Who was the best president of the last fifty years?

Hate to break your heart dude but bastard Clinton expanded what that other bastard reagan got started with american jobs being shipped overseas when he signed NAFTA that outsourced thousands of jobs overseas.

Good presidents dont get elected second terms anymore which is WHY both those evil bastards Reagan and Clinton got second terms.

 

Go with Nixon? a man who who lied to the american people about ending the vietnam war immediately letting it go on for another 4 more years when he could have ended it in 69? Him and Johnson were the murderers of those 58,000 americans.Not the NVA or vietcong. Oh and Nixon only put a dictater in power who overthrew a government and murderered thousands.

Thank god kennedy was elected because had Nixon been elected,he would have donw what the military brass wanted kenendy to do but he resisted,which is bomb cuba.

Kennedy after the bay of pigs invasion,wisely stopped listening to the military brass and listened to his closest aides during the cuban missile crisis which is why he he was able to get us out of it.

Nixon even said had he been president,he would have gone in and bombed them which would have started world war 3. Oh and Kennedy just like with vietnam and the bay of pigs invasion,inherited that from Eisenhower which Nixon was a big part of.

The Cuban missile crisis came about because Ike put jupitor missiles in turkey which provoked the russians to put missiles in cuba.

why was Jfk a great president? I would say that is why among this reason below as well.

As a kid, he inspired me. To do great things. To believe outside the box. To believe you could go to the moon. To believe you 9/11 was an inside job, could change the world with your heart and your soul. To never give up. To believe.

I would say this below qualifys him as the greatest president of that bunch heads down.no contest.


read through JFK's agenda and bring back all the 'conservative' stuff...

A big part of LBJ's Great Society was started by President Kennedy and the New Frontier.

Who was John F. Kennedy? The President who proposed and or planned the following:

Medicare
Civil Rights
The War on Poverty

Economy

The addition of a temporary thirteen-week supplement to jobless benefits,

The extension of aid to the children of unemployed workers,

The redevelopment of distressed areas,

An increase in Social Security payments and the encouragement of earlier retirement,

An increase in the minimum wage and an extension in coverage,

The provision of emergency relief to feed grain farmers, and

The financing of a comprehensive homebuilding and slum clearance program.

Labor

Amendments to the Fair Labor Standards Act in 1961 greatly expanded the FLSA's scope in the retail trade sector and increased the minimum wage

An Executive Order was issued (1962) which provided federal employees with collective bargaining rights.

The Federal Salary Reform Act (1962) established the principle of “maintaining federal white-collar wages at a level with those paid to employees performing similar jobs in private enterprises."

A Postal Service and Federal Employees Salary Act was passed (1962) to reform Federal white-collar statutory salary systems, adjust postal rates, and establish a standard for adjusting annuities under the Civil Service Retirement Act.

The Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act (1962) established “standards for hours, overtime compensation, and safety for employees working on federal and federally funded contracts and subcontracts”.

A pilot program was launched to train and place youths in jobs.

Paid overtime was granted to workers on government financed construction jobs for work in excess of 40 hours.

Education

Scholarships and student loans were broadened under existing laws by Kennedy, and new means of specialized aid to education were invented or expanded by the president, including an increase in funds for libraries and school lunches, the provision of funds to teach the deaf, the handicapped, the retarded, and the exceptional child, the authorization of literacy training under Manpower Development, the allocation of President funds to stop dropouts, a quadrupling of vocational education, and working together with schools on delinquency. Altogether, these measures attacked serious educational problems and freed up local funds for use on general construction and salaries.

Various measures were introduced which aided educational television, college dormitories, medical education, and community libraries.

The Educational Television Facilities Act (1962) provided federal grants for new station construction, enabling in-class-room instructional television to operate in thousands of elementary schools, offering primarily religious instruction, music, and arts.

The Health Professions Educational Assistance Act (1963) provided $175 million over a three-year period for matching grants for the construction of facilities for teaching physicians, dentists, nurses, podiatrists, optometrists, pharmacists, and other health professionals. The Act also created a loan program of up to $2000 per annum for students of optometry, dentistry, and medicine.

The Vocational Education Act (1963) significantly increased enrollment in vocational education.

