Ok, how about something positive......

[SoTier]

My top three in chronological order:

1. George Washington because he not only set the precedents and institutions for the Executive Branch that continue to this day such as addressing the POTUS as "Mr. President" not "Your Excellency" or some other grand title and the Presidential cabinet; established the supremacy of the federal government to enforce federal law (Whiskey Rebellion 1794); and most importantly, retiring to private life after two terms when he could have easily continued as POTUS for life.  Keep in mind that immediately after the Revolution, there was considerable sentiment, especially among the veterans of the Continental Army, for Washington to take over the government.  Washington refused that.  Then in 1796, he chose again to voluntarily step down.   He set the US on the path to successful republicanism when it had never been done before.
2. Abraham Lincoln because he not only held the country together in its greatest constitutional crisis, but also supported laws that were major contributors to US economic prosperity for the next century, including the Homestead Act, the Morrill Act, and the Pacific Railroad Act.  Although he fully expected to be defeated in the 1864 presidential election, which would mean that the South would have been allowed to leave the Union, Lincoln refused to postpone or otherwise use his office against his opponent, George B. McClellan.
3. Franklin Roosevelt because he successfully dealt with two separate major crises, the Great Depression, the worst economic collapse in US history, and WW II.   His New Deal included seminal legislation that established social security, gave American workers the right to unionize, set a national minimum wage, and limited and regulated child labor. FDR's positive achievements during the Great Depression were somewhat tarnished by his attempt to pack the Supreme Court in the late 1930s.  His leadership during WW II was more problematic.  He failed to take the threat from Japan seriously enough.  The internment of Japanese Amercans, most of whom were US born citizens, was simply stupid war hysteria fed by racism.  FDR's running for election in 1944 was probably a mistake because he was dangerously ill, which was hidden from the American public.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[TBBills]

 Bush Sr., Clinton, Obama... I also liked Bush Junior but that was b.c he made me laugh.

 

As for dead ones, Lincoln, Roosevelt, Jefferson.

Edited October 7, 2020 by TBBills

[Westside]

7 minutes ago, SoTier said:

My top three in chronological order:

1. George Washington because he not only set the precedents and institutions for the Executive Branch that continue to this day such as addressing the POTUS as "Mr. President" not "Your Excellency" or some other grand title and the Presidential cabinet; established the supremacy of the federal government to enforce federal law (Whiskey Rebellion 1794); and most importantly, retiring to private life after two terms when he could have easily continued as POTUS for life.  Keep in mind that immediately after the Revolution, there was considerable sentiment, especially among the veterans of the Continental Army, for Washington to take over the government.  Washington refused that.  Then in 1796, he chose again to voluntarily step down.   He set the US on the path to successful republicanism when it had never been done before.
2. Abraham Lincoln because he not only held the country together in its greatest constitutional crisis, but also supported laws that were major contributors to US economic prosperity for the next century, including the Homestead Act, the Morrill Act, and the Pacific Railroad Act.  Although he fully expected to be defeated in the 1864 presidential election, which would mean that the South would have been allowed to leave the Union, Lincoln refused to postpone or otherwise use his office against his opponent, George B. McClellan.
3. Franklin Roosevelt because he successfully dealt with two separate major crises, the Great Depression, the worst economic collapse in US history, and WW II.   His New Deal included seminal legislation that established social security, gave American workers the right to unionize, set a national minimum wage, and limited and regulated child labor. FDR's positive achievements during the Great Depression were somewhat tarnished by his attempt to pack the Supreme Court in the late 1930s.  His leadership during WW II was more problematic.  He failed to take the threat from Japan seriously enough.  The internment of Japanese Amercans, most of whom were US born citizens, was simply stupid war hysteria fed by racism.  FDR's running for election in 1944 was probably a mistake because he was dangerously ill, which was hidden from the American public.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of the main reasons I favored Washington was the fact he put a term limiton himself, knowing the danger of becoming a "king", which is why we fought for our freedom. Good post SoTier.

[Sherlock Holmes]

Donald Trump

Abraham Lincoln

JFK

Ronald Reagan

Richard Nixon(just had to throw out an honorable mention to Tricky Dicky)

Teddy

George Washington

Grover Cleveland

 

[Westside]

8 minutes ago, TBBills said:

 Bush Sr., Clinton, Obama... I also liked Bush Junior but that was b.c he made me laugh.

 

As for dead ones, Lincoln, Roosevelt, Jefferson.

I'm surprised you liked Bush. I actually voted for Clinton and Obama both times. 

As far as the dead ones, you can't go wrong with any of those choices.

