Ranking the presidents

I thought it might be fun to play a little parlor game. Below, you will find my selections for the Top and Bottom 10 Presidents in U.S. history. Lists like this are, admittedly, highly subjective by their very nature - and yet, various ranking lists from the first great original done by Arthur Schlesinger in 1948 to C-SPAN's poll in 1999 all indicate similar results for the best and worst. My results below match fairly closely to these others with mostly differences in ranking by no more than 5 spots or so.

For judging the top ten Presidents in U.S. history, I chose the following criteria: Their handling of Crisis Management, Domestic/Economic Policy, Foreign Policy, Moral Character, Leadership, Legacy, and the pursuit of Civil Rights and Individual Liberty.

Thus, Wilson, who is typically ranked at or on the top ten on most polls, is not given that honor on my list, mostly due to his regressive policies towards blacks and civil rights as well as his foreign policy which was a complete failure.

Similarly, the presence of Jimmy Carter and (much as it pains me personally) Ulysses S. Grant on the bottom ten portion - Both were men of impeccable personal moral character - yet neither proved capable of leadership or crisis management as Chief Executive.

There are several choices which may not seem consistent with the above criteria (most notably Andrew Jackson and Thomas Jefferson) but mitigating or special circumstances may have influenced them.

In any case, that's how I did it. You may agree or not - I just thought I should spend this holiday wisely as opposed to the way most of our free-vacations from work are handled (mine included).

In each case I give three reasons for my choice. In each case, the reasons match one of the top six criteria. (NOTE: For the Top Ten anyway - for the Bottom Ten I just sorta rant as in most cases, 3 reasons were not enough).

Created a breathing, working Presidency from theory and ideals through sheer force of will and unblemished moral character.

Led the United States of America into the greatest experiment (and success) in self-rule ever attempted in the history of civilization.

Solidification of the Federal Government's authority over the States and the establishment of the United States of America we now know it.
The destruction of slavery and the great "Original Sin" which lay at the heart of this nations founding.

Saved the world from the greatest evil in the history of civilization.
Saved the world from the greatest evil in the history of civilization.

Orchestrated the greatest non-wartime national rebirth (from the economic, militarily, and psychological ashes of the 70's) in U.S. history.

The courage, wisdom, and mercy (yes…mercy) that enabled him to end WWII by the use of nuclear weapons as opposed to the bloodbath of invasion (generous estimates of Hiroshima and Nagasaki dead are at 400,000 - conservative estimates of U.S. dead alone for an invasion of Japan were 500,000 with millions of dead Japanese).
The Truman Doctrine & Marshall Plan - nuff said…
The desegregation of the U.S military and all Federal Service.

The Panama Canal - nuff said
The establishment of an activist foreign policy which bolstered American security and prestige while simultaneously winning TR the Nobel Peace Prize.
The establishment of the American conservationist legacy by the Forest Reserve Act of 1891, which declared 235 million acres as permanent national forests and parks.

VII James K. Polk:

The Securing of the Oregon Territory (while simultaneously furthering the "Monroe Doctrine precedent by facing down the U.K.).
The establishment of an Independent U.S. Treasury.

VIII Grover Cleveland:

The most fiscally conservative Democrat in U.S. History, Cleveland forever solidified in the American psyche the concept that free market capitalism was a great good and tariffs and protectionism were evils to be abolished.
His attitudes and respect for the indigenous peoples of Hawaii and Cuba (in the face of possible annexation) laid the foundations for the future handling of all U.S. foreign affairs with an eye towards restraint and conscience as well as the eventual rejection of colonial imperialism.
He was the most scrupulously honest and courageous President of the Gilded Age and these character traits did much to set the future tone of American politics, fiscal policies, and human rights.

IX Andrew Jackson:
The Annexation of Florida
The establishment of Federal Power over States (and the delaying of a Civil War for a few more decades). South Carolina was but one step from secession over it's right to "nullify" Federal Authority as subordinate to States Rights. Jackson corrected them with the threat of U.S. military intervention.

Established the legacy of the President being beholden to the will of the people, as well as the rise of mass political parties as a coalition of interests.
NOTE: His treatment of Native American's (the infamous "Trail of Tears") almost made me remove him but, unlike Jefferson, he did not talk out of both sides of his mouth on the issue and was very much a product of his time (as lame as that sounds) and in any case, was no different from the treatment handed out by most U.S. Presidents.

X Thomas Jefferson:
The Louisiana Purchase - which more than doubled the size of America with the stroke of a pen (and $15 Million to Napoleon).