A law was enacted (1961) to encourage and facilitate the training of teachers of the deaf.

The Fulbright-Hays Act of 1961 enlarged the scope of the Fulbright program while extending it geographically.

An estimated one-third of all major New Frontier programs made some form of education a vital element, and the Office of Education called it “the most significant legislative period in its hundred-year history”.

Welfare

Unemployment and welfare benefits were expanded.

In 1961, Social Security benefits were increased by 20% and provision for early retirement was introduced, enabling workers to retire at the age of sixty-two while receiving partial benefits.

The Social Security Amendments of 1961 permitted male workers to elect early retirement age 62, increased minimum benefits, liberalized the benefit payments to aged widow, widower, or surviving dependent parent, and also liberalized eligibility requirements and the retirement test.

The 1962 amendments to the Social Security Act authorized the federal government to reimburse states for the provision of social services.

The School Lunch Act was amended for authority to begin providing free meals in poverty-stricken areas.

A pilot food stamp program was launched (1961), covering six areas in the United States. In 1962, the program was extended to eighteen areas, feeding 240,000 people.

The Self-Employed Individuals Tax Retirement Act of 1962 provided self-employed people with a tax postponement for income set aside in qualified pension plans.

Various school lunch and school milk programs were extended, “enabling 700,000 more children to enjoy a hot school lunch and eighty-five thousand more schools, child care centers, and camps to receive fresh milk”.

ADC was extended to whole families (1961).

Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) replaced the Aid to Dependent Children (ADC) program, as coverage was extended to adults caring for dependent children.

A major revision of the public welfare laws was carried out, with a $300 million modernization which emphasized rehabilitation instead of relief”.

A temporary antirecession supplement to unemployment compensation was introduced.

Food distribution to needy Americans was increased. In January 1961, the first executive order issued by Kennedy mandated that the Department of Agriculture increase the quantity and variety of foods donated for needy households. This executive order represented a shift in the Commodity Distribution Programs’ primary purpose, from surplus disposal to that of providing nutritious foods to low-income households.

Social Security benefits were extended to an additional five million Americans.

The Self-Employed Individuals Tax Retirement Act (1962) provided self-employed people with a tax postponement for income set aside in qualified pension plans.

The Public Welfare Amendments of 1962 provided for greater Federal sharing in the cost of rehabilitative services to applicants, recipients, and persons likely to become applicants for public assistance. It increased the Federal share in the cost of public assistance payments, and permitted the States to combine the various categories into one category. The amendments also made permanent the 1961 amendment which extended aid to dependent children to cover children removed from unsuitable homes.

Federal funds were made available for the payment of foster care costs for AFDC-eligible children who had come into state custody.

An act was approved (1963) which extended for one year the period during which responsibility for the placement and foster care of dependent children, under the program of aid to families with dependent children under Title IV of the Social Security Act.

Federal civil service retirement benefits were index-linked to changes in the Consumer Price Index (1962).

Civil rights

Various measures were carried out by the Kennedy Justice Department to enforce court orders and existing legislation. The Kennedy Administration promoted a Voter Education Project which led to 688,800 between the 1st of April 1962 and the 1st of November 1964, while the Civil Rights Division brought over forty-two suits in four states in order to secure voting rights for blacks. In addition, Kennedy supported the anti-poll tax amendment, which cleared Congress in September 1962 (although it was not ratified until 1964 as the Twenty-fourth Amendment). As noted by one student of black voting in the South, in relation to the attempts by the Kennedy Administration to promote civil rights, “Whereas the Eisenhower lawyers had moved deliberately, the Kennedy-Johnson attorneys pushed the judiciary far more earnestly.”

Executive Order 10925 (issued in 1961) combined the federal employment and government contractor agencies into a unified Committee on Equal Employment opportunity (CEEO). This new committee helped to put an end to segregation and discriminatory employment practices (such as only employing African-Americans for low-skilled jobs) in a number of workplaces across the United States.

Discrimination in public housing was prohibited.

The Interstate Commerce Commission made Jim Crow illegal in interstate transportation, having been put under pressure to do so by both the Freedom Riders and the Department of Justice.

