Is * the worst president ever?

[Sannum]

I must admit, that I certanly have not lived through all of the various administrations of the past 228 years, but would you say that this president is the worst we have ever had?

I say yes!

[TimeToGo]

1. Worst in my life

[opihimoimoi]

3. I been around since FDR.... Bush is the WORST....

[radfringe]

46. funny you should post that -- just received this in an e-mail

Some people say that George W. Bush is the worst president ever. Some go so far as to say that he is the worst in every way. That’s a pretty harsh judgment. The author of the attachment below believes this, as do some historians. However, an objective comparison to some other presidents suggests that Bush has some real competition in certain areas.

Bush’s record on the economy, jobs, health care, women’s rights,
minorities, the environment, civil liberties, and foreign affairs are
among the worst of any modern president. But other presidents have,
in some ways, been as bad or worse than Bush. James Buchanan, Ulysses
S. Grant, Warren Harding, Herbert Hoover and Richard Nixon are
generally considered the worst presidents ever.

Buchanan did nothing as the nation descended into civil war. Bush
has severely polarized the nation, and turned our allies against
against us, but we are not on the brink on civil war. Grant favored
his friends with special deals and held drunken gambling parties in
the White House. Bush does not hold drunken gambling parties.
Harding was an incompetent fool who was unaware of the bribery and
corruption rampant in his administration. Bush’s administration is
characterized by ideological extremism, but no one in the Bush
administration has been convicted of bribery.

During the Great Depression, Herbert Hoover presided over the the
greatest loss of jobs in American history. More jobs have been lost
under Bush than at any other time since the Great Depression, but not
as many as were lost under Hoover. Nixon illegally ordered wiretaps,
surveillance and even break-ins into the homes and offices of private
citizens who had committed no crime. Bush pushed the USA Patriot Act
through Congress so now wiretaps, surveillance and break-ins into the
homes and offices of private citizens are not illegal.

So it’s an exaggeration to say that Bush is the worst president in
every way. His economic record is not as bad as Hoover’s. There’s no
evidence that he has illegally ordered break-ins. And he does not
host drunken gambling parties at the White House. Nonetheless, some
folks still say he’s the worst president ever.

[Kierkegaard]

2. Without question.

I have a hard time imagining how he could have done worse without deliberately trying to screw up...

[grytpype]

4. Andrew Johnson was a very bad president.

He succeeded to the Presidency when Lincoln was assassinated. He screwed up the Reconstruction of the South and committed genocide against the Native Americans.

I always say Bush is the worst President since Reconstruction just to avoid having to compare him to Johnson.

[Spider Jerusalem]

7. Um...

you've conflated Andrew Johnson and Andrew Jackson...it was Jackson who was responsible for the deaths of thousands of Native Americans (the Cherokee resettlement, Trail of Tears, etc).

[Memekiller]

5. Worst in a century, at least...

I'm not as familiar with the Presidents before 1900, but it's hard to believe there was ever an administration this incompetent, yet so able to accomplish policy so disasterous for the country.

[dennis4868]

10. if they were only.....

incompetant that would not be so bad...they are criminal, secretive, and ignore any advice that goes against what they want....

[Spider Jerusalem]

6. In the running, anyway.

James Buchanan still gets my vote as "worst", though.

[Name removed]

66. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[dennis4868]

8. first of all.....

he is not the president....a president has to get elected, he is not selected.

However, as pResident he is by far the worst. I thought Reagan was bad.....Bush is 1000000 times worse! Sreriously, Bush's WH has committed federal crimes, lied to the american people congress, and the world about matters of life and death, and he has completely gutted the environment, middle class, education system, job programs, and the health care. This WH is reactive and not proactive as most WH are. They ignore warnings and advice and only after they learn that they screwed up they then act...but it is usually too late, i.e., explosives, going into Iraq on lies and ignoring the intelligence community, not enough flu vaccines, etc....

[jdonaldball]

9. No. He is not the President.

Al Gore is the current President.

[Is It Fascism Yet]

50. LOL

Tre true, our President in Exile, Al Gore.

