worst president in our lifetime.

[marquis2]

From a European perspective;
Nixon was a good President but had the misfortune to be found out.But he was good for the country.
The Carter years were an embarrassment
Reagan came in when the US was saddled with self doubts and gave the people back their belief and pride in it.From then the US never looked back.He did this at a time when the world economy was in severe recession too.
Clinton was just lucky-the world economy was on a roll and he was able to enjoy a following wind and take credit for it.Also his preoccupation with personal affairs stopped him interfering with the economy as he would have liked.
GWB-see my final paragraph.
All Presidents will be remembered as good, bad or indifferent by the broad changes they made and the smaller details will be seen as unimportant.They will also be judged by the challenges and problems at the time and how successful they were in dealing with them.

 

[calpoon]

obviously it's bush, although reagan comes close. both of them did thier best to destroy this country in my lifetime.

well there, ya baited me into it.

what I really wanted to say was that I resent this americentric POV. i don't know about worst, but he's up there at the top- i'd like to nominate Putin.

 

[calpoon]

Doesn't Putin mean Gay in Spanish?

the people have no bread? let them eat cock.

man, that's just not right.

 

[D-rock]

Well since everybody's here is a different age I will just go by who I think are the worst presidents in the modern era. For that I would pick Bush the second and Kennedy. I say it's Bush. He has screwed up enough he probably deserves to be on top and it will be a challenge to knock him off that spot. Although I'm sure the people we will have as presidents going into the future will do their best to try.

 

[drdeath67]

Doesn't Putin mean Gay in Spanish?

Actually Joto is!

 

[marquis2]

That is NOT and I repeat NOT a European perspective, that is your perspective and I promise you 95% of Europeans do not agree with most of what you just said.

You who think Bush is just a moron without a clue...

You believe exactly what they want you to believe - as always.

Presidents are judged from abroad by how they affect the stature of the US.
Nixon extricated America from Vietnam.The sight of American humiliation -which it was-now ceased .
Carter will be remembered largely by the Iran hostage situation and the ensuing shambles.At this stage the US military was becoming an embarrassment and American prestige was very low.
I remember Reagan's victory.He was a smart guy but who got his opponents to underrate him by playing dumb.He had to handle the low morale of the armed forces, a massive world economic recession and a USSR which was rattling the sabre quite heavily.These were pretty major problems which no other post war President has been faced with.When he left office the economy was strong, the USSR had gone and the country believed in itself again.
Many Europeans detested him. Particularly those on the Left who never forgave him for succeeding where they had failed and that he exposed some cherished beliefs as sham.Interestingly at the height of the Cold War when Reagan stationed cruise missiles in the UK there was massive outcry from the Guardian readers but not a whisper was heard against the Soviet SS20s aimed at us.

 

[anomaly]

You could also add in that Alzheimer's patient Ronald Regan, for some reason people think he is something great.

 

[plucap]

I read this some time ago: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Greatest_American
Fill me in if that TV network isn't objective enough or if the people who voted happened to be morons.

But I actually gasped when I saw Ronald Reagan topping it. Not because he was someone extremely bad or so, it just struck me how fucking ridiculous it is to say he's the greatest American of all time. You must be pretty damn deluded to say a man like him surpasses the other names on the list (and some unmentioned).

I've never been one of those who abruptly takes side in pro- or against America. Instead of listening to Michael Moore or Clint Eastwood I prefer to make my own conclusions based on pure facts. Something I - without wanting to sound all blown-up - thank my natural science personality for.

But seeing this list, I just got a hit in my face. Not that it's an overwhelming majority, but to even consider that man one of the better politicians in modern history is just bad humor. I really hope that's not the educated, young American speaking in that vote.

Sorry for the off-topic. As for the poll, I haven't lived long enough nor gathered enough information to say that much. The result isn't very surprising though.

 

[marquis2]

I read this some time ago: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Greatest_American
Fill me in if that TV network isn't objective enough or if the people who voted happened to be morons.

But I actually gasped when I saw Ronald Reagan topping it. Not because he was someone extremely bad or so, it just struck me how fucking ridiculous it is to say he's the greatest American of all time. You must be pretty damn deluded to say a man like him surpasses the other names on the list (and some unmentioned).