Employment of African-Americans in federal jobs such as in the Post office, the Navy, and the Veterans Administration as a result of the Kennedy Administration’s affirmative action policies).

The Kennedy Administration forbade government contractors from discriminating against any applicant or employee for employment on the grounds of national origin, color, creed, or race.

The Plan for Progress was launched by the CEEO to persuade large employers to adopt equal opportunity practices. 268 firms with 8 million employees had signed on to this by 1964, while a nationwide study covering the period from May 1961 to June 1963 of 103 corporations “showed a Negro gain from 28,940 to 42,738 salaried and from 171,021 to 198,161 hourly paid jobs”.

Housing

The most comprehensive housing and urban renewal program in American history up until that point was carried out, including the first major provisions for middle-income housing, protection of urban open spaces, public mass transit, and private low-income housing.

Omnibus Housing Bill 1961. In March 1961 Kennedy sent Congress a special message, proposing an ambitious and complex housing program to spur the economy, revitalize cities, and provide affordable housing for middle- and low-income families. The bill proposed spending $3.19 billion and placed major emphasis on improving the existing housing supply, instead of on new housing starts, and creating a cabinet-level Department of Housing and Urban Affairs to oversee the programs. The bill also promised to make the Federal Housing Administration a full partner in urban renewal program by authorizing mortgage loans to finance rehabilitation of homes and urban renewal Committee on housing combined programs for housing, mass transportation, and open space land bills into a single bill.

Urban renewal grants were increased from $2 to $4 million, while an additional 100,000 units of public housing were constructed.

Opportunities were provided for coordinated planning of community development: technical assistance to state and local governments.

Under the Kennedy Administration, there was a change of focus from a wrecker ball approach to small rehabilitation projects in order to preserve existing ‘urban textures’.

Funds for housing for the elderly were increased.

Title V of the Housing Act was amended (1961) to make nonfarm rural residents eligible for direct housing loans from the Farmers Home Administration. These changes extended the housing program to towns with a population of up to 2,500.

The Senior Citizens Housing Act (1962) established loans for low-rent apartment projects which were “designed to meet the needs of people age 62 and over”.

Unemployment

To help the unemployed, Kennedy broadened the distribution of surplus food, created a “pilot” Food Stamp program for poor Americans, directed that preference be given to distressed areas in defense contracts, and expanded the services of U.S. Employment Offices.

Social security benefits were extended to each child whose father was unemployed.

The first accelerated public works program for areas of unemployment since the New Deal was launched.

The first full-scale modernization and expansion of the vocational education laws since 1946 were carried out.

Federal grants were provided to the states enabling them to extend the period covered by unemployment benefit.

The Manpower Development and Training Act of 1962 authorized a three-year program aimed at retraining workers displaced by new technology. The bill did not exclude employed workers from benefiting and it authorized a training allowance for unemployed participants. Even though 200,000 people were recruited, there was minimal impact, comparatively. The Area Redevelopment Act, a $394 million spending package passed in 1961, followed a strategy of investing in the private sector to stimulate new job creation. It specifically targeted businesses in urban and rural depressed areas and authorized $4.5 million annually over four years for vocational training programs.

The 1963 amendments to the National Defense Education Act included $731 million in appropriations to states and localities maintaining vocational training programs.

Health

In 1963 Kennedy, who had a mentally ill sister named Rosemary, submitted the nation's first Presidential special message to Congress on mental health issues. Congress quickly passed the Mental Retardation Facilities and Community Mental Health Centers Construction Act (P.L. 88-164), beginning a new era in Federal support for mental health services. The National Institute of Mental Health assumed responsibility for monitoring community mental health centers programs. This measure was a great success as there was a sixfold increase in people using Mental Health facilities.

A Medical Health Bill for the Aged (later known as Medicare) was proposed, but Congress failed to enact it.

The Community Health Services and Facilities Act (1961) increased the amount of funds available for nursing home construction and extended the research and demonstration grant program to other medical facilities.

The Health Services for Agricultural Migratory Workers Act (1962) established “a program of federal grants for family clinics and other health services for migrant workers and their families”.

