[meandog]

Interesting...
The historians that I admire, however, have ranked them this way(top and bottom dozen)

Top
1. Lincoln
2. Washington
3. Jefferson
4. T. Roosevelt
5. Polk
6. F. Roosevelt
7. Madison
8. Jackson
9. Reagan
10. Adams
11. Truman
12. Monroe...

Bottom dozen:
31. G. Bush
32. Pierce
33. Harding
34. Filmore
35. Carter
36. Hoover
37. L.B. Johnson
38. Nixon
39. Grant.
40. A. Johnson
41. Buchanan
42. Clinton

[Alberta's Child]

Like Johnson, he avoided being removed from office by one vote . . .

Huh?

The lists you provided are far more accurate than the ones in the article. Ranking Theodore Roosevelt ahead of FDR is the key.

Also, I suspect that once the 1960s generation fades into history and the last 50 years can be viewed objectively, JFK will start showing up on lists of the worst presidents in U.S. history. If you go back and look at the three years he was in office, they are remarkable only because almost nothing of note was accomplished during that period.

[Drango]

I think Clinton was rank....

[Huck]

Washington HAS to be number one. And I love Madison, but his Presidency was a bit, uh, messy. I am not a huge Jefferson fan, but he seems to have been very successful. Fun parlor game, isn't it? Wish I had more time.

And FDR was a nightmare, at least domestically. I have to admit he led the war forcefully.

[PaulJ]

his personal war against Castro was illegal (and would eventually play a part in his assassination)

the greatest lie ever forced on the American people (the Warren Commission investigation of JFK's assassination).

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)

You should have warned me to put on my tin foil hat.

[yonif]

Truman was the first president to recognize Israel.

[kidd]

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.

How could this author use the Bush-Noriega fantasy and completely ignore the Chinese campaign contributions to Clinton in exchange for nuclear secrets - which would solidly place Clinton at the top of the "worst" list?

[Silas]

I like the idea of Brooke Burke (hostess of 'Rank') doing a special on this. Or anything else. ILBB.

[lawgirl]

Similarly, the presence of Jimmy Carter and (much as it pains me personally)

oops just lost all credibility with me.

[Protagoras]

I guess the whole exercise is based on what the criteria is. MY criteria would be how well the Presidents defended the rights of the citizens and upheld their oath of office.

Given that, the list would look much different.

[ricpic]

Coolidge: The last President with the integrity to attempt to maintain limited government, i.e. not to steal from the American people; on the worst list? I don't think so.

[AntiGuv]

By and large I agree with this list, except that I would shift Truman down several notches - probably out of the top 10 - and Lyndon Johnson (reluctantly) up a couple notches. I don't think that Truman did anything particularly distinctive that anyone else would not have, and I think Johnson's manuevers were crucial to the breaking of Jim Crow - whatever his shady motivations. That's just MO.

[Austin Willard Wright]

Harding in the bottom dozen?! Poor Warren can't get no respect! He slashed taxes and spending, reduced inflation, and preceded over a vigorous post-war economic recovery. He dared to speak out for civil rights in the South in contrast to the segregationist Woodrow Wilson. His administration gave us the Washington Naval Treaty, which brought sweeping multi-lateral arms reductions.

He appointed a cabinet of intellectual heavyweights including Andrew Mellon, Hoover, and Charles Evans Hughes. His appointment to the Supreme Court included William Howard Taft.

Yes....I know you will trot out Teapot Dome but, all things considered, it was vastly overrated in importance. Only one cabinet official was convicted. He was secretary of interior Albert Fall who was convicted on a single charge and aquitted on all others. Fall's recent biographer argues that he was mostly a scapecoat. The other corruption involved lower level people and was mostly piddling.

Harding was not personally involved in the corruption. When he found out the first inkling of evidence he shook one of the guilty parties by the lapel in anger. The corruption was trivial when compared to that tolerated my many "greats" such as FDR.

All it all...I'd rank him number one for the twentieth century.

BTW, most of your top ten became "great" by taking us to war. Is there a pattern here?

[jpl]

FDR above Reagan? Heresy, especially on a site like this (one would think). Personally, I don't really have a problem with him being in the top ten given his role in bringing us into the War, but his complete disregard for basic constitutional principles and desire to be "President for Life" move him way down the list in my opinion. He's the reason why we had to pass the term-limit amendment to the constitution.

[jdege]

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.

[John R. (Bob) Locke]

Any list that has "Cool Cal" in the BOTTOM 10 isn't worth perusing.

When was the last time a President vetoed a bill and sent it back with the message "I find no authority under the Constitution for the federal government to undertake that which is outlined in this bill"?

[azcap]

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.

[rustbucket]

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.)

[WaveThatFlag]

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.

[AntiGuv]

I should also note that I don't think Kennedy should stand anywhere near the top 10 list, but I didn't bother to consider the 'honorable mentions'...

[arthurus]

In my view, the ten greatest presidents list is not congruent with the ten best presidents. FDR was certainly one of the greatest presidents but surely not one of the best. Ditto Lincoln. The great presidents are tho ones who had the most power and largest effect on history .

The best were the ones who governened the best. I would put Coolidge on the best list even given the tarriffs that he inherited because of his true laissez fair attitude toward buiness and the resulting prosperity. I would put Hoover on the worst list because of his support for Smoot-Hawley that crippled world trade for a generation and was a major contributor to the great depression.