DU this: Who is the worst President... Bush, Carter or Nixon?

[skipos]

http://www.cnn.com/POLITICS/analysis/toons/2007/05/25/mikula/index.html

[Bluebear]

1. done lol

[proud2BlibKansan]

The is the first time ever I have been glad to see dubya winning something!

He has it by a landslide. :woohoo:

[glowing]

2. Not a fair question because I didn't experience carter or nixon.

So biasedly, I would have to say Bush. (I wasn't even alive when the former 2 were in office)

[proud2BlibKansan]

5. dubya is definitely worse

It's a no brainer as far as I am concerned.

[Lobster Martini]

21. And there is no more apt term than "no brainer." n/t

[hlthe2b]

19. Admittedly, glowing, I'm a bit older than you... old enough, I guess

that American History was still taught in school. We did book reports on famous individuals throughout history and in geography, history, and sociology, that generally meant reading many many books on famous leaders-- American and otherwise. While admittedly, I loved to read--perhaps more than others-- by the time I graduated high school, I had a very good grounding on each of the US Presidents, both past and present.

Your comment not only saddens me, it frightens me. Perhaps you can reassure me? :shrug:

Actually, just your being here on DU, DOES reassure me. Stay and learn, my young friend.

[glowing]

41. You are right... History was interesting... but I read scientific journals

to pass my time.

[sandnsea]

42. Objective reasoning is a learned skill

Please acquire it. The lack of it is the reason we get Presidents like Bush.

[smoogatz]