The first major amendments to the food and drug safety laws since 1938 were carried out. The Drug Amendments of 1962 amended the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (193 by strengthening the provisions related to the regulation of therapeutic drugs. The Act required evidence that new drugs proposed for marketing were both safe and effective, and required improved manufacturing processes and procedures.

The responsibilities of the Food and Drug Administration were significantly enlarged by the Kefauver-Harris Drug Amendments (1962).

The Vaccination Assistance Act (1962) provided for the vaccination of millions of children against a number of diseases.

The Social Security Act Amendments of 1963 improved medical services for crippled children and established a new project grant program to improve prenatal care for women from low income families with very high risks of mental retardation and other birth defects. Authorizations for grants to the states under the Maternal and Child Health and Crippled Children's programs were also increased and a research grant program was added.

The Mental Retardation Facilities Construction Act of 1963 authorized federal support for the construction of university-affiliated training facilities, mental retardation research centers, and community service facilities for adults and children with mental retardation.

Equal rights for women

The President’s Commission on the Status of Women was an advisory commission established on December 14, 1961, by Kennedy to investigate questions regarding women's equality in education, in the workplace, and under the law. The commission, chaired by Eleanor Roosevelt until her death in 1962, was composed of 26 members including legislators and philanthropists who were active in women's rights issues. The main purpose of the committee was to document and examine employment policies in place for women. The commission's final report, American Woman (also known as the Peterson Report after the Commission's second chair, Esther Peterson), was issued in October 1963 and documented widespread discrimination against women in the workplace. Among the practices addressed by the group were labor laws pertaining to hours and wages, the quality of legal representation for women, the lack of education and counseling for working women, and federal insurance and tax laws that affected women's incomes. Recommendations included affordable child care for all income levels, hiring practices that promoted equal opportunity for women, and paid maternity leave.

In early 1960s, full-time working women were paid on average 59 percent of the earnings of their male counterparts. In order to eliminate some forms of sex-based pay discrimination, Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act into law on June 10, 1963. During the law's first ten years, 171,000 employees received back pay totaling about 84 million dollars.

Environment

The Clean Air Act (1963) expanded the powers of the federal government in preventing and controlling air pollution.

The first major additions to the National Park System since 1946 were made, which included the preservation of wilderness areas and a fund for future acquisitions.

The water pollution prevention program was doubled.

More aid was provided to localities to combat water pollution.

The Rivers and Harbors Act of 1962 reiterated and expanded upon “previous authorizations for outdoor recreation.”

Crime

Under Kennedy, the first significant package of anti crime bills since 1934 were passed. Amongst the Kennedy Administration's anti crime measures included the Juvenile Delinquency and Youth Offenses Control Act, which was signed into law on September 22, 1961. This program aimed to prevent youth from committing delinquent acts. In 1963, 288 mobsters were brought to trial by a team that was headed by Kennedy's brother, Robert.

source

Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts.
Daniel Patrick Moynihan

 

You don't know anything about history do you? The Soviets were balls deep in the Vietnam war providing not just logistical support and equipment but they also provided pilots as well. WW3 didn't happen. We returned the favor when the Soviets invaded Afghanistan and we were the ones providing the rebels with aid and support. WW3 didn't happen then either. Latin America is on big circle jerk of regimes alternately supported by the US and the USSR and yet still WW3 did not happen. Bombing Cuban missile sights would have been far less of an issue especially if the US gave them a two hour warning, enough time to get their soldiers out be not nearly enough to move any equipment or cover their tracks. JFK was left with no choice but to play chicken with the blockade precisely because he dropped the ball previously. Pray tell how exactly are the Soviets going to maintain control of an island that can easily be surrounded and blockaded that is several thousand miles away from their nearest port and only 90 miles off the coast of Florida.

Bombing Cuban missile sights would have been far less involvement that the Soviet's involvement in Vietnam or the US involvement in Afghanistan. Going by your warped logic we would have had WW3 several times over.

Also, by 1959 both sides had ICBMs so its not like the USSR could launch a nuclear attack and not get wiped out themselves.

Nixon was an amazing honest deeply philosophical person. His rants that were supposedly racist were just him getting into the character of some Kentucky hillbilly in order to understand their completely alien though processes. The fact that he got blamed for trying to protect some of his employees because they accidentally left some tape on a door and went into the wrong hotel room..........who hasn't done that at least once after a night of drinking..........is just sour grapes from the Nixon haters who were just jealous of him.



