Guy before Lincoln #1
Lincoln #Last

Country would be amazing without the South.

This is more of a 2015 take than 2019.

In the non-Washington league, Eisenhower.

"Letting the South go" would have meant slavery continuing to be a thing well into the 20th century.

Did you listen to that speech?

I assume you're talking about the industrial military complex speech, if so yes.

US was also spending 10% of GDP on defense. Eisenhower didn't deny the need for a standing army. He just told us to be vigilant.

And with the obvious exception of Donald Trump, Americans have been pretty vigilant about keeping the military apolitical.

The military, but not the military industrial complex. And they are doubly political: Democrat and Republican.

FYP

"he did Kissinger things in Syria"

"Kissinger things" is a pretty gross exaggeration for anything Obama did and pinning anything to do with hundreds of thousands of deaths in Syria on Obama is also wrong. The American Presidential guilt in Syria is 95% GWB at least.

Libya otoh was Obama's war.

I liked Carter.

Why is there such little love for FDR among libs?

Japanese internment

Certainly not the greatest, but JFK seems underrated in this thread.

You learn something every day. That's pretty shocking, even by the standards of the times.

Are you not American? Serious question.

He's not.

Ah, that explains him not knowing about that particularly dark chapter in our history.

I sometimes wonder what kind of President he would have been (and what kind of Presidency this country would now have) if Washington had been a bit more ambitious + a bit younger when he assumed the office. He seemed pretty well & done with the nonsense by the 1796, but he was an old man by then, for that time anyway.

I would have been more specific about what he is, but I was on my phone and didn't want get into what to call him. I guess British works, but I think he's English. He's in England - London (area anyway).

Jimmy Carter is a man of great integrity, strength, and courage. He is also a human and made some mistakes. Just read White House Diary and see how the seriousness in which he took his responsibility to make educated and just decisions is in such stark contrast to the Republican Presidents who have followed him.

He was also a military man, but that didn't slow down the smearing machine one bit. (What a pussy he was!)

He tried to inspire Americans to face the challenge of the changing us/global economy by rising up, working hard, and getting educated/re-educated. A message that was not at all well received. (Similar to Hillary trying to keep it real with the coal miners.)

Carter is the greatest modern ex-President and ainec. Googling a little suggests that the important ex-POTUS list is Carter, JQ Adams, Hoover and Taft.

**** I forgot my main point about writing all that about Jimmy Carter: It's a freaking crime that the left has basically conceded for some strange reason that he was such a weak President. It certainly doesn't square with reality.

Especially since he's a monumental badass building houses and defeating the grim reaper at 94. He could dog walk Trump tomorrow.

Carter puts solar panels on the White House
Reagan tears them down
I always wonder how different the world and the US would look if Reagan hadn't done that, but rather tried to build on it

fdr

not close

Jimmy Carter was a "trust the process" guy who didn't know how to work washington.
Most people want someone lying to their face and he wasn't that type of guy. Those people are all weak in most people's minds (I have this flaw too, took me a long time to realize this)