Three Presidents

[AWP]

Pulling from the Trump presidency thread.....

I'll post mine later, but I'm curious how our members would rank the presidents. Top 3 only and why.

 

[CDG]

I'd have to go:

1) Washington
2) Lincoln
3) Reagan

Washington for playing a major part in growing the fledgling USA, and his part in implementing term limits for POTUS. Can you imagine any modern politician doing something similar?

Lincoln had, IMO, the most difficult years a president could possibly have. The way he handled the Civil War was exceptional, and I doubt anyone, from any era, could have done better.

Reagan for being exactly what the country needed to finally end the Cold War.

All three were far from perfect, and you can find fault in any leader. However, they were the right men, in the right position, at the right time for major events in our country's history. The three major events they were dealing with had the potential to destroy what has become the greatest country on Earth.

 

[Ooh-Rah]

Washington Reagan and Lincoln have been taken already; so....

Truman for having the balls to drop Nukes and keeping us from having a ground war on Japan.

Kennedy for navigating us thru the Cuban Missile Crisis and giving us the Green Berets.

Clinton for making my 20's in the 1990's awesome. We were at relative peace, the economy was booming, girls were putting out, and I've no doubt that if permitted, he could run in 2020 and win in a landslide.

My advance apologies to Gunny Pryor, Master Sgt Robertson and SSgt Linehan for this choice. I know his policies caused you to leave The Corps before you had planned.

 

[ThunderHorse]

1. Washington- the man who could have been king. The Farewell to Arms speech, then you have the no bullshit putting the Uniform back on during the Whiskey Rebellion as our Army was not as professional as it was during the War for Independence.

2. Lincoln-Pretty hard not to choose him, said fuck it and kept the country together. Gave his life for his decisions.

3. Roosevelt-Just something about him. Great White Fleet, National Parks System, and then add the charge up San Juan Hill.

 

[Frank S.]

This isn't the answer you're looking for, probably. I not only dislike lists, I reject them. That's not to say I don't classify things and people on an arbitrary basis but if you start ranking things and people you're likely gonna get pigeon-holed. Especially people. They are not knowable. Ranking people to me is worse than trying to stack produce at Safeway, trying to decide what veggies to grill because there's what's good and there's what's healthy.
I stand there looking at kale but I don't like the stems, they're bitter.

I triage constantly. So did maybe the Congress of the Communist Party when fixing to target their policies at the workers, the army, the peasants, the dicks and vages.
Ground beef and Kraft American cheese. Why do you hate freedom? Fuckin' ell, fine, I'll have the fish. I'm not a single-issue eater.

I changed my mind. Burgers. But with kale instead of lettuce. They're stacking the shelves, watching me move around the package meats like any consumer, but they're wrong: the predator suddenly wheels the cart towards aisle 10, where I'm gonna burn through all that booze. My name is Mud, I down my Keppra with my wine. I get home and realize she substituted the beef with chikkin. Bullshit!
We're always being had for our own good, which is to say others'.

 

[CDG]

Lol. Classic Frank. A burgers and kale soliloquy in a greatest presidents thread.

 

[AWP]

Washington - Original Gangsta'
Teddy Roosevelt - Great White Fleet, National Parks, was well ahead of his time on civil rights. He's arguably one of the most balanced (in modern platform terms) of all the presidents.
JFK - Negative points for Cuba itself, but the Cuban Missile Crisis, space program, and arguably the most crucial presidency during the Cold War (along with Ike and Reagan). Banged Marilyn Monroe who didn't keep a stained blue dress.

 

[R.Caerbannog]

1.) Andrew Jackson - The guy had a checkered past, but he aggressively expanded US territory and was essentially a honey badger to the French, Spanish, and indigenous populations of the USA.
2.) FDR - The presidency gave him a slow and painful death, all while trying to lead the country and the world through one of the bloodiest times in human history. The man had a will of adamantine to hang on for so long.
3.) Reagan - Reagan is the reason my family is here in the US and why I'm an American, so I'm partial to him. I dunno, whenever I think of a golden era America I think Reagan.

 

[Gunz]

Washington, because as the first one he had so many precedents to set for his successors which he could've botched, but didn't. He knew it was his solemn duty to make the template future presidents would follow, from administrative duties and relations with Congress, to the ceremonial trappings of the Office.

Lincoln. Guided the country through it's most tumultuous catastrophe and had a vision for it's future that turned the quashing of a rebellion into a revolution with enormous consequences.

This third one I struggled with and no doubt some of you will disagree. I'm not a big fan of FDR and many of his policies and in particular the concessions he made to Stalin...but I have to concede his importance from the post-Depression years through the Second World War up until his death. He truly was the Man for the Hour.

 

[Gunz]

...I triage constantly. So did maybe the Congress of the Communist Party when fixing to target their policies at the workers, the army, the peasants, the dicks and vages. Ground beef and Kraft American cheese. Why do you hate freedom? Fuckin' ell, fine, I'll have the fish. I'm not a single-issue eater.

I changed my mind. Burgers. But with kale instead of lettuce. They're stacking the shelves, watching me move around the package meats like any consumer, but they're wrong: the predator suddenly wheels the cart towards aisle 10, where I'm gonna burn through all that booze. My name is Mud, I down my Keppra with my wine. I get home and realize she substituted the beef with chikkin. Bullshit!
We're always being had for our own good, which is to say others'.

Welcome home, Colonel.

 

[Devildoc]

Washington
Ike
Teddy Roosevelt

Honorable mention:

Reagan
JFK
Madison

Not a big fan of Lincoln. While it can be argued he did what he had to do, the man did a number to the constitution to do it.

 

[SpitfireV]

My big issue with Reagan has always been the complicity in turning a blind eye to drug smuggling to facilitate a foreign policy objective. I'm sure that will be a controversial thing so I would hope that people don't get wound up because it's not my intention. In my opinion, foreign policy should not be executed at the expense of your own people.

I'm sure there's an argument that he may not have known personally but if the environment is permissive...?

 

[Devildoc]

My big issue with Reagan has always been the complicity in turning a blind eye to drug smuggling to facilitate a foreign policy objective. I'm sure that will be a controversial thing so I would hope that people don't get wound up because it's not my intention. In my opinion, foreign policy should not be executed at the expense of your own people.

I'm sure there's an argument that he may not have known personally but if the environment is permissive...?

I am sure some people will use that argument (as to why he wasn't a great president), but every president I can think of has been guilty of some sort of illegal/unethical indiscretion in the name of policy....

I think when looking at these kind of lists you have to weigh the pro's against the con's of policy; then there are intangibles like charisma and leadership. Example: Some might tout FDR as a great president because of fill-in-the-blank, but balance it against camps for Japanese Americans and a racist policy, does it stand the litmus test?

 

[Gunz]

My big issue with Reagan has always been the complicity in turning a blind eye to drug smuggling to facilitate a foreign policy objective. I'm sure that will be a controversial thing so I would hope that people don't get wound up because it's not my intention. In my opinion, foreign policy should not be executed at the expense of your own people.

I'm sure there's an argument that he may not have known personally but if the environment is permissive...?

During 4 years--or 8, for that matter--somebody, somewhere in your administration is going to screw the pooch to some degree. Maybe you gave the green light. Maybe you just know about it, maybe you kinda knew about it, maybe you knew nothing at all. But one thing is guaranteed: even the smallest transgression on your part, or that of your staff, that comes to light, will get plenty of bad exposure courtesy of your political opponents. As far as I know, no administration escapes unscathed.

 

[AWP]

Doesn't matter what the other guy did, it matters what you did. Try the "but so-and-so did it" defense in life and see how far it takes you.