[Maiden England]

11. he's definately the worst non-elected pResident of the white house

[DefenseLawyer]

12. In terms of pure evil

Bush and Nixon are pretty close, in terms of corruption Bush and Warren Harding are neck and neck (with dishonorable mention to the Grant administration, though perhaps not to Grant himself) and in terms of over all stupidity, I'd say Bush gives Franklin Pierce a run for his money. So if you look at those three categories- evil, corrupt and stupid- then to paraphrase shrub, he got the trifecta. Bush wins. Worst... President... ever.

[Coyote_Bandit]

22. Well Said n/t

[natrat]

58. great synopsis defense Lawyer

[autorank]

13. Not just the worst: He is the "bad president." None compare.

[dave502d]

14. First one that made me sick.

I can't even watch him on TV.I'm not joking i get sick.

[proud2BlibKansan]

18. Same here

Glad to hear someone else has that same reaction.

http://homepage.mac.com/duffyb/nobush/iMovieTheater221.html

[ogsball]

15. He will not be seen as the worst

unless he is reelected and doesn't change anything.

Certainly some of the things (no Child & meicaid reform) he has done will be imporved if Kerry is elected and he will be shown as just inept.

[autorank]

25. Welcome to DU!!!!! Consider this:

"Inept" governance does not cost the nation $200 billion dollars and, more importantly, create a festering cauldron of new terrorists who despise our country. "Inept" governance does not take the world to the brinK of ecological cataclysm (eco catastrophes predicted by Pentagon study between 5-15 years from now). "Inept" governance does not ruin confidence in our electoral system as Bush and the fascist/Republican party are doing before our very eyes with voter fraud.

"Inept" is the entry level description for Bush. He consciously did all of this with abundant advise to the contrary.

BUSH IS THE BAD PRESIDENT

[ogsball]

30. Yes, but . . .

If Kerry is elected I do think a good deal of these problems can be solved in a fairly short period of time, thus minimizing *'s effects. What he will be remembered for then will be No Child and The Perscription Drug thing which I believe Kerry will fix.

I'm not saying it's right, I'm just saying its true.

Then again, if God forbid * is reelcted . . .

Then things will get much worse if congress doesn't step up and hold him accountable and he may very well go down as the worst.

[ogsball]

32. Then again. . .

If a Kerry election opens things up and there are several indictments and a lot of folks from *'s administration go to jail. Then yes we might have a new winner in the worst president contest.

[autorank]

38. Hmmm...

I agree that Kerry can "right the course" of some * mistakes fairly quickly. In that case, my argument that he's "the bad President" (as in "The Bad Lieutenant"--you must see the movie and think of *) is less compelling. However, there are some * mistakes that cannot be fixed. The eco catastrophes are coming with or without Kerry. Kerry can mitigate them but * blew it by inaction. When huge portions of coastline around the globe are submerged, * will look even more like the total asshole he is for screwing up Kyoto. You next response is also correct, * and/or his cronies will do time which we can presume will look real "bad" for a president.

[greenbriar]

39. you better take NCLB off the "good" list

as a teacher, I can tell you it definately is NOT making any progress on achievement

[proud2BlibKansan]

16. Hands down

yes, the worst

I survived Nixon and never thought we would have a worse prez.

But * takes the cake.

And I would take Tricky Dicky back in a heartbeat over *

[autorank]

40. Ah, Nixon we hardly knew ye!

Fellow liberal here: I also survived Nixon, in NYC no less (you remember, the city the Republicans wanted to exclude from the Union). Nixon was extremely intelligent and understood things like irrevocable mistakes and eco catastrophes. He was also a crook and scoundrel. If we'd just had a Federal version of the city-manager form of government, we could have hired Nixon for mega-bucks (disincenting his greed factor) and had a very good president. Making liberals yearn for Nixon makes Bush the bad president.

[glarius]

17. If you judge his effect on the rest of the world....Y..E..S!!!!

No other American president has had the negative effect on the world that Bush has!!!!

[Meritaten1]

19. Yes!

* Bush is the worst ever, in my opinion.

[pleiku52cab]

20. BUCHANAN

he let the country keep sliding into civil war without doing anything to stop it. Many historians believe he even aided the southern cause during his presidency.

