Who was the best president of the last fifty years?

Reagan. He tricked the stupid Communists : хлопали:

 

I said DEMOCRATS, it was not limited to Obama although he was one of those DEMOCRATS.

The Republicans were ready and willing to work with Democrats, it was the Democrats how told them to take a hike.

What do you mean by "under Bush" the President does not singularly nor solely run the government and make government policy. You never learned that.

When Bush and the Republicans ran it we had 52 months of full employment with high labor participation rates, rising incomes, solid GDP growth, soaring incomes and a deficit that fell from the recession worst of $400B to a paltry $161B. The Democrats took control in 2007 so tell me how the economy did better "under" Democrat policies.

I'm not a Republican but do tell me where you think I have revised any facts.

More than three years still remained in George W. Bush’s presidency when it had already collapsed by the end of 2005. The Bush revisionism industry has thus enjoyed an unusually long period of time in which to plan out its action and predict their man’s comeback as a misunderstood, unduly maligned and — dare they say it? — successful president. The opening of the Bush museum today has opened up a flood of pent-up Bush revisionism.
http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2013/04/bush-terrible-president-also-not-a-smart-man.html[/QUOTE]

What collapsed in 2005? We were smack in the middle of a VERY successful economy and that continued until 2007 when the Democrats took control. And spare me apologist in chief Paul Krugman

I have given you the facts no refute them with facts not spinmiester Krugmans opinions and mis-use of the data.

The Democrats increased spending, 9% and then 18% in just two years, an increase of $789 BILLION in just two years and you are claiming that wasn't enough, that is your excuse? And they had TOTAL control of how much to spend.

Most of which would have been done anyway, remember Obama admitting there weren't so many new shovel ready jobs. They stated when they were selling their stimulus plan it would keep unemployment from going higher than 8.5%, well it soared right by that number to 10% and then stayed over 9% for the next 5 years all the while labor participation falling to historical lows.

The Democrat economic plan and policies were total failures just admit it.

I have already what is it you are claiming is not true? When have Democrat policies done better?

 

Best? It certainly wasn't Reagan:




10 reasons why Ronald Reagan was the worst president of our lifetime




If you ever happen to come across a Republican on television these days, chances are that you will hear the name Ronald Reagan. Recent Republican debates are the perfect example of the love fest that the current Republican party has for Reagan as each candidate name drops the former president at every turn. If you only listened to conservatives you would think that Jesus Christ was the only person above Reagan on the totem pole of conservative love. They talk about his love of low taxes, less government and conservative family values.

Ronald Reagan in the White House.
youtube.com


The problem is that when you step out of the conservative dream and come back to reality, you find that not only was Ronald Reagan a bad president, but he was one of the worst presidents we've seen in modern times. Reagan's policies have destroyed the United States for three decades, and here are 10 reasons why Ronald Reagan was the worst president of our lifetime.

1. Reagan cut taxes for the Rich, increased taxes on the Middle Class -

Ronald Reagan is loved by conservatives and was loved by big business throughout his presidency and there's a reason for it. When Reagan came into office in January of 1981, the top tax rate was 70%, but when he left office in 1989 the top tax rate was down to only 28%. As Reagan gave the breaks to all his rich friends, there was a lack of revenue coming into the federal government. In order to bring money back into the government, Reagan was forced to raise taxes eleven times throughout his time in office. One example was when he signed into law the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982. Reagan raised taxes seven of the eight years he was in office and the tax increases were felt hardest by the lower and middle class.

2. Tripling the National Debt -

As Reagan cut taxes for the wealthy, the government was left with less money to spend. When Reagan came into office the national debt was $900 billion, by the time he left the national debt had tripled to $2.8 trillion.

3. Iran/Contra - (I break this down in more detail in the article linked here)

In 1986, a group of Americans were being held hostage by a terrorist group with ties to Iran. In an attempt to free the hostages, Ronald Reagan secretly sold arms and money to Iran. Much of the money that was received from the trade went to fund the Nicaragua Contra rebels who were in a war with the Sandinista government of Nicaragua. When the scandal broke in the Untied States it became the biggest story in the country, Reagan tried to down play what happened, but never fully recovered.

