FDR- Yes a true wartime president, comparable to Lincoln.
JFK- Must be given credit for caution during Missile Crisis- could have blown up the world. Blockade was genius.
John Adams- Amazing this guy just got on the $1 coin in 2007. Absolutely critical to the nation's development. War of 1812 was a tough one though.
Reagan- Split decision here. Responsible for collapse of USSR through massive spending on weapons that USSR could not match. The balance of power was lost in critical regions though, resulting in a lot of grief in Africa, Balkans, etc.,
Jefferson- Great thinker, great revolutionary, good land deal as president with France/Louisiana.
Truman- Largely inherited FDR greatness. Dropped the Atom Bomb. Tough choice. He is revered here in certain circles, viewed as war criminal overseas.
Teddy Roosevelt- Great American, excellent image, National Parks System a stroke of genius. He's always been one of my favs.
Adams and Jefferson in a class by themselves, but without Kennedy's caution in October 61, we have no friends of Prospect Place. FDR is right up there though, right person at the right time. Good survey.
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Had to give it to FDR, but even more so for his first term in which the "New Deal" initiatives helped the speed economic recovery from the Great Depression, launched a massive public works program, and created the social secuirty program (among many others achievements).
I always felt it was not so much Kennedy's caution, but his perceived recklessness that ended the CMC. For all his militant shoe-banging at the UN, it was Kruschev in the end who blinked and turned the ships around.
Ditto on just about every other Pres you mention, DZ.
And for a guy whose mother made him wear a dress for several years as a child, Teddy was awesome.
The "New Deal" was slower in achieving it's goal then most remember. If not for WWII, who knows where Mr.FDR would rank today. However, the war did happen, and we are all the better for having him at the helm. If anything, the "New Deal" showcased he had a plan, and vision. Something lacking in todays candidates.
The NEW poll is going to be between two figures more polarizing than any president.
The New Deal solved a lot of problems in a relatively short time, with the exception being double-digit unemployment which lasted, incredibly, even into the war.
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