I've never been one of those who abruptly takes side in pro- or against America. Instead of listening to Michael Moore or Clint Eastwood I prefer to make my own conclusions based on pure facts. Something I - without wanting to sound all blown-up - thank my natural science personality for.

But seeing this list, I just got a hit in my face. Not that it's an overwhelming majority, but to even consider that man one of the better politicians in modern history is just bad humor. I really hope that's not the educated, young American speaking in that vote.

Sorry for the off-topic. As for the poll, I haven't lived long enough nor gathered enough information to say that much. The result isn't very surprising though.

Things like ending the cold war , making the people feel proud of their country once more, setting up the economy for unprecedented prosperity (for which later Presidents try to take the credit) are quite major achievements. I agree, however that he doesn't rate as the greatest American either.But you have to take into account the scale of the problems they had to face and he had more than most.
I can't agree with much in the Wikipedia article.Where for example is Eisenhower? A truly great man.Bob Hope was English .OK, perhaps he naturalised but he still retained his original nationality.

 

[gmaxman1212]

the reason i did not add ronald regan was because he so beloved by many and the fact that we now know he was literaly acting as president do to the early stages of alheimers. i beleive it was ghw bush who was in control at least during his last for years.
P.S. i liked ronald regan. i thought he did a great job with foreign policy and well reaganomics at least worked in the early eighties.

 

[pathfinder]

Wow. What a surprise. Bush has a huge lead. Here's my shocked face. :|

I voted Carter... only because I can't vote for him AND Clinton.

 

[BlueBalls]

I voted for Nixon because i just saw the Oliver Stone movie, but i really do not have the correct knowledge to pass judgment as im not an American

 

[gmaxman1212]

honest answer blue balls.

 

[McRocket]

This is not directed at this thread in particular, but;

I really wish you Americans would not assume that all of us on FreeOnes ARE Americans.

You are not the only country in the World that elects 'presidents', you know?

Considering this is a European based site and that it's members are from many, many places other then America - would it kill you American thread starters on this subject to simply put 'American' in front of your ever growing number of threads asking us about your Presidential elections?

ie: 'Who will be the next American President? Instead of just': 'Who will be the next president?

 

[Eric Lindros]

George W. Bush. I'm from 1970, The States are far and away from The Netherlands, but my first remebrance of a US President was Jimmy Carter, after that Ronald Reagan etc etc.

The dumbest ass is obviously George W. Bush. Allthough Bill Clinton is not very believable after "Monica-Gate", I think George jr beats him as "the worst President."

 

[om3ga]

Regardless my opinion about Dubya, I voted for Nixon...

 

[Friday on my mind]

Regardless my opinion about Dubya, I voted for Nixon...

I remember tricky dick as he was known as very well.While a bad one Nixon did have some qualities while the current occupant has none I can point to.Nixon had a good understanding of the world and was able to improve relations with both the USSR and also the famous trip to China.A paranoid nut Dick was for sure but nowhere near as incompetent as George W or as underhanded and trampling of liberty's eithier.As John Dean who was one of the men involved with watergate has said with his book about the current administration.The books title is " Worse than watergate".

 

[anomaly]

George W. Bush. I'm from 1970, The States are far and away from The Netherlands, but my first remebrance of a US President was Jimmy Carter, after that Ronald Reagan etc etc.

The dumbest ass is obviously George W. Bush. Allthough Bill Clinton is not very believable after "Monica-Gate", I think George jr beats him as "the worst President."

I am no fan of any politicians but Bill Clinton was the best president ever on paper. The country was at his best during his eight years in office. I agree that the Monica Lewinsky thing was very stupid but many politicians throughout history have had a problem with fidelity. Many of them fathered children. IMHO, no president has really changed anything, for the better.

 

[gmaxman1212]

thats kind of true anomoly. But dont you think clinton was just riding(while geting blow jobs) on the route set by the reagan admin.

 

[Friday on my mind]

thats kind of true anomoly. But dont you think clinton was just riding on the route set by the reagan admin.

Absolutely not gmaxman.Clinton cut defense spending and the defecit while under Reagan they both exploded.We have unfortunatley gone back to the pubs spend and borrow economics under George W.