4. Reagan funded Terrorists -

The attacks on 9/11 by al-Qaeda and Osama Bin Laden brought new attention to international terrorism. All of a sudden, Americans coast to coast wore their American flag pins, ate their freedom fries and couldn't wait to go to war with anyone who looked like a Muslim. What Americans didn't realize was that the same group that attacked the United States on 9/11 was funded by Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. Prepping for a possible war with the Soviet Union, Ronald Reagan spent billions of dollars funding the Islamist mujahidin Freedom Fighters in Afghanistan. With billions of American dollars, weapons and training coming their way, the Taliban and Osama Bin Laden took everything they were given and gave it back to the United States over a decade later in the worst possible way imaginable.

5. Unemployment issues -

When Ronald Reagan came into office 1981, unemployment was at 7.5%. After Reagan cut taxes for the wealthy, he began raising taxes on the middle and lower class. Corporations started to ship more jobs out of the United States while hiring cheap foreign labor in order to make a bigger profit. While corporations made billions, Americans across the country lost their jobs. As 1982 came to a close, unemployment was nearly 11%. Unemployment began to drop as the years went on, but the jobs that were created were low paying and barely helped people make ends meet. The middle and lower class had their wages nearly frozen as the top earners saw dramatic increases in salary.

6. Ignoring AIDS -

By the time the 1980s came around, AIDS had become one of the most frightening things to happen to the country in recent memory. No one understood what AIDS and HIV really was and when people don't understand something, they become scared of it. The fear of the unknown was sweeping across the country and Americans needed a leader to speak out about this horrible virus, that leader never came. Instead of grabbing the bull by the horns and taking charge, Reagan kept quiet. Reagan couldn't say the words AIDS or HIV until seven years into his presidency, a leader not so much.

7. Reagan gave amnesty to 3 million Undocumented Immigrants -

In today's GOP, the idea of any immigrant staying in the United States whether they are legal or illegal isn't something that conservatives embrace. What might shock them is that in 1982 Ronald Reagan gave nearly 3 million undocumented workers amnesty. The biggest reason for undocumented workers coming to the United States is because corporations hire them at a cheaper rate than they would an American citizen. All the laws that would have cracked down on companies who hire undocumented workers were, of course, removed from the bill.

8. His attack on Unions and the Middle Class -

The Republican war on unions and the middle class has been heating up in states like Wisconsin and Ohio, but it has been going on for a long time. Unions are formed to give a united voice to the workers in an attempt to create fairness between the corporations and their employees. On August 3rd, 1981, PATCO (Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization) went on strike in an effort to get better pay and safer working conditions. Two days later, taking the side of business, Ronald Reagan fired 11,345 workers for not returning to work.

*Bonus reasons against Reagan*

9. Reagan raided the Social Security Trust fund -

With Ronald Reagan cutting taxes so drastically, the U.S government was beginning to starve. Reagan added to the government and didn't make enough spending cuts to offset the tax cuts, so the money needed to come from somewhere. Ronald Reagan knew that his polices would create economic bubbles, unemployment would drop and some jobs would be created, but in time the bubble would burst leaving the economy in ruins. In order to counteract his own economic policies, Ronald Reagan needed to find somewhere else to get revenue.

Listening to Alan Greenspan and other advisers, Ronald Reagan raided the Social Security Trust Fund and replaced it with glorified IOU's. Ronald Reagan raised the Social Security tax rate which did add to the revenue, but because there is a cap on Social Security, currently no income over $113,700 is taxed for Social Security, the wealthy didn't feel the tax increase and the pain was pushed to the middle and lower classes.

10. Endless worship and never-ending praise -

Ronald Reagan left office in January of 1989 and nearly 25 years later he is held up high by the modern Republican party. As nearly three decades have gone by since Ronald Reagan was in the White House, reality and history has faded with time. Conservative figures like anti-tax Grover Norquist created the "Ronald Reagan Legacy Project" with a goal of memorializing Reagan in all 50 states. As stated in this article, Ronald Reagan did a lot to hurt the United States, not just while he was in office, but in the years that have followed. What's scary about today's current Republican party is that while Reagan was one of the worst presidents this country has had to endure over the last 100 years, he would be considered too moderate to be nominated by today's conservative standards.