JFK died three years into office and while I agree with his tax policies (completely at odds with today's liberals ironically) that was not enough time to be declared one of the greatest much less even great.

 

No YOU dont know anything about history.

you dodged every one of my facts changing the subject evading them denying reality that had nixon bombed them like he said he would have,we would for sure have started world war 3. nice game of dodgeball,miserable fail. love how you also denied FACTS that the murderer of 58,000 americans along with his pal johnson-he could have ended the war in 69 had the bastard wanted to then ignoring as well how he put a dictater in power. nice game of dodgeball you play.evading facts and then changing the subject,so typical. keep fooling yourself living in denial just like the people who love to believe reagan was a great president do.

 

JFK started the US involvement in Vietnam........and you blame Nixon for it.

How did I avoid the subject of bombing? I just spent an entire two paragraphs telling you why bombing would have been the right call in the first place. Clearly you are incapable of even the most basic of reading comprehension.

Nixon was an angel of benevolence. His very presence imbued a degree of pride and an aura of perfection that no other man on earth could hope to match. The jealousy and envy of Nixonists is widely on display and Nixonism along with its counterparts racism and sexism need to be "relegated to the dustbin of history" as some unimportant virtually unknown person once said.

 

The creator of Reaganvilles and homelessness in America and the coward who allowed over 200 Marines to get murdered overseas and who created the corporate welfare myth about trickle down economics as #1 president?


HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Correction: that was Eisenhower who did so as we have documented on this forum previously.

 

I would like someone from the seven who voted for Obama in this poll to justify it. This has got to be interesting.

 

JFK is quite overrated. He reminds me of a rock star who died after releasing one album. All of a sudden people call him the best ever. If Obama had been shot dead in 2010 people would probably feel the same towards him.

Regardless of whether or not he was honorable, Reagan had a lot of disastrous policies. Probably the biggest was fooling people into thinking he was a fiscal conservative. He lowered taxes, but significantly increased spending. This skyrocketed the debt - his budget deficits averaged 4.2% of GDP. He might not have started this "spend and print" policy you've been stuck with to this day, but he sure accelerated it. Taxes are obvious and unpopular, printing and borrowing are unseen. He assumed the role of King George, in taking the appropriations power from Congress. I have no idea why Conservatives like him, I don't think it's outrageous to call Reagan the most big government President of the past 50 years. His legacy is a complete facade.

The idea that he ended the cold war is a joke. Communism brought communism down, not Reagan. Accelerating the arms race was a terrible idea: he took the money of common people by force to slightly increase the rate of demise of the USSR. There were far better, far less costly, and far less risky ways. What's the point in defeating communism abroad if it requires you to adopt not-dissimilar government spending? Reagan may or may not have accelerated the demise of the USSR - but what's certain is that he accelerated the rise of government in the USA - both the economic state, and the social totalitarian state through programs like the drug war.

 

Typical liberal drivel. What will they say about Obama's destructive path? Reagan was the best we had in modern history hands down.

 

Obama was horrible too. That is all you can say. Reagan is just the grandfather of all that is bad in American politics. Obama just inherited his legacy and kept it going. He started the trend of style over substance. In which presidents were no longer expected to be competent leaders, but instead wanted to be likable performers of political theater. The trade deficit was negligible before Reagan and exploded during his presidency.

He increased the debt by a lager percentage than any president in an 8 year term. That means more than even FDR's first 8 years (and it isn't close either. The debt increased 117% in FDRs first 8 years and 186% during Reagan's presidency). Even the antichrist Obama won't come anywhere near an 186% debt increase. His first term saw the debt increase 54%!! If you doubled that (his second term won't see it double, unless something drastic happened, it doesn't come close to Reagan's number).

Reagan empowered a group that would later spawn both Al Qaeda AND the Taliban.

Reagan's one great accomplishment is supposed to be that he "won the cold war." But the Soviet Union didn't begin to collapse until after his presidency and didn't fully collapse until the end of HW Bush's presidency. Even if you argue his influence was the most important factor in ending the cold war that is an exaggeration of epic proportions. The Soviet Union collapsed under the weight of its own inefficiencies. Reagan had little to nothing to do with it.