[Lizzie Borden]

21. Bush is the WORST!

Bar none. Far and away. Bush. Is. THE. Worst. Ever. And I was a history major so I know something about the bad guys, and I lived through Nixon who used to be my favorite for the worst.

[Skittles]

23. yes, absolutely the worst

because not only does he SUCK, he wasn't even ELECTED

[Conservativesux]

24. Nixon was bad, Bush worse by far !!! (nm)

[Zero Gravitas]

26. Yes

By far. No other even comes close

Worst. President. EVER.

[Technowitch]

27. Without a doubt.

[Redleg]

28. Worst in my lifetime.

EOm

[DivinBreuvage]

29. Bush is VERY bad, Nixon had problems, but neither one ranks with

Coolidge/Hoover or James Buchanan, whose administrations nearly destroyed America. As bad as things are now they are a far cry from the Great Depression or the Civil War, and I'm sorry to see such a poor remembrance of our history.

Believe it or not, James Buchanan was involved in a far more blatant subversion of democracy than even Bush was. If you think Florida 2000 was bad you should try reading about Kansas in the 1850s. A good place to start is Kenneth Stampp's "America in 1857: A Nation on the Brink".

Certainly Bush is the worst candidate to occupy the White House during the lifespan of most people here, but he's not the worst president in American history. If he's put back for another four years I think he will probably end up claiming the title, though.

[President Kerry]

33. yes, because both a great depression and civil war

are distinct possibilities if he's given another term

[autorank]

42. I'm appropriately chastised. However, history now has a new meaning...

which includes reasonable estimations of the future. Two extrapolations from the Bush presidency are certain: (1) We are irretrievably in debt for the next 10-20 years canceling the ability to fund baby boomer Social Security retirement (as per Clinton's act of genius with bridge borrowing based on a balanced budget). This will keep millions in the work force and push down advancement of the very people who should be advancing. Not a happy intergenerational mix. (2) We are guaranteed eco catastrophes from global warming, events that a change of administration will not be able to stop. Thus, Bush's deliberate mistakes will inflict suffering on the entire globe. In addition to these two certainties, Bush laid the foundation for increased hatred of the USA and much greater risks for massive terrorist attacks. I shudder to think what they will look like and hope they are averted, but if just one attack comes, it will dwarf any past calamity in the history of this country.

I agree, right now,on paper, Hoover/Coolidge and Buchanan look worse but when you make conservative projections on Bush's short term (1-15 years) impact, it gets real ugly, real quick. Factor in the cynicism and greed of the Bush cronies and their behavior with full knowledge of the outcome and you have the bad president.

[DivinBreuvage]

44. Well argued! Still, I think it is too early to judge

I have to believe that a Kerry administration is going to be able to reverse some of these things, and thus will save George W. Bush from being ranked by future historians as the worst president ever. If not, then there's really no point to electing anybody. But if Bush is sent back for another four years I would agree with you that the resulting clusterf*** is going to, in the final analysis, make a wreck of America that neither the Civil War nor the Depression were able to do.

[TahitiNut]

31. By EVERY measure - YES. (It's not just Smirky McSockpuppet.)

Never before has this country had a more thoroughly corrupt, dishonest, greedy, and predatory administration. Never. Teapot Dome was penny ante. Watergate was a minor misdemeanor. Reconstruction was ineptitude. This cabal exceeds in all manner of depravity any former adminstration.

[natrat]

59. so true

as soon as they came in they literally stole billions via the california energy scam--they were just getting warmed up-on oh so many levels these guys are pretty bad so in aggregate they must be real close to the worst

[President Kerry]

34. then again, let's ask Rudy "it's all the troops' fault" Giuliani

shall we? He'll say * is one of the greatest american presidents in our history(@ RNC).. asslick

[porphyrian]

35. Fuck yes. - n/t

[GreenPoet64]

36. Worst in my lifetime. Worst ever, I suspect.

[greenbriar]

37. does a bear shit in the woods?

sorry...just had to do it

[m berst]

41. combine the worst of all

Buchanan, Hoover, Nixon, A. Johnson, Polk, Grant - all bad adminstrations for various reasons, but the Bush adminstration seems to have combined the worst qualities of all of them. Corruption, secrecy, divisiveness, war, law-breaking, Constitution threatening, fear mongering - it just goes on and on. Amazingly bad presidency by any measure, and it could well be the worst ever. We haven't seen anything like the Great depression or the Civil War yet on his watch, but at the beginnings the adminstrations of Buchanan or Hoover we had yet to see the full effects of their bumbling, either.

