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Gmorgan4982 
LSU Fan
Hattiesburg, Miss.
Member since May 2005
90566 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/16/13 at 11:17 pm to Interception)
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FightinTiger 
Georgia Tech Fan
wat
Member since Oct 2003
7839 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/16/13 at 11:21 pm to Interception)
1. Theodore Roosevelt
2. Abraham Lincoln
3. Thomas Jefferson
4. Franklin Roosevelt
5. Dwight Eisenhower
6. Andrew Jackson
7. Ronald Reagan
8. George Washington
9. James Polk
10. Harry Truman
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GREENHEAD22
LSU Fan
LafayettebywayofBush
Member since Nov 2009
5927 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/16/13 at 11:24 pm to FightinTiger)
For get the top 10, top three as stated in other thread.
GW, TJ, AJ
AJ is interchangeable with Madison or Adams
AL would be in my top 3 worst.
This post was edited on 2/16 at 11:28 pm
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Fox Mulder 
Tulane Fan
Uptown
Member since Dec 2010
13095 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 12:06 am to Interception)
Thomas Jefferson
JFK
Big Willy
Eisenhower
Andrew Jackson
I really would have no justification for ranking anyone after that.
My worst
FDR
Obama
Carter
LBJ
Truman
Harding
Polk
Grant
Lincoln
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Jim Rockford
LSU Fan
Member since May 2011
23935 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 12:18 am to Interception)
Lincoln
Jefferson
Washington
Madison
TR
FDR
Monroe
Eisenhower
My list stops at eight, and it could have been a bit shorter.
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jimbeam
LSU Fan
Patrick F. Taylor
Member since Oct 2011
16859 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 12:39 am to SmackoverHawg)
Just bc he's black has nothing to do with being great.
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PrimeTime Money
Stetson Fan
Houston, Texas, USA
Member since Nov 2012
2404 posts
 Online
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 1:06 am to Interception)
No love for my dog Grover Cleveland?
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SmackoverHawg 
Arkansas Fan
Member since Oct 2011
6392 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 1:09 am to jimbeam)
quote:
Just bc he's black has nothing to do with being great.
True. Significant is not equal to great. I'm just trying to get myself off the FBI watchlist if that's even possible. 
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Navytiger74
LSU Fan
Manama, Bahrain
Member since Oct 2009
10665 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 4:40 am to Interception)
These lists are always tough for me. I'd argue that you almost need two lists based upon two sets of criteria--presidents who did things right (effectively wielded the powers of the office) and presidents who did the right things (pursued policies with which I agree and which I believe to have been in the country's best interest).
This list will be try to account for both.
1. Abraham Lincoln (no one else is especially close)
2. George Washington
3. Teddy Roosevelt
4. FDR
5. Harry Truman
6. Thomas Jefferson
7. James Madison
8. Dwight Eisenhower
9. Ronald Reagan*
10. Woodrow Wilson
Of the three strong presidents whose legacies (I feel) may not survive some one or two notable dark moments, Reagan is the only one to make the list. He should have been impeached for Iran-Contra, but he was a masterful communicator and an effective leader who gave the country what it needed at the time.
LBJ was arguably the most gifted and effective deal maker/politician to ever hold the office. Unsustainable social spending and Vietnam weigh heavily on his legacy.
Nixon's tenure apart from Watergate could also justify a top 10 ranking, but there is no way to consider him apart from the damage he did to the Office
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Interception
Providence Fan
Member since Nov 2008
9222 posts
Online
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 6:08 am to Navytiger74)
quote:
Of the three strong presidents whose legacies (I feel) may not survive some one or two notable dark moments, Reagan is the only one to make the list. He should have been impeached for Iran-Contra, but he was a masterful communicator and an effective leader who gave the country what it needed at the time.
Good points, I think Reagan, Clinton and FDR have all gained because of economic recoveries. All of their predecessors were 1 term presidents that were thrown out of office because of economic downturns. I think we should remember that economic trends are cyclical in nature but like everything else in life timing is everything.
Reagan had an historic moment as the Soviet Union crumbled during his presidency. I think Reagan certainly deserves credit for the Soviets fall but other Presidents such as Ike, JFK, and Nixon deserve some credit on the Cold War front.
quote:
LBJ was arguably the most gifted and effective deal maker/politician to ever hold the office. Unsustainable social spending and Vietnam weigh heavily on his legacy.
I couldn't agree more on the LBJ front. My problem is that LBJ was not a leading civil rights movement proponent and neither was JFK until it was politically feasible. In other words, it's leading from behind and why I can't place them in my list.
quote:
Nixon's tenure apart from Watergate could also justify a top 10 ranking, but there is no way to consider him apart from the damage he did to the Office
Nixon was one of the greatest minds to ever step into the White House. The man was strategically brilliant and could have been one of the great presidents. Still, Nixon was possibly the most twisted SOB to ever step foot into the WH. I catch chills every time I listen to those WH tapes.
This post was edited on 2/17 at 6:12 am
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Interception
Providence Fan
Member since Nov 2008
9222 posts
Online
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quote:
No love for my dog Grover Cleveland?
Possibly top 15, defiantly in top 20
This post was edited on 2/17 at 6:21 am
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Interception
Providence Fan
Member since Nov 2008
9222 posts
Online
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 6:20 am to Fox Mulder)
quote:
Thomas Jefferson
JFK
Big Willy
Eisenhower
Andrew Jackson
I really would have no justification for ranking anyone after that.
JFK and Clinton are 2 odd selections. Can you expand on why these 2 deserve to be in the top 10?
quote:
My worst
FDR
Obama
Carter
LBJ
Truman
Harding
Polk
Grant
Lincoln
FDR, Truman, Polk and Lincoln?