The Shores of Tripoli." - The Barbary Coast Wars. The first foreign military intervention by U.S. forces to secure American rights and which also set a precedent, still active today, of U.S. refusal to be blackmailed by "terrorists" or rogue states.

NOTE: Jefferson's position - at 10 - may be a conceit on my part (I harbor a secret fondness for him). The reality is that the majority of the great accomplishments he is most worshiped for came before his Presidency. In addition, it is impossible to gloss over his appalling hypocrisy on the issue of "all men are created equal" while continuing to own human beings due to no other motivation than personal greed. In the end, Jefferson is on my list as a representation of the highest ideals of America (even when we fail to achieve them).

Ike is on most of the lists I have seen. His moral character, and leadership are undeniable, and his reign during some of the most optimistic and golden periods in American history (the 50's) is more than just coincidence. On the other hand, his foreign policy endeavors were largely appalling failures. The bay of Pigs was planned by his administration. His words on Communist Europe were proven (at great cost - ask Hungary) to be bluster while his policies on South East Asia began what would be the greatest military, domestic, and foreign policy disaster in U.S. history - Viet Nam. When coupled with his lukewarm attitudes towards Truman's fledgling civil rights advances, he must be relegated to somewhere less than top 10.
James Monroe:

JFK was a womanizer, an elitist, and a political slickster who's administration double-dealed, held mortal grudges, and practiced the politics of personal vendetta. The Bay of Pigs was a fiasco, his personal war against Castro was illegal (and would eventually play a part in his assassination), and he accelerated Vietnam.
Having said all that (which is why he is not in the Top Ten) He was also, if hypocritically so, deeply committed to Civil Rights advancement. His brinkmanship with Russia nearly ended the world - but did not - and for that he must be given great credit. He was the most fiscally conservative Democrat in the 20th Century and his vision for America and our role in the world (The Apollo Moon Missions, The Peace Corps, The international succoring of liberty) where both real and genuinely stirring.
The Bottom Ten - The Worst Presidents in U.S. History:

The worst President in U.S. history. Played with himself while the nation moved towards Civil War and 600,000 deaths. His inaction was a colossal betrayal of trust and duty. When he did act, he only made things worse. Indeed, it was the incompetence and moral cowardice of Buchanan that underscored the superiority of his successor, Abraham Lincoln.

II Andrew Johnson:
After Lincoln's assassination, Johnson single-handedly ensured that reconstruction would fail. He undid all of Lincoln's promises of "Charity towards all, malice towards none" by simultaneously antagonizing white southerners while abandoning the recently freed slaves. A Southerner and racist, no one could have been a worse successor for the great Lincoln. He supported the enactment of "Black codes". He so alienated his own party and congress, they moved to hedge his authority. When he crossed them, the House of Representatives impeached him (one of only two Presidents in U.S. History). He was spared removal from office by one vote in the Senate.

One of the most disappointing and tragic figures on my list. A man of great intelligence, sensitivity and moral fortitude, who turned out to be unable to face the challenges of office and adversity. A micromanager and idealist, Carter's naiveté coupled with an unwillingness to accept advice placed him a position of being feckless by default. On both the home front and internationally, tremendous energies were expended with no forward motion. The Soviet Union accumulated the greatest political and military advancements since the end of WWII while the Carter administration stood like a deer in the headlights. The oil crisis, unemployment, interest rates, and capped off by the Iranian Hostage crisis. Like a great academic politico, Carter could not handle the big chair when it came time to actually sit.

IV William Jefferson Clinton:

Clinton's first inaugural promise of being "The most Ethical Administration in the history of the United States", is a joke of such cosmic, gargantuan proportions, it is almost difficult to believe he actually said them. His moral turpitude, contempt for the rule of law, and outright corruption, coupled with several large policy failures (Energy Policy, Foreign Policy, Mid East Peace, The Military) are not offset by his one or two modest successes (GATT/WTO and welfare reform) nor his small part in one very large success (The economic boom). When you add in his horrifying disregard for the law, ethics, and personal accountability, Clinton emerges from the dust as a man of low practical ability and morals who played the instruments of personal politics and influence while the White House burned. The second President in U.S. history to be impeached. Like Johnson, he avoided being removed from office by one vote

V Calvin Coolidge:
If Clinton "fiddled while Rome Burned" then "Cool Cal" was in a coma under the guise of "minimalist conservative government". In addition, his high protective tariffs were a complete reversal of the free market ideals supported by his predecessors and aided in the coming of the Great Depression. Hoover often gets most of the blame for the great depression - I say it was Cal.