So what is he then left with? 2 years of very good economic growth? Well ok, but the rest of his term was between average and very bad, so his overall term saw growth rates which were far from what would be needed to point to the key accomplishment of a great presidency. Of the presidents listed in this poll he would be 4th on the list of highest average GDP growth rate behind Clinton just ahead of Carter. Hardly the stuff of legends.

 

Sshh, you are single handedly destroying the phony image of Saint Ronnie. Remember, he's a god to these people.

 

Likewise, I'd love to hear the justification for Carter's 7. =/

 

Easy. He only had one term so had less time to screw things up. That is a good start. He also ruined fewer things than almost anyone else on the list. He didn't do anything special. The economic growth rate is about the same as it was under Reagan, which means average. He didn't undermine our fiscal situation the way Reagan, Bush, and Obama have. He didn't promote policies which empower corporations and the wealthy at the expense of everyone else, which every president since him has done. He did have the (*)(*)(*)(*) up with Iran and other failures, but his failures are nothing in comparison to all the presidents who followed him. When you then consider that LBJ got us stuck in Vietnam and Nixon bombed Laos and Cambodia and had Watergate, Carter begins to look good by comparison. So he was obviously not some special leader, he was just average, which in the company mentioned here is quite impressive.

 

You have failed in your search for the truth...

1. "Obama is horrible" is not "all we can say." In fact, this forum is filled with reasonable arguments for why Obama is horrible. Open your eyes. Obama grew the debt by 60.3% in his first term - currently, he sits at about 70.3%.

2. FDR, in 12 years, grew the National Debt by 938.5% (it's true that it "only" grew 120.5% in his first 8yrs, but so what?). Reagan, in 8 years, grew the National Debt by 186.7%.

3. If we were to attribute our modern-day spending and growing problem to anyone, it would be Woodrow Wilson (who grew the National Debt by 804.8% in 8 years and set the stage for political power grabs and a much larger and more intrusive government - not Ronald Reagan. Wilson pushed for and saw the establishment of the Federal Reserve and Federal Trade Commission, while also growing government during a time of war with the Food Administration Grain Corporation, War Industries Board & War Trade board. While he disbanded his war-time agencies at the end of the war, this set the stage for growth under FDR and so on. So, Wilson is really the "Grandfather of all that's bad in American politics," if you want to get technical. The Fed and FTC allowed Wilson to play a much larger role in manipulating the American economy.

4. Style over substance can be attributed to anyone who campaigned after the introduction of the television. It's difficult to find an ugly President these days. However, Reagan continuously blamed Government for the economic problems of the day (which was accurate).

5. Our Trade Deficit was so large under Reagan, because our economy was growing at a much faster rate than our trading partners. This is why we were purchasing more imported products than our partners were purchasing more American exported products. It doesn't mean to say that our products weren't wanted - they just weren't affordable or economically available.

6. Reagan didn't "empower" Al Qaeda and the Taliban.... Islam and the Muslim Brotherhood empowered Al Qaeda and the Taliban. Islam has been a thorn in our side since the founding of this country, starting with the Muslim Barbary Pirates.

7. The Soviet Union failed its' people, but its' power was not diminishing. The Cold War finished it off in an arm's race, while the Soviet Union tried to keep up with American spending. They couldn't do it, because they were broke. The war and the extension of their empire bankrupted them. This was not "Reagan's one great accomplishment," but just one of them. If you want to attribute anything to him, it should be the growing economy we've enjoyed for 2.5 decades. Clinton should be thanking Reagan for the economic policies he put into place, just as Bush 1 & 2 (though, they didn't demonize him - Liberals did/do).

8. 2 years of very good economic growth? No, it only took him 2 years to get us out of a Carter depression... we had 2.5 decades of economic growth since. There's a reason he carried 49 out of 50 states in the 1984 election, and it's not because he was a failed President.