- - - Updated - - -

link:


http://www.examiner.com/article/8-reasons-why-ronald-reagan-was-the-worst-president-of-our-lifetime

 

I would say Kennedy is the best, because he often went against the ruling powers.

He refused to enter Vietnam because he recognized that it was a war of choice, and would only serve to boost weapons and ammunition sales for MIC, and that communism was merely a scapegoat.

He went after the mob when most politicians were more than willing to make deals with them.

Those two things are what got him killed.

He also pushed the US to innovate new technologies and got the public united behind the space program.

 

The last 50? Reagan. The last 100? Coolidge.

 

What?!? JFK was by far the worst with the exception of Lincoln.

I'm not sure why you think he refused to enter the Vietnam War. To the contrary he escalated it! When he took office there were 900 US troops in Vietnam. By the time he was offed, he had already deployed 16,000 troops with tens of thousands preparing to go by his order. He DIRECTLY led the US to war in Vietnam.

Not to mention his extremely poor ability as a leader nearly led to the destruction of the planet with the Cuban Missile Crisis (thank God McNamara kept JFK from doing it), the construction of the Berlin Wall, the Bay of Pigs, failed assassinations he ordered on other world leaders, and curiously the Ba'athist coup in Iraq that led to many the issues we are facing today.

Not to mention stomping on the Constitution, states' rights, and his pathological abuse of women. The list goes on and on. Horrible, professionally and personally, no matter what angle you look.

 

Kennedy initiated America's involvement in Vietnam originally.

Robert Kennedy went after the mob, much to the regret of his brother the President, who was sleeping with the Chicago mob boss's girlfriend, and, of course, J.Edgar Hoover, who, at the time, didn't believe the mob existed, even after the Appalacian roundup in New York State of all the bosses. Being Attorney General, RFK ordered wiretaps on just about everybody associated with the mob - forcing Hoover's hand. Hoover, of course, had all the dirt on John Kennedy, but couldn't use it, like he was used to against Washington politicians, because his brother was Hoover's boss.

Kennedy denied air support to the Cuban freedom fighter's at the Bay of Pigs invasion, a CIA operation he inherited from the Eisenhower Administration. When that went south, although he got back all the surviving men who went into combat by paying Castro $10 million and, I think, 1000 tractor's, Robert Kennedy delivered the message to Alan Dulles, CIA head, that his agency no longer would hold any influence with the President. Put George Bush Senior, who was outside the School Book Depository on November 22, 1963, and working for the CIA, and later its director, and an angry Dulles, head of the CIA together, along with Sam Giancana, Chicago's Mafia head, whose girlfriend JFK was having an affair with - have him make the mob contact with the New Orleans mob boss, find a patsy like Oswald - and you have a tailor-made assassination coup and top level conspiracy.

Kennedy also got the Federal Government involved with the Civil Right's movement, and again, here there was a clash between J.Edgar Hoover, who hated Dr. Martin Luther King, and Robert Kennedy, who made the moves regarding the administration's support of Civil Rights. Hoover, who had King wiretapped, knew King also was having affairs outside his marriage. He couldn't use the information to discredit King, because he also got a direct order, sent through the FBI's powerful Administrative Director, Cartha Delouche (who made a dying declaration that he happened to be the Watergate's "Deep Throat" informer, he certainly would have been in a position to handle that assignment), that the FBI would surreptidously protect Dr. King, despite Hoover's racist views (there were no Black agents in the FBI), while at the same time, wiretapping him, and trying to discredit him. Two powerful FBI men, working at opposite ends, one to discredit King, the other to protect him on Kennedy's direct order's.

Regarding the Kennedy administration's Civil Right's involvement - they took no action whatsoever regarding the brave Freedom Rider's program, until Montgomery, Alabama. Than Kennedy called out the National Guard in Alabama to insure nothing happened to the riders, and guarded them as they moved onto the much more dangerous state, Mississippi, and Jackson. It was there that the Freedom Riders really met with horrible violence, although Alabama did a job on them also. The Mississippi Governor, Ross Barnett, had them all arrested and jailed in the maximum security prison in Mississippi (for beach of peace without any violence), Parchment Farm Prison. The Freedom Riders, who came under the control of CORE (Congress Of Racial Equality), run by James Farmer, made Parchment a political statement - sending nearly 500 of their members, White; Black; Student's; Ministers of all congregations; College professors, etc., until Robert Kennedy finally called off the dawgs and had the Interstate Commerce Commission pull all the White Only signs and regulations from every state in the South as unconstitutional. Didn't do it in time, many Freedom Rider's were murdered in Mississippi.