[Bray Wyatt]

11 minutes ago, SoTier said:

My top three in chronological order:

1. George Washington because he not only set the precedents and institutions for the Executive Branch that continue to this day such as addressing the POTUS as "Mr. President" not "Your Excellency" or some other grand title and the Presidential cabinet; established the supremacy of the federal government to enforce federal law (Whiskey Rebellion 1794); and most importantly, retiring to private life after two terms when he could have easily continued as POTUS for life.  Keep in mind that immediately after the Revolution, there was considerable sentiment, especially among the veterans of the Continental Army, for Washington to take over the government.  Washington refused that.  Then in 1796, he chose again to voluntarily step down.   He set the US on the path to successful republicanism when it had never been done before.
2. Abraham Lincoln because he not only held the country together in its greatest constitutional crisis, but also supported laws that were major contributors to US economic prosperity for the next century, including the Homestead Act, the Morrill Act, and the Pacific Railroad Act.  Although he fully expected to be defeated in the 1864 presidential election, which would mean that the South would have been allowed to leave the Union, Lincoln refused to postpone or otherwise use his office against his opponent, George B. McClellan.
3. Franklin Roosevelt because he successfully dealt with two separate major crises, the Great Depression, the worst economic collapse in US history, and WW II.   His New Deal included seminal legislation that established social security, gave American workers the right to unionize, set a national minimum wage, and limited and regulated child labor. FDR's positive achievements during the Great Depression were somewhat tarnished by his attempt to pack the Supreme Court in the late 1930s.  His leadership during WW II was more problematic.  He failed to take the threat from Japan seriously enough.  The internment of Japanese Amercans, most of whom were US born citizens, was simply stupid war hysteria fed by racism.  FDR's running for election in 1944 was probably a mistake because he was dangerously ill, which was hidden from the American public.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I do find it interesting that you have the guy who set the precedent of 2 terms (praise him for this) and then have the guy who broke this precedent on the same list.

 

(I know you can still like FDR for other reasons, just found it funny)

[TBBills]

5 minutes ago, westside2 said:

I'm surprised you liked Bush. I actually voted for Clinton and Obama both times. 

As far as the dead ones, you can't go wrong with any of those choices.

I am not against someone who does their job as president, even if I didn't like all the things they stood for. I thought Bush did a good job handling the problems put infront on him while he was in office. He also did it while having a mostly democratic controlled Congress which is a feat to get 2 sides to work together. That is what I care about most.

[TBBills]

19 minutes ago, Sherlock Holmes said:

Donald Trump

Abraham Lincoln

JFK

Ronald Reagan

Richard Nixon(just had to throw out an honorable mention to Tricky Dicky)

Teddy

George Washington

Grover Cleveland

 

You got a ***** problem? I could have sworn they asked for no trolling in this one topic and you have to be a ***** asshat.

[SoTier]

29 minutes ago, Bray Wyatt said:

I do find it interesting that you have the guy who set the precedent of 2 terms (praise him for this) and then have the guy who broke this precedent on the same list.

 

(I know you can still like FDR for other reasons, just found it funny)

 

I rate my Presidents by how they faced the crises in their administrations.   Some presidents didn't face any significant crises, so I don't consider them at all.  Very few faced two crises while in office.  Off the top of my head, only FDR and GWB (9/11 and the Great Recession) faced two.

 

I would have preferred that FDR would not have run in 1940 (he initially didn't intend to), but I also understand why he did so.  With the the war in Europe, he and the party leaders were worried about the isolationist sentiment within both parties.   As it was, the isolationists in Congress made it difficult for the US to properly prepare for self defense -- although the US instituted the first peace time draft in 1940, monies for equipment weren't appropriated so US troops used whatever WW I surplus equipment that was on hand, and some units "trained" with wooden rifles.

Edited October 7, 2020 by SoTier

[SectionC3]

11 hours ago, Chef Jim said:

Thomas Jefferson:

 

1. We share the same birthday

2.  Principal author of the Declaration of Independence

3.  Minister to France

4.  Our first SOS

5. Louisiana Purchase and the western expansion via the Lewis and Clark Expedition

6. A great oenophile (Jefferson on Wine is a great read)

7. Sold his personal library to the Library of Congress after the British burned it to the ground during the War of 1812

 

Interesting.  Jefferson also was a racist.  

[Tiberius]

10 hours ago, Plano said:

Ol Milly Filly is my choice

Signed the Fugitive Slave Law....

[SectionC3]

Lincoln

FDR

TR

Obama

Bush Sr. (largely because he was a class act and a genuinely decent man)

[shoshin]

33 minutes ago, SectionC3 said:

 

Interesting.  Jefferson also was a racist.  

Off by a letter as well on a more serious truth. Rapist. And enslaved his children. He wrote the Dec but its ideals were those of them all—he was just an the best writer of the founders and they knew it. 
 