 

Increased tax rates slowing down the recovery he inherited.
Failed to go after the terrorist who attacked us throughout his term.
Fought welfare reform.
Fought lower spending.
Fought lower tax rates.
CRA
Perjury
Obstruction of justice
Witness tampering
Sexual assaults on subordinate employees or women he had power over
"I did not have sex.................."
His total disrespect for the office to which he was elected.

That give you a pretty good idea?

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Clinton didn't reform welfare Gingrich and Kasich did over his objections and vows he would repeal it if the Democrats took over Congress again. He certainly likes to take credit for it though but then he is a consummate liar and has a MSM that adores him.

 

Typical Republican delusionalism.

Reagan supported General Rios-Montt in his campaign to kill 200,000 Ixil Indians in Guatemala. As the Pope says, trickle down is nothing more than a sham designed to enrich the wealthy. Even David Stockman (its creator) admitted that it is a fraud and designed to increase welfare for the rich.

Homelessness, Reaganvilles, increased federal debts are all part of the pathetic Reagan legacy = worse president in history.

 

Lyndon Johnson is the President who has had the most influence in the past 50 years. He ushered in the Great Society programs that we still see today. HeadStart, food stamps and other programs that help the poor. Also, he signed into law the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

 

Personally I'm of a view that the best presidents were those who were criticized for not being influential enough. Calvin Coolidge, Martin Van Buren, John Tyler, even Eisenhower and Carter to some degree.

 

Carter was a pretty big spender - but nothing in comparison to the big spenders we're talking, like FDR, Wilson, Reagan, Bush 2 or Obama. He grew the debt by 46.3% in 4 years, so it's likely he'd be attributed with 80+% after 8, which would be bigger than Bush after 8 and Obama after 5. He also grew the government and instituted economic policies that led to the Mortgage Bubble/Crisis of 2007/2008.

And while Ford could be attributed with the Natural Gas shortage of the 70s, Carter didn't do the energy industry any favors by regulating mining and coal companies, while instituting further fines through the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act. Carter established the Department of Energy. Regulations on gas and pushing for alternative fuels, coupled with an Iran/OPEC crisis overseas caused oil shortages, which saw record-breaking gas prices and lines at the pump. He then lifted price regulations on oil, but then imposed a profit tax on the same companies, which still stifled production. He imposed the National Energy Act and Energy Security Act which directed energy companies to waste their time and money on alternatives to gas/oil/coal, which inevitably turned out to be wasteful spending.

He also created the Department of Education which has been one of the biggest failures in our nation's history.

But hey, he was a great guy. Good farmer and all that.

 

I don't think enough time had passed to judge most of these people.

 

Because the Pope is an authority on economic policies now? I love how Liberals love the Pope now... while at other times espousing their hatred for Christianity and Catholics, in specific.

You and the Pope have a failed understanding of what Trickle Down actually is. It has always been about the circulation of money, from consumer to the creator of a product, which results in expansion of business through needed employees, needed retail space, needed bigger warehouses, increased production, etc. A good example is Amazon or even Walmart. Their profits are so large that they continuously expand. Amazon just opened up a distribution plant in Manassas, VA, right down the street from where I work a few years ago and they continue to open plants in various locations around the country/world, so they can reach consumers at a faster rate. Walmart is continuously expanding where they do business, by opening up new stores in locations where they see benefit/profit. They're trying to open stores in DC right now, to the chagrin of seething liberals, where they could employ hundreds of unemployed citizens at each new location.

Profits = expansion and the people doing the expanding are not the store clerks... they're the CEOs, Presidents and VPs - executives and upper management. The people with money, who you hate.

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Your quote, I assume, judges modern-day Republicans?

 

You left out the biggest spender of them all - Bush2. His administration presided over double digit real increases in spending amongst the highest of all recent president -- and that is *not* including 2009.

Reagan is the undisputed champ in this category. A 181% increase over 8 years.

 

No I didn't... Read again.

186.7% actually. I won't deny that he spent big money during the Cold War, but he also set forth economic policies that we have benefited from for decades.

 

OK

It is certainly a debatable point about the supposed benefits. I will certainly again that the rich benefited mightily.

But you were comparing percentage increases of the debt. And as you've acknowledged, no one comes close to Reagan in that category.

 

In one of my points, yes. Are you a supporter of Carter and his policies?