Well it's President's Day again. I've been traveling all day so I'ma bit late getting to this. Every year, regardless of which class I'm teaching, I like to take 15 minutes or so to talk about presidents and rankings.
For my money, the top 4 in chronological order are:
Washington: Set precedents, treaty with Great Britain, smart enough to hire Hamilton, etc.
Lincoln: Won the Civil War, not to mention the Homestead and Land Grant Act, two of the most important pieces of legislation in American history.
FDR: Come on, conservatives, you're not really still taking up this cudgel are you? Social Security, AFDC, FDIC, etc, not to mention World War II.
Reagan: Come on, Liberals, you're not really still taking up this cudgel are you? Economic reform, restoration of pride, overhauling the tax code and rates, not to mention winning the Cold War.
Four underrated presidents:
Polk: Tariff he wanted, settled the Oregon Dispute, annexed Texas, and the War with Mexico.
Bush the Elder: The Gulf War, obviously, handling the savings and loan and BCCI crisis.
Coolidge: Peace and Prosperity in the 20's.
McKinley: Won the war with Spain and later,the Philippine Insurgency.
Overrated Presidents:
Jackson: The man was a fiend, spoils system, Indian Removal Act, war on the bank, Specie Circular.
Adams: Alien and Sedition Act, 'nuff said.
George W. Bush...was a good president:
Handling 9/11, keeping us safe after, liberating Afghanistan, overthrowing Saddam, winning the insurgency, 53 straight months of economic growth, and intervening to handle the financial crisis via TARP, which is 100% repaid.
Wronged by history:
Nixon: After 7 + years of Barry, no Democrat ever gets to tell me how awful Nixon was. The man's record speaks for itself. Clean Air Act, shuttle diplomacy, opening China, SALT I. Watergate? Don't make me laugh.
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