His "great society" and "war on poverty" is a legacy we are still paying for today. The class warfare attitudes and cycle of government dependence created by his failed attempts at democratizing socialism formed the basis of a divisive and counterproductive policy which helped lock hundreds of thousands of lives into permanent poverty and underclass. His escalation of the War in Vietnam for purely personal political purposes was underscored by his cowardice in refusing to run for a second elected term when it became clear he would be the "first President to lose a War". Only his support of civil rights (ironic considering what a vicious racist he was) prevents him from being in the top 5 of my list.

VII Gerald Ford:
Knew nothing, did nothing. As a congressman, never introduced ONE bill in 22 years! Was a gleeful participant in the greatest lie ever forced on the American people (the Warren Commission investigation of JFK's assassination). While these had nothing to do with his presidency, we should have seen the rest coming. Gerald Ford's sole job was to secure a Presidential pardon for Nixon. That is the only reason Nixon picked him. There is no other way this cosmic milquetoast could have even managed a wet-dream about becoming President.

Shocked are you? I know most people who are acquainted with me will be.
Even if you do not like him, "can he be that bad?" you ask? Yes.
Why? Forget leaving Saddam in power (not his fault) forget the economy (not his fault), Bush's biggest problem was his need to cover up his past and his willingness to utilize his most sacred Presidential power to do so.

On Christmas Eve, 1989, George Bush ordered the invasion of Panama, a sovereign neighbor, to remove the arguably popularly supported head of state so he could stand CRIMINAL charges in an America Court for narcotics trafficking. Huh? That would be like Tony Blair unleashing the British military (on the 4th of July) to invade New Hampshire because the mayor of Butts-ville was doing 100 mph in a 55 zone. Why did Bush do it? To avoid impeachment. Noriega was a U.S. CIA puppet who helped run drugs and launder money for the CIA. Bush was involved (both as VP and as CIA director) and Noriega was too dangerous to leave around. During his trial, 4 DEA agents were barred from testifying, under oath, that Noriega was working with the U.S. Have ya ever wondered what happened to Noriega? Have not heard anything about that since have we? The whole thing just kinda went away...

Obvious - the only reasons which kept him out of the top five (and ALMOST took him off the top ten)
a) Only Nixon could go to China...
b) He ended the Vietnam war.

X Ulysses S. Grant:
*sigh* Another one I weep to place on the list (like Carter). Great man, honest man, man of tremendous personal character and leadership. Naive, politically lazy, and a sucker. The most corrupt administration in U.S. history (due to the fact that Grant was surrounded by slime that he was never quite able to recognize or deal with). Only his personal traits save him from more damaging condemnation.

- Zachary Taylor/Millard Fillmore/Franklin Pierce: The three Presidents who preceded Buchanan and Lincoln. All aided in their own way the coming storm of Civil War.

Truman gets on the list mainly because of his guts. The man was hated while in office by both Dems and Repubs, but he was grounded in unimpeachable morals (ever faithful to wife, Bess, unlike the bevy of Democrats (xcpt Carter) who followed him)...he integrated the armed forces, fired the "American Ceasar," fought with a Democratic Congress...'bout the only knock against him was he was a bit soft on the poliferation of Commies invading the government, Hollywood and the media of the time.

Hmmmm... That's a tough question. I recall the debate at the recent turn of the century regarding who was the "Man of the Century" (by Time Magazine standards). I remember thinking at the time that Hitler without question had the most dramatic impact on the course of history - indeed, one of the most dramatic for the entire millennium. The problem with the term "great" is that it not only connotes magnitude but also connotes excellence. As such, one must balance the magnitude of the individual with the excellence of his endeavors. Hitler fails on the latter score, not the former..

The best President in our history was, without a doubt, William Henry Harrison.

Remember: "That government which governs best governs least."

William Henry Harrison did the least:

William H. Harrison
On March 4, 1841, in one of the longest inaugural addresses ever delivered, Harrison promised not to run for a second term--a promise that proved to be unnecessary. Harassed and fatigued by the demands of office seekers, he accomplished little during his one month in the presidency. Having contracted pneumonia in late March, he died in Washington, D.C., on April 4, 1841.

The author ranks Reagan and FDR on the the premise that Fascism/Nazism/Japanese Militarism was the greatest evil of history and Communism was the second greatest evil. I think he has his evils backwards. Fascism was no doubt an evil of tremendous measure but you have to consider that those outside of the fascist countries mostly saw it for the evil it was. Fascism required the force of arms to spread beyond the Axis. Communism on the other hand spawned a hundred marxist movements and sentiments that gave the world socialism, the modern statist Europe, green environmentalism and the modern US Democratic party. Fascism is dead. Communism has evolved and prospered.

