[Cheese_Monster]

Would have been Teddy Roosevelt, but voted Franklin, as someone else said, he saved our bacon.

[wilson_smith]

(Original post by suffocation1992)
He had an equal interest in and impact on foreign policy and domestic politics. Often there are leaders who become so influential on the international stage that they seem to think ''**** the domestic issues, I'm a world leader now'' Tony Blair and George Bush being two that spring to mind.

I'm thinking of Kennedy in Vietnam whilst at the same time pushing through important social packages e.g. medicare/medicaid and landmark civil rights legislation.

JFK conducted a quite morally repugnant foreign policy, the Vietnam War and anti-democratic actions in Latin America speak for themselves.

[Super Cicero]

(Original post by gagaslilmonsteruk)
JFK as if it was another president handling the 1962 Cuba Crisis things would have been much worse.

No it really wouldn't. If Nixon had won in 1960 he would almost certainly have handled the Cuban Missile Crisis the same way JFK did. In fact, if Nixon had been in power instead, then the Crisis might never have happened, since Khrushchev believed that Kennedy was weak and so wouldn't oppose Soviet expansion into Cuba.

(Original post by Suetonius)
I voted FDR, closely followed by Eisenhower, Bush Jr. and Obama.

FDR and Eisenhower i can understand, but Bush Jr and Obama?? Seriously? Care to elaborate why?

(Original post by prog2djent)
I can't reallty make an informed decision at all about who the best was, but the worst, IMO, are Eisenhower, Bush and Nixon.

What was bad about Eisenhower??

[DYKWIA]

It's tough, but I'm gonna have to go with Reagan. My second would be george w. I know people thought he was dumb, but I really liked him. He seemed trustworthy and he was at least more charismatic than the racist obama.

[Suetonius]

(Original post by Super Cicero)
FDR and Eisenhower i can understand, but Bush Jr and Obama?? Seriously? Care to elaborate why?

Clearly Bush deserves great credit for liberating two important countries, and responding to the most severe threat the civilized world has seen in decades (breaking years of appeasement that had been persistent beforehand under the Clinton administration). Obama because he's largely continued this trend, and has pursued the enemy into the borders of its heartland: Pakistan (as well as facilitating the battle against them in Yemen and Somalia, while at the same time assisting Libyans in overthrowing a brutal dictator of their own).

[alex5455]

(Original post by DYKWIA)
It's tough, but I'm gonna have to go with Reagan. My second would be george w. I know people thought he was dumb, but I really liked him. He seemed trustworthy and he was at least more charismatic than the racist obama.

why am i not surprised a stupid person likes and trusts a fellow stupid person?

[DorianGrayism]

(Original post by DYKWIA)
It's tough, but I'm gonna have to go with Reagan. My second would be george w. I know people thought he was dumb, but I really liked him. He seemed trustworthy and he was at least more charismatic than the racist obama.

I don't think Bush was dumb. I think he just put an act on so he could get votes.

[Teofilo]

(Original post by Suetonius)
Clearly Bush deserves great credit for liberating two important countries, and responding to the most severe threat the civilized world has seen in decades (breaking years of appeasement that had been persistent beforehand under the Clinton administration). Obama because he's largely continued this trend, and has pursued the enemy into the borders of its heartland: Pakistan (as well as facilitating the battle against them in Yemen and Somalia, while at the same time assisting Libyans in overthrowing a brutal dictator of their own).

The implication in this post that all that makes a good president is a willingness to recklessly chase terrorists around the globe at any and all costs is utterly absurd.

[Suetonius]

(Original post by Teofilo)
The implication in this post that all that makes a good president is a willingness to recklessly chase terrorists around the globe at any and all costs is utterly absurd.

Not at all. I chose FDR because he led America into battle against fascism and dictatorship after it was attacked; something that Bush admirably shares in common with him.

[thirstysailor]

Ronald Reagen getting almost twice as many votes as Clinton? You've got to be ****ing kidding me. Reagen caused an enormous budget defect with his tax cuts and free market economics that clinton has been the only president since to go someway to reducing.

[I Persia I]

Where's Woodrow Wilson?!

[mrt23498]

I say George W Bush. My reasoning is that he declared war on Iraq. Yes his own reasons he gave were false, absurd, and frighteningly fragile, yet it got rid of Saddam, who if we remember did invade that small country of Kuwait, and did like murder many Kurdish people in genocides.

[Super Cicero]

(Original post by thirstysailor)
Ronald Reagen getting almost twice as many votes as Clinton? You've got to be ****ing kidding me. Reagen caused an enormous budget defect with his tax cuts and free market economics that clinton has been the only president since to go someway to reducing.

Ah, but the only reason Clinton ended up substantially cutting the budget deficit was because he was forced to do so by the Republican controlled congress following the 1994 mid-terms. If Clinton had had his own way, he would have done what left-leaning leaders always do which is spend spend spend, and the US budget deficit would have been even higher. The deficit reduction of the 90s was thanks to the Republicans, not Clinton.

[Sharpshooter]

"Lyndon B. Johnsons accomplishments include; the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the 24th amendment, Medicare, Medicaid, the 25th amendment, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, the Higher Education Act, the 1965 Voting Rights Act, the Immigration Act. He also played a part in getting the civil rights acts of 1957 and 1960."

And he doesn't even have 1 vote on this thread. Strange where peoples priorities lie. Obama wouldn't have been president without some of his legislation, not just the civil rights act but the immigration act which drastically changed the demographics of America, allowing more non whites (and thus more votes for an Obama type candidate) to get in.

[Steevee]

Reagan or Roosevalt. Although Truman gets props for being an all round badass.

[thirstysailor]

(Original post by Super Cicero)
Ah, but the only reason Clinton ended up substantially cutting the budget deficit was because he was forced to do so by the Republican controlled congress following the 1994 mid-terms. If Clinton had had his own way, he would have done what left-leaning leaders always do which is spend spend spend, and the US budget deficit would have been even higher. The deficit reduction of the 90s was thanks to the Republicans, not Clinton.

Nonetheless it doesn't get rid of the fact that it was a deficit caused by republicans during the Reagen administration.

[tc92]

(Original post by Super Cicero)
Ah, but the only reason Clinton ended up substantially cutting the budget deficit was because he was forced to do so by the Republican controlled congress following the 1994 mid-terms. If Clinton had had his own way, he would have done what left-leaning leaders always do which is spend spend spend, and the US budget deficit would have been even higher. The deficit reduction of the 90s was thanks to the Republicans, not Clinton.

I read someone recently making this very point in relation to modern times; that, highly ironically, the Republicans' election chances are being harmed by economic recovery (however mild), which was caused not least because of the Republicans' success in the gubernatorials, winning seats in Congress and stopping Obama from increasing spending and the Debt as he had done in the first half of his term.

[Made in the USA]

(Original post by alex5455)
why am i not surprised a stupid person likes and trusts a fellow stupid person?

Reagan is on upper 1/2 of every top ten survey of US presidents I have ever seen. He's a legend in this country.

[alex5455]

(Original post by Made in the USA)
Reagan is on upper 1/2 of every top ten survey of US presidents I have ever seen. He's a legend in this country.

I was talking about bush

[meenu89]

Reagan.