The BEST US presidents in history.
Far too much attention is given to the worst US president of all time (Trump).That's somewhat understandable, as he is the current problem and seems to screw
up at least once per day.
However, with president's day recently passing,
lets instead pay favorable tribute to the top 20 US presidents of all time.
Sure, you may have your personal favorites, and that's OK.
Perhaps you like something about someone else.
However, neither one of us are as qualified in this field,
as the people who make the judgements for the official list.
Thus, when it comes to actually getting positive things done as a great leader,
here are truly the top 20 as determined by the most qualified presidential historians.
Don't get me wrong, no president is perfect. They each have some flaws.
That's part of being human. Regardless, here's the absolute best so far.
Hopefully the next one will join them.
In response to:
In a recent survey, nearly 200 political science scholars ranked US presidents on a scale of 0-100, from failure (zero) to average (50) to great (100). The totals were then averaged for each president and ranked from highest to lowest.
Here are the greatest US presidents, ranked according to current and recent members of the American Political Science Association:
20: James Polk
19: William McKinley
18: James Monroe
17: George H.W. Bush
16: John F. Kennedy
15: Andrew Jackson
14: John Adams
13: Bill Clinton
12: James Madison
11: Woodrow Wilson
10: Lyndon B. Johnson
9: Ronald Reagan
8: Barack Obama
7: Dwight Eisenhower
6: Harry Truman
5: Thomas Jefferson
4: Teddy Roosevelt
3: Franklin Delano Roosevelt
2: George Washington
1: Abraham Lincoln
In a recent survey, nearly 200 political science scholars ranked US presidents on a scale of 0-100, from failure (zero) to average (50) to great (100). The totals were then averaged for each president and ranked from highest to lowest.
Here are the greatest US presidents, ranked according to current and recent members of the American Political Science Association:
20: James Polk
19: William McKinley
18: James Monroe
17: George H.W. Bush
16: John F. Kennedy
15: Andrew Jackson
14: John Adams
13: Bill Clinton
12: James Madison
11: Woodrow Wilson
10: Lyndon B. Johnson
9: Ronald Reagan
8: Barack Obama
7: Dwight Eisenhower
6: Harry Truman
5: Thomas Jefferson
4: Teddy Roosevelt
3: Franklin Delano Roosevelt
2: George Washington
1: Abraham Lincoln
Comments (20)
Wilson & L. Johnson more so.
Wilson does well in such rankings because many of the folks doing the ranking are academicians & they go with Their Own.
I don't closely follow such trivia, but I think Wilson used place higher.
If so, I'll give 'em credit for knocking him down a few pegs
But he's still too high.
However, we are both less qualified to make such judgements than those who actually participated in the
survey. Personally, I think Lincoln is right where he belongs at #1. However, I could understand some people
thinking Washington should be #1 based on all he did before becoming president.
But again, the people who participated in the actual survey more thoroughly evaluate their
situations, than we can.
The individual participants have their prejudices & priorities and are entitled to them.
And I have mine.
It'd be interesting to know how many of the lists of individual participants matched that of the aggregate.
What's in a name?
Would august-sounding Woodrow Wilson be ranked as highly if he'd used his 1st rather than middle name -- Tom Wilson doesn't have the same ring to it.
Would Tom even have been elected Prez?
The same might be asked about Steve vs Grover Cleveland.
The reason the U.S. Army rank above general is General Of The Army rather than Field Marshal is because the 1st person to hold the rank thought Field Marshal Marshall (George Marshall) sounded silly.
If Henry McCarty hadn't used the name William, would he have achieved the notoriety he did as Billy The Kid.
Henry The Kid? I think not.
When such powers were asserted, they were sometimes challenged in the Supreme Court. Sometimes their assertions were upheld and sometimes not.
BTW -
That's not IMO.
It's included in university level history textbooks -- presumably written/edited by historians at least as highly accredited as the participants in the survey.
Others of the Top 20 who might fit the description to greater or lesser degrees -
John Adams, Jackson, Kennedy (aided by AG brother Bobby), Reagan & Obama.
Just ask Jim...he lives in the area...where Trump used to live...
he didn't get elected for what he's done in the past
IT ISN'T!
Perhaps if you asked if they ever watched The Apprentice FIRST, you might get a more honest answer out of them.
But, the intelligent people do.