This is certainly the most vindictive and aggressively destructive adminstration ever, so whatver mess they make they are MIHOP while previous bad adminstrations were mostly LIHOP at the worst.

[hunter]

43. Watch who Bush pardons...

...before Kerry takes office.

[Bozos for Bush]

45. Worst ever, hands down

America is teetering on the edge of fascism, thanks to Bush.

WE MUST WIN!

[depakid]

47. Without question

Objectively:

More corrupt than the Grant Adminitration;

More inept than the Harding Administration;

And more uncaring than the Hoover Administration.

Hands down the worst president (actually, he was never really president) that the US ever had. Historians will view him horribly.

I almost feel sorry for Jenna & Babs (and their children). They're going to have to live with a lot of shame.

[billyskank]

48. Yes.

That was easy. Next question? ;)

[Is It Fascism Yet]

49. I remember back to Eisenhower

and yes, Shrub is the absolute worst, the only one who I really think was driven solely by personal greed. But to tell you the truth, in my entire lifetime I have never seen a republican president who didn't enlarge the bureaucracy, usurp civil liberties, engage in war profiteering, devastate the economy and overspend unto deficit. Of all the many wars fought in my lifetime, none since WWII was actually necessary. Now, I am not saying that as part of the United Nations we didn't need to send our fair share of troops to stop the various genocides we have acted against, but it has never been necessary, in the last 50 years for us to actually declare and wage a full fledged war of our own. In my humble opinion, every war we have waged since WWII was fought only because somebody wanted the plunder and the boost to our economy/industry. After 911 we could have captured and punished the international criminals who perpetrated the act, but we didn't, and there was no sovereign nation to declare war on. You cannot declare "war on terrorism". That's stupid because terrorism is a concept, not a nation. We could certainly attain the same perma-war boost to our economy by space exploration. It's so clear that Iraq was about Shrub being an oil man and Cheney being a Halliburton man. Our troops should never be used for war profiteering, and 100,000 Iraqi's have been murdered in our names as well.

[othermeans]

61. In defense of Eisenhower I would say

that his appointment of Earl Warren to the Supreme court helped to bring an end to the era of segregation (Brown v Topeka Board of Education).

After the decision Eisenhower was reported to have said: "Appointing Earl Warren was the biggest damn fool mistake I ever made."

[union_maid]

51. I say worst in my lifetime

History doesn't always give a picture of what it was like to be there, unless maybe you're a very serious student of history. My 83 year old mother says he's the worst in her lifetime, too. I think that covers enough ground.

I think that where Bush's special talent lies is that he's so all around bad. He doesn't appear to have any good points.

[paradox]

52. My vote is for Ronnie Ray-Gun

He managed to fuck over the working class and bring in the new era of neo-conservatism in under 8 years.

But if the boy king does manage to get re-elected I might have to change my vote.

[timtom]

53. I think it's a tossup between

Bush2, Bush1, Reagan, Ford, Nixon, and Herbert Hoover.

I just can't make up my mind.

Nah. Just kidding. As much as I despise all of them, this one takes the cake, far and away. (Which is what I wish he'd do...)

[B Calm]

54. Raygun is a close second. Unions took a hell of a beating

during the 80s and Bush hasn't helped one stinkin bit!

[IconoclastIlene]

68. Reagan is up on top in recent history...for screwing and skewering

Arming Afganistan, union busting and deregulating so we all could be screwed and skewered.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

55. No. But, he's working on it. A. Johnson, Nixon, Reagan, still lead.

Andrew Johnson lost the peace after the civil war by hindering reconstruction and essentially trying to give the planters the slaves back.

Nixon was responsible for the killing of millions of people in SE Asia.
An unindicted war crimnal of major proportions.