Kennedy's eye was always on Berlin and the Soviet Union during his administration, and of course, the Space Race with them - not Vietnam or Civil Right's. His own lifestyle is what got him murdered probably. Great? Not even in the Top 20 of U.S. President's...................

 

Although I would prefer to pick from the Presidents I've lived under, beginning with FDR, I would still pick Reagan as the best, although I really respected Eisenhower and would consider him a very close second.

 

If it weren't for Fracking and the vast increase of part-time jobs, unemployment would probably still be around 8%(Government numbers mind you, given the labor participation, you and I both know the economy hasn't "recovered" in the slightest. It merely shifted.)

 

Kennedy authorized supplying and funding the South Vietnamese army. He refused, however, to directly intervene. It was not until he was killed and LBJ took over that the authorization to invade given.

 

He sent almost 20,000 troops and adviser's into South Vietnam during his administration. Supplying the now non-existed Republic of Vietnam Army was the job of the adviser's and training them was the job of our troops under Kennedy. What he didn't do, was warn the Diem's in 1963, that a military coup was coming. They wanted the Diem's out of power there - brutal ruling Catholic's in a Buddhist country. When the military pulled the coup, the Diem's were assassinated in the back of a truck on a street. CIA, U.S. Army, U.S. Marines, and the support of the Kennedy Administration, all were present in that coup, knew about it, and you would have thought someone would have got the idea that the Diem's were not going to live long once the military took over. JFK knew of the coup - unbelievably, he did nothing to pull the Diem's to safety, and three months later, he would suffer the same fate as they did in Dallas. Of all the Kennedy Conspiracy theories out there - the Diem family survivor's arranging to murder JFK makes the most sense. Understanding the Oriental mind, that the family, not the government, is the ruling factor in their affairs, a revenge murder, arranged through the Soviets - who, of course, had contacts in Cuba and could make Oswald available (he distributed leaflets in New Orleans supporting Castro), and connections with the American Mafia, which would have contact with the CIA - all of that could be arranged and paid for through Saigon in those days by the Diem's, and would contribute to the fact that people still believe Kennedy was murdered by a conspiracy. The fact that it might not have been an American conspiracy, but a foreign one, of a nation which no longer exists, would contribute to the fact that we have never really been able to unravel the absolute truth to the events of November 22, 1963. The Diem's would never speak about it, but they certainly were capable of pulling it off as revenge.

Kennedy was the first real modern television President, style, grace, wit, born for tv, with his beautiful wife, they had America believing we were living in a New Frontier, with the Space Race, and style, which is correct. However, the Camelot myth never came along until after he was assassinated, and it was invented by Jacqueline Kennedy.

JFK as a great President - no - my vote goes to Richard Nixon - Watergate didn't hurt anybody in America at all, but destroyed his Presidency with his paranoia, which he didn't need to win the Presidency twice. Reagan is second or tied with Nixon, while Eisenhower and Truman both meet the same criteria of greatness. Truman for his solid and correct decision's in 7-years in the office; Ike, because of his war record, and popularity - type of guy who could get elected forever.

Just for the purpose of mentioning it, as tough as he was, Robert F. Kennedy probably would have been an excellent President as would Hubert Humphrey. Under RFK, tough as nails, but he developed a lot of empathy after his brother's assassination for the poor and the Black community - he was much better loved by that community than Lyndon Johnson, who did so much for them. His nephew, John F. Kennedy, Junior? If he ever gave any indication he wanted the Presidency or politics, I think he is the only person in modern American history who could have got the job through simple coronation, instead of running for it. America would have elected him in a landslide.............

 

47 cents a gallon for gasoline in Michigan:



http://abcnews.go.com/US/michigan-gas-station-hits-47-cents-price-war/story?id=36358859



The price of gas hit a stunning low -- just 47 cents per gallon -- in Michigan on Sunday.

