such a plan by looking to legislative authority for its conception and execution. While he provided generously for his slaves in his will, he did not free them in his lifetime. Nevertheless, a year before his death he remarked to an acquaintance, “I can foresee that nothing but the rooting out of slavery can perpetuate the existence of our union.”
Creating the Presidency
Except for these caveats, it is the substantial consensus among historians that Washington’s tenure in office set the nation on a path that has endured now for over 200 years, longer than any other republic in history. He established precedents that would last for generations and did more to flesh out the skeleton of the presidential office than anyone could have expected or predicted. As one scholar has said, he “invented tradition as he went along.” His actions, more than those of any other Founding Father, became a part of the “unwritten Constitution.”
Washington’s reliance on department heads for advice, similar to his war council during the Revolution, set a precedent for including the cabinet as part of the President’s office. Moreover, because Congress did not challenge his appointments or his removal of appointees, principally out of respect for him, the tradition was planted to allow the President to choose his or her own cabinet. By his actions and words, Washington also set the standard for two presidential terms, a practice that lasted until 1940. When John Jay resigned as chief justice of the Supreme Court, Washington selected his successor from outside the bench, disregarding seniority and thus allowing future Presidents to draw from a diverse pool of talent beyond the Court’s aging incumbents.
When the House of Representatives sought records related to negotiations surrounding the Jay Treaty of 1795, Washington refused to deliver all the documents. In doing so, he set the precedent for invoking what became known as executive privilege. In leading federal troops against the Whiskey Rebellion, Washington presented a clear show of federal authority, established the principle that federal law is the supreme law of the land, and demonstrated that the federal government is empowered to levy and collect taxes.
Although he sponsored and supported legislative proposals submitted to Congress for enactment, he carefully avoided trying to dictate or unduly influence the judicial and legislative branches of the government. In not vetoing bills with which he disagreed unless there were constitutional questions, he set a precedent of executive restraint that would be followed by the next five Presidents. Moreover, by keeping Vice President Adams at arm’s length — not even inviting him to attend cabinet meetings — Washington set the tradition by which the vice president’s role is largely ceremonial.
Also, although Washington hated partisanship and political parties, he tolerated dissent, vicious attacks on his reputation and name, and a divisive press — all in the interest of freedom. There is little reason to suggest that Washington, unlike so many of his successors, ever sought to use his office for personal empowerment or gain. Neither did he shelter his friends for the sake of their friendships when conflicts of interest arose.
Perhaps most importantly, Washington’s presidential restraint, solemnity, judiciousness, and nonpartisan stance created an image of presidential greatness, or dignity, that dominates the office even today. He was the man who could have been a king but refused a crown and saved a republic.
Yes, in Washington's case it's deserved.
I'm certain that those who proposed to call him "His Excellency", did so out of a profound sense of gratitude for guiding our nation to freedom, and an unbridled awe of the historic figure he truly was.
No matter which was the greater president, between the two, Lincoln was the greater man overall.
I base that on the fact that Lincoln raised himself up from dirt poor to financial success and then to one of our greatest, if not the greatest, president.
Whereas George Washington married money.
And I say that despite being unsure about Lincoln’s political ideas.
Well said. As a military leader Washington knew that as long as the army remained intact the war, and our liberty, could be won.
As a president there have been none since that even come close.
Where Have you Gone George Washington?
A Few Quotes from George Washington
Mighty Washington: The greatest President
George Washington’s Tear-Jerker
This Day In History February 4,1789 George Washington is elected president
I think people would get a lot better idea of the greatness of Lincoln when they become more knowledgeable about the nature of his Confederate opponents. Lincoln’s actions look a whole lot better and milder when compared to the unlawful tyranny of Jefferson Davis. Lincoln gets condemned for arresting a bridge burner in Maryland while the Tyrant of Richmond is somehow supposed to get a pass for hanging bridge burners in Tennessee. I care a lot less about the few rabble rousing politicians Lincoln inconvenienced in Maryland than the thousands that Davis imprisoned in Tennessee without a trial.
Washington trained himself to be a surveyor [and a very good one], and amassed a fortune in cash, and especially land, when he was stilla young man. He was one of the wealthiest men in Virginia when he married.
And he didn’t turn the individual states into satrapies of the Federal government.
2nd best...after Lincoln.
In a very real sense, America as an experiment would have failed were it not for George Washington. His refusal to be king, his willingness to peacefully pass off power to another, and his humility and grace as a leader were unprecedented in history.
Though Lincoln stands on his own in a different way, there would have been no Lincoln were there no Washington.
Thank You, Lord for blessing this country with great leaders when we have needed them most!
PING!
Thank you, sister Patriot:). I was perusing this thread on my own, saw your post and now the ping. I can’t get enough of reading about this GREAT MAN. I am even reading a book now of his relationship with Marquis du LaFayette. I think it’s called *An Adopted Son.*
Actually, if you've read many books about him, would you mind letting me know what your favorite is?
I haven't read a book about the Father of this great nation for a while, and now seems like a good time! :)
I haven’t read many books, but do recommend the last one I read: *Angel in the Whirlwind* by Benson Bobrick. It’s not exclusively about Washington but an encompassing story of the Revolution, beginning in Colonial times, and the author returns to Washington many times in the narrative. I do highly recommend it. I guess, so far, that is my favorite!!
I'll look it up. :)
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