That's perfectly fair, IMO. I'm simply trying to justify my own view on the matter. It's all a value judgment, when it comes right down to it, and the ambiguous term "great" does not help in this respect. Value judgments are perfectly fine and necessary, but I also try and view history through the most objective possible lens, apart from my valuation of events. If I were to consider the best presidents, they would no doubt rank differently than the greatest presidents.

I can give you a partial set -- I'm not expert enough at history to place them all.

1. Washington. Walking away from power when he had it.
2. Jefferson. Louisiana Purchase. DOI (pre-president but indicates the greatness of the man).
3. Teddy Roosevelt. Bully for him. I'm still benefiting from his national parks.
Top 10. Reagan. Man of vision, could inspire and communicate.
Top 10. Truman. Much as I dislike his petty Democrat policies, he had the guts to make some tough decisions.

Generally high. Lincoln. I've mixed feelings about him. He ran rough shod over the Constitution (e.g., Ex Parte Merryman); terrible treatment of some Confederate prisoners; sacrificed Union prisoners by refusing to honor prisoner exchange. On the other hand, one could argue that Lincoln did what he thought he had to do to win the war. Had he lived, he would have kept Reconstruction from getting as onerous as it did. This last thought is what gives him a high rating in my opinion.

Low ranking. JFK. He is way overrated. Jawboned businessmen as being evil; used his brother as Attorney General; Bay of Pigs. Only good thing he did was stand up to Russia over the Cuban missles.
Low ranking. LBJ. Lied to Congress over Tonkin Gulf.
Low ranking. FDR. Moved the country way to the left though he had campaigned otherwise. Tried to pack the Supreme Court by increasing the number of justices to 15. War effort OK.

Bottom 10. Ford. Shouldn't have pardoned Nixon.
39. Nixon. Good foreign policy but paranoid personality.
40. Grant. Scandal ridden.
41. Carter. Totally inept. Inflation soared, hostages held, Panama Canal given away.
42. Clinton. Chinese scandal; pardons; FBI files; Hillarycare; you name it. (Hillary would be reason enough.)

Fascism is dead.

I think that I have to agree with the author on this. Communism, while a threat, would have fallen of its own accord in time. The complete bankruptcy of every communist economy is an indication of that. Facism, on the other hand, might have continued to grow and would have been a much greater threat to the world if Hitler hadn't committed national suicide by starting the second world war.

John F. Kennedy: JFK was a womanizer, an elitist, and a political slickster who's administration double-dealed, held mortal grudges, and practiced the politics of personal vendetta. The Bay of Pigs was a fiasco, his personal war against Castro was illegal (and would eventually play a part in his assassination), and he accelerated Vietnam. Having said all that (which is why he is not in the Top Ten) He was also, if hypocritically so, deeply committed to Civil Rights advancement. His brinkmanship with Russia nearly ended the world - but did not - and for that he must be given great credit. He was the most fiscally conservative Democrat in the 20th Century and his vision for America and our role in the world (The Apollo Moon Missions, The Peace Corps, The international succoring of liberty) where both real and genuinely stirring.

Still haven't been able to kick that crack habit, I see. The man served less than 3 years and he left the world worse off than he found it. "Nearly end[ing] the world" is not an accomplishment, and the Apollo Moon missions started 4 years after Kennedy's death. Kennedy's contribution to the Space Race consisted of pointing out that the Soviets were beating us. You are going to have to give a specific example of "international succoring of liberty," and contrary to your assertion, Kennedy's civil rights record was undistinguished, given the perspective of the time. His predecessor sent troops to Little Rock to integrate the schools there. This leaves us with the Peace Corps. I will conceed that Kennedy did establish the Peace Corps. What that signifies, I am not exactly sure of, but it certainly does not merit a ranking in the top 50% of US presidents.

I disagree completely with Bush (41) on the "worst" list. He shouldn't be on either list. The reasons given are bogus. No mention that he continued the successful policies of Reagan and conducted the "cleanest" war in American history. Bush's (41) biggest drawbacks are his complete inaction on abortion and his lie about no tax increases.

The Kidd has it right. Bush 41' does not deserve to be on the worst list. His conduct on the war was superb - our forces put the world on notice that we were back. If you remember at the time the same yahoos who were talking about "quagmire" and "another Vietnam" were talking about the Persian Gulf War. It is not Bush's fault we stopped going to Baghdad, but rather the liberals, arabs, and their foolish UN policies.

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