Im so confused...
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ChineseBandit58
LSU Fan
piney woods
Member since Aug 2005
7451 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 7:00 am to maine82)
quote:
Clinton is a greater President than all three. His great failure is not being more aggressive against al-Qaeda, but he did build upon Reagan's economic foundation and extended it with NAFTA, welfare reform and a balanced budget. Granted the Republican Congress pushed him into the last two, but you could say that about most any President, that they were pressured by Congress into doing things.
I am beginning to like Clinton more and more - based primarily on how he compares to the last two DEM presidents, Carter and this POS in there now.
But I am always amused at people giving credit to Clinton for the economy he enjoyed.
First - the time was ripe for the 'peace dividend' to bear some fruit. Another feather in Reagan's cap.
Second - he opposed all the measures that actually got the job done. Kasich and Gingrich deserve most if not all the credit for the economic successes - and just like welfare reform - he was pushed into 'having' to sign it or face a veto overturn. After the measures worked, he takes credit.
I don't see how anyone can give "top ten" status to someone just because he was not effective in stopping the progress he is credited with creating.
But, Clinton certainly rises from near the bottom. Obama has created a huge gap between the 'worst' and 'second worst' so nobody can be near the bottom anymore.
As far as these lists go - I think the first five should be exempted from the lists. As the architects of the whole constitutional government, they stand above all the rest.
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maine82
LSU Fan
Member since Aug 2011
546 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 7:31 am to Interception)
quote:
Reagan had an historic moment as the Soviet Union crumbled during his presidency. I think Reagan certainly deserves credit for the Soviets fall but other Presidents such as Ike, JFK, and Nixon deserve some credit on the Cold War front.
IMO, Reagan and then Truman get the lion's share of credit on the Cold War.
Reagan had the understanding that the Soviet Union was a paper tiger when a lot of others didn't. Nixon and Kissinger operated on the basis that the Soviet Union was much stronger than it was. Reagan saw otherwise and started pushing down on the pressure points, including:
1) Aggressively funding defense, thus daring the Soviet Union to try and catch up
2) Announcing the Star Wars initiative. Whether it would have worked or not, ex-Soviet officials have acknowledged that at that point, they asked themselves, "how can we compete with this?"
3) Halting Soviet advances across the world by funding anti-Communist forces, and occasionally using U.S. forces, including Grenada
4) Pushing for nuclear missiles to be stationed in Europe
5) Pushing back against the nuclear freeze movement
And other foreign policy-specific examples.
You also have to look at the economy that he led in reviving, with tax and regulatory relief and more critically supporting Paul Volcker's monetary policy, who was willing to make the tough monetary choices that people like Bernanke seem incapable of. All of this IMO put pressure on Gorbachev and helped lead to the economic reforms, the 1987 INF treaty and the Soviet Union's ultimate downfall, because once the ball started rolling, Gorbachev couldn't stop it.
Truman gets a lot of credit because he stopped Stalin in Korea, issued the Truman Doctrine, implemented the Marshall Plan which blocked Soviet influence in Western Europe, oversaw the Berlin airlift, formed NATO (including the shrewd call to take in both Greece and Turkey) and appropriately interfered in European elections to block Communists (namely Italy). Extremely underrated and laid the framework for victory in the Cold War.
Eisenhower and Kennedy were good but they basically held the line. That's important but they don't compare to Reagan and Truman. I actually think with Nixon we went backwards in terms of the Soviet Union. Lost opportunities.
This post was edited on 2/17 at 7:33 am
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Placebeaux
LSU Fan
Member since Jun 2008
19030 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 7:54 am to maine82)
1) Andrew Jackson / Thomas Jefferson
2) Washington
3) JFK / Lincoln
4) Teddy Roosevelt
5) The rest
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NC_Tigah
LSU Fan
Member since Sep 2003
40701 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 8:13 am to Interception)
(1) George Washington
(2) Thomas Jefferson
(3) Theodore Roosevelt
(4) James Madison
(5) James Monroe
(6) Ronald Reagan
(7) Abraham Lincoln
(8) Andrew Jackson
(9) James Polk
(10) Franklin Roosevelt
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Swampcat
LSU Fan
Member since Dec 2003
6074 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 8:28 am to Interception)
Don't know about top 10 but bottom two are
1 Obama
2 carter
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GREENHEAD22
LSU Fan
LafayettebywayofBush
Member since Nov 2009
5927 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 11:18 am to Swampcat)
I always have to laugh at how one of the most unconstitutional tyrants to ever sit in office continually tops peoples list. I guess it should have been no surprise when BO won again.
This post was edited on 2/17 at 11:52 pm
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Antonio Moss
LSU Fan
Baton Rouge
Member since Mar 2006
25518 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 1:05 pm to long4life)
quote:
Jefferson and Washington: didn't really believe all that stuff they put into the declaration of independence: "all men are created equal"
You need to do some research on the meaning of that phrase. You sound incredibly ignorant.
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PrivateJoker
LSU Fan
BR
Member since Jun 2012
817 posts
| re: Top 10 Presidents (Posted on 2/17/13 at 1:25 pm to long4life)
quote:
Jefferson and Washington: didn't really believe all that stuff they put into the declaration of independence: "all men are created equal"
Again, that is taking a gigantic social factor of the times and using it against them. They still set the groundwork for this great nation, and Washington refused the title of king/whatever.
And Thomas Jefferson was a fricking genius who foresaw everything bad that would happen to this country. A lot of his quotes are great.
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