Reagan did irreparable harm to the political structure of the nation by making government the enemy. Not to mention nearly bankrupting the nation in his idiotic pursuit to destroy the USSR.

Bush, however, is doing his damndest to catch up by making America the unqualified enemy of the whole world.

[NicRic]

56. Easy answer YES

At least in my life time anyway, and Iam 47 years old ! I never thought I would dislike a President as much as I dislike bush ! I also never wanted to see a President lose so badly. Sure when Regan was running I wanted hinm to lose ,very much so .I cant describe the differance in how badly I want this President to lose ,its cranked up all the way, I dont believe I could ever want another
President, to be unseated ,this bad. Iam begging the people to please get out and vote and vote this idiot in office out, send him back to Crawford in early retiremet , he needs the rest from all the hard ,hard work !!!

[devinsgram]

57. With out a doubt. YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[hiphopnation]

60. I will defer to Comic Book Guy on this one...

---------

On a serious note, it's an interesting question. As I don't make a habit of qualifying the "worst" things in my life because I find it a boorish and depressing venture, I can say with utmost certainty that he is an awful, awful man who comes from a rich background war mongering and profiteering. I think Garrison Keillor said it best when he called him, I'm paraphrasing, the Etch-a-Sketch President, a dull and rigid man suspicious of secular institutions and the free flow of information.

So is he the worst? Like many have said he's by far the worst in my lifetime and arguably the worst in a century. :thumbsup:

[marew]

62. Guiliani just told Tim Russert on Meet the Press he didn't blame the..

troops, John Kerry did ever after Russert played the tape. Denying reality again. What a complete lying jerk! Screw him and all his dead ancestors.

[greekspeak]

63. So many rotten presidents to choose from.

Tyler. Pierce. Buchanan. Most of the ones from Johnson I through McKinley. Harding. Coolidge. Hoover. Reagan. Nixon. Shrub.


So many crappy presidents, so little time. But Shrub has to be in the top three anyway.

[IconoclastIlene]

64. Eisenhower, Reagan and Bush....the trifecta of our undoing

Eisenhower for Viet Nam, et al.

Reagan for deregulation, union busting, foreign miasmas.

Bush, well, you be the judge..........

[Snotcicles]

71. Yep I think Reagan did the most to polish up and tie

a ribbon on fascism in the republican party.

[Name removed]

65. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[IconoclastIlene]

67. Johnson was a very sad creature in the wrong place, at the

wrong time, and inherited a mess and declined to run again.

[robbedvoter]

69. I hope so, because any worse and the Earth is gone!

[NinetySix]

70. Some historians say Franklin Pierce

He wasn't even renominated by his own party for a second term. I wonder how historians a century from now will compare the two; perhaps they'll judge the Republican Party more harshly because they DID renominate this fool....

[Cornjob]

72. Yep! He beat out Nixon in my lifetime.

Bush has led the most corrupt administration in US history.

Nixon and his pals were crooks, but they were rank amateurs in comparison with the current crop of thugs.

Bush has misled this nation into believing that freedom must be traded for security. He has usurped our freedoms while making the world a much more dangerous place by his bumbling foreign policy.

I can only pray that he is gone very soon.

[donco6]

73. I've been around since Kennedy - worst by far.

Just plain old stupid.

[ldf]

74. a nanosecond passes

YES!

and i apologize for taking so long to make a decision on this weighty matter.

:eyes:

[4MoreYearsOfHell]

75. Worst ever president ever?

No - Idi Amin was just a tad worse...

just a tad, mind you...

[leftofthedial]

76. worst in my lifetime

worst I'm aware of since FDR

[0007]

77. Absolutely the worse ever!

 Vote as if your life depended on it, because it does.

Call 866 687-8683
If Poll Workers refuse you to vote for any reason
If there is a late opening or early closing of a polling place.
If your polling place runs out of ballots or has an incorrect ballot
If you experience poll worker insensitivity or discrimination in the voting process

The civil rights community have set up a toll-free Election Day hotline. This line is
staffed now and, in addition to logging your complaint, the civil rights organizations have law
students and attorneys who can provide assistance on Election Day.

the hotline number is
866 687-8683
202 457-0473 fax

When you call the hotline, be prepared to give your name, telephone number, and note as many
details as possible, including the names of the people who are involved.