Michigan was the first state to have gas under $1 in likely over a decade, Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst at GasBuddy.com, told ABC News today.

A gas station in Houghton Lake, Michigan, hit the 47 cents mark after a price war between three stations in the town, DeHaan said.


GasBuddy.com's data goes back to 2000 and DeHaan said he couldn't find any other averages that low in the U.S.

"This is something we don't see often at all or ever," DeHann said. "That's unheard of."

DeHann said he believed the next lowest price in the country was about $1.29, at a station in Virginia.

Gas prices in the U.S. are averaging at $1.889 today, down over 17 cents from last year's average of $2.061, according to GasBuddy.com. Low gas prices can likely be attributed to low oil prices, as oil supply stays high and oil demand stays low, DeHann said.

The highest national average was $4.12 in 2008, DeHann said. In terms of individual gas stations, prices have gone as high as $6 a gallon, he said.







Thank you Mr Obama!






Further proof that Mr Obama is the greatest president since Mr Clinton.

America wins with Democrats in the White House.

 

And why specifically are you thanking Obama and the Democrats, what did they specifically do to accomplish this? Or just more empty praise for lack of any real accomplishment?

 

Let's back track just a bit - the right wingers screamed BLAME OBAMA when the prices went up. Therefore, if they have any principle at all they would be praising him for the price declines.


First let us establish - did Obama cause the price increases (and for that matter, all the other nonsense that the right wingers wrongly attributed to him)? If so, then he deserves the praise I mentioned.

 

No praise for you....one year!

 

No lets stay right here. Specifically why do you attribute the lower gas prices to Obama?

 

My vote goes to Ronald Reagan. I will take it further. Reagan by far was this nations best all time president.

We need not discuss how it took Washington the slave owner 8 bitter years to win the nation once the French stepped forward to help him at Yorktown.

I have no problem putting Washington up high due to his suffering.

Then he showed his tax mettle by going after free people who happened to make Whiskey. That ticks me off.

Should we grant Jefferson huge points for advocating armed rebellion each 20 years?

 

I voted George W. Bush (2001-2009.... and my reasoning is elaborated on here:

http://www.politicalforum.com/canad...ush-my-two-favourite-american-presidents.html

Presidents Reagan and President George W. Bush, my two favourite American Presidents.

......For the record…. I admit that President George W. Bush was indeed too close with Big Business…… this is a metaphorical "fly in the ointment" but…………… I personally have read too much material over the years that indicates that his decision to invade Iraq, may well have been worth it……. because I do believe that President Saddam Hussein was obviously attempting to obtain nuclear weapons……. and Saddam might well have been willing to use them on Israel.

For one thing……. Russia got ahead of the USA in at least one area. Amazingly small dirty nuclear weapons not a whole lot larger than a softball.

When the Soviet Union collapses, Russian scientists and officials were desperate for American dollars and Saddam had billions.

The testimonies of several Iraqi nuclear physicists indicate that Saddam wanted a nuclear weapon or two or three……..

…. the situation at the time of America's invasion of Iraq was such that it probably seemed like too great of a risk to allow Saddam the freedom to keep on trying his best to develop or purchase a nuclear weapon.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khidir_Hamza

...........

I also think that his response to climate change of doing nothing.... and deliberately using the Global Dimming Effect to somewhat delay Global Warming and push the problem down to the next administration....... may well be considered to be one of the wisest possible responses within fifty years when we have a better grasp of the full picture?!

http://www.politicalforum.com/polit...m-harper-deliberately-use-global-dimming.html

Did President G. W. Bush and P. M. Harper deliberately use Global Dimming to..



.... mask...… to decrease..... to hide.......to postpone......... a general Global Warming trend?

A second legitimate question is..... within fifty years is it at all possible that we may find out that they may perhaps have had a basically good idea in doing this?

 

Happy Birthday to the best President of the last 50 years...Ronald Reagan!

 

Reagan croaked a long time ago and is in no place to hear your praise of him.

 

Yes, Ronald Reagan is dead, but not forgotten. Of all the Presidents I've lived under, beginning with FDR, Reagan was the one who earned my greatest respect.