Jefferson had a brilliant mind but was  an intellectual mess. 

 

I love Adams but he was an ineffective president. Love Truman too but also not as effective as he could have been. Reagan was smart politically but his ability to pry the Dixiecrats to the Republican Party killed the Republican ideal of small government since his presidency. It was a deal with the devil. Grant is underrated as president. Talk about a divided time to be potus and he navigated it perfectly. 

Tops

Lincoln. No one can compare. He kept us united.

Washington. A complicated guy but he was first, could have easily been King George and wasn’t. Owned a divided cabinet and country and managed it. Had slaves but also freed them and understood it was a plague. He was the model of a dignified American president. 

 

A third would be a big drop to anyone else. 

Edited October 7, 2020 by shoshin

[Kemp]

Lincoln, easily.

 

In no particular order

 

Eisenhower

Obama

Clinton

FDR

Truman

LBJ

Kennedy

Washington 

 

And while he is almost universally reviled, Carter was the most moral man to hold the office in my lifetime.

Edited October 7, 2020 by Kemp

[SectionC3]

8 minutes ago, shoshin said:

Off by a letter as well on a more serious truth. Rapist. And enslaved his children. He wrote the Dec but its ideals were those of them all—he was just an the best writer of the founders and they knew it. 
 

Jefferson had a brilliant mind but was  an intellectual mess. 

 

I love Adams but he was an ineffective president. Love Truman too but also not as effective as he could have been. Reagan was smart politically but his ability to pry the Dixiecrats to the Republican Party killed the Republican ideal of small government since his presidency. It was a deal with the devil. Grant is underrated as president. Talk about a divided time to be potus and he navigated it perfectly. 

Tops

Lincoln. No one can compare. He kept us united.

Washington. A complicated guy but he was first, could have easily been King George and wasn’t. Owned a divided cabinet and country and managed it. Had slaves but also freed them and understood it was a plague. 

 

A third would be a big drop to anyone else. 

 

I believe Washington emancipated after his death.  But I agree on his greatness; without his courage there may have been no United States of America. 

[shoshin]

Just now, SectionC3 said:

 

I believe Washington emancipated after his death.  But I agree on his greatness; without his courage there may have been no United States of America. 

He did. Owning slaves was a struggle for him to justify through his later life. It haunted him. 

[SectionC3]

27 minutes ago, shoshin said:

He did. Owning slaves was a struggle for him to justify through his later life. It haunted him. 

 

I guess.  Just not enough to free them.  I've thought a lot about this issue lately.  I don't believe that we should tear down the Washington Monument or the Jefferson Memorial, etc.  But maybe it is time to tell the full story about some of our forefathers.  Washington had tremendous, unique, and essential courage, and he is fairly characterized as a father, if not the father, of American democracy.  But he also enslaved people.  It's a strange dichotomy.  

[shoshin]

7 minutes ago, SectionC3 said:

 

I guess.  Just not enough to free them.  I've thought a lot about this issue lately.  I don't believe that we should tear down the Washington Monument or the Jefferson Memorial, etc.  But maybe it is time to tell the full story about some of our forefathers.  Washington had tremendous, unique, and essential courage, and he is fairly characterized as a father, if not the father, of American democracy.  But he also enslaved people.  It's a strange dichotomy.  

Totally against the tearing down. People are complicated. Jefferson the rapist who enslaved his own children (!) is for sure a top 10 or maybe even 5 president in almost anyone’s opinion. His presidency was critically important and his role in the founding large, if sometimes overblown. 
 

Trust me that at my daughter’s school they tore them down plenty, so much so that her classmates look on the founders as people to revile almost unequivocally. 
 

It is a pendulum swing too far and in the rush to judge (guilty as charged on this many times and many ways), we make iconic people into demons instead of just sympathetic imperfect humans, which would give us all a more compassionate view of everyone that we all benefit from. 

[Tiberius]

Love all the lists. Lincoln is my fav, I'll say more when time permits, but just want to say that Truman, while kind of a strange guy, was a great president. Helped establish the world order that walled in communism, probably made the right call on dropping the bomb--I'll explain if anyone cares--de-segregated the military, pushed civil rights, Berlin Airlift, and his big come back against Dewey in 1948 is the stuff of legends 

[Chef Jim]

1 hour ago, SectionC3 said:

 

Interesting.  Jefferson also was a racist.  

Oh thanks.  I forgot to add that the the list. 
 

👌🏼 

8 hours ago, TBBills said:

You got a ***** problem? I could have sworn they asked for no trolling in this one topic and you have to be a ***** asshat.

Quite selective with your call outs aren’t you.