[VOX]

78. YES. And the most dangerous president EVER.

* & Co. have the power to bring on major catastrophe. They are fouling the planet, running America into massive debt, pissing on most of society, dividing the country into two soon-to-be warring factions, and playing dangerously in the Middle East, killing innocents by the thousands in the process.

As long as the pockets of a few are lined, the * administration doesn't care what else happens.

So yes, the worst president ever.

[JackDragna]

79. No one will ever beat Grant.

Incompetence, corruption and bumbling at a level Bush could never hope to approach. Considering how bad Bush is..that's saying something.

[greyfox]

80. I am 63

and he is the worst I have ever seen. Ever!!! Eveeeeeeer!

[djg21]

81. Shrub and Harding ...

Harding was corrupt. Shrub is imcompetent, stupid and corrupt.!

[rfrrfrrfr]

82. There will always be dabate about

just how bad Bush is. The thing that puts Bush in first for me is that except with a couple exceptions for most part the other worst presidents presided at a time when the united states was not a superpower.


Bush in the past 4 years has set us down the road of going from the worlds most respected and powerful nation to a thirdworld backwater. If Bush gets 4 more years he will destroy the middle class and relegate us into political irrelevancy world wide unless we make such a nuisance of ourselves the rest of the world bands together goes to war against the now Facist state of the US.

Much like arguments over who should not be in the Baseball hall of fame The is Bush the worst ever debate will go on long after we are dead and gone, but he certainly is there among the top 3, and for me the worst.

[mtnsnake]

83. How could he not be?

When you combine everything under the sun of just how pathetic this scoundrel has been, including general overall apathy, environment, the economy, outright arrogance and lies, net loss of jobs, the list goes on....and consider how blatantly CORRUPT he is...then add to that how no one else could ever polarize and divide this country like he has...it's hard to imagine anyone worse.

If he's not the worst president in history, he's got to be the most hated.

[StupidFOX]

84. Worst by category:

Worst war president since Nixon, second worst of all time.
Worst economy president since Hoover.
Worst incumbent candidate since Carter, second worst of all time.
Worst Yale student ever.
Worst thing to ever get up on two legs EVER.

[Malebolgia]

85. Yes he is, and here's why:

Read the article on The Nation's website...100 Facts and 1 Opinion: The Non-Arguable Case Against the Bush Administration, can be found at:

Website link: http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20041108&s=facts

PDF Printable Version Link: http://www.thenation.com/special/pdf/100facts.pdf

If you can, print and distribute these to as many people as possible before Tuesday.

And the reasons listed in the article is just the icing on the cake...

[Chomskyite]

86. Well . . .

. . . every time this came up in the past I'd say Buchanan was worse because he's the only president who actually turned over arsenals to an enemy of the country, i.e. the Confederates. But now that we're hearing about the many unguarded weapons dumps in Iraq (many more than just Al Qaqaa now), I'd have to give Bush the nod now.

He leaped ahead of Buchanan right at the end.

[NNadir]

87. Bush would be the worst President if he were President. He is not

a President since the constitution makes no reference to a President being seated by the Supreme Court.

Bush is however, the worst person ever to occupy the White House, by a long shot, beating the likes of Richard Nixon, Franklin Pierce and James Buchanan.

Shit, he makes Reagan look like a statesman.

[recoveringdittohed]

88. Worst in My Lifetime (I'm 52)

I used to think LBJ was the worst of my lifetime (because of Vietnam)and I do think that they impeached the wrong Johnson but with Iraq, job losses and civil liberties losses * has hit the trifecta.

[many a good man]

89. No president* has weakened the US as much as bush* has

Normally such rankings are based on effectiveness. bush* has been very effective passing legislation and led his party to a huge midterm triumph. This alone will always rank him near the top.

OTOH, bush* will soon be seen as the one president* to have the most negative impact on the nation both militarily and economically....

[OhioChick]

90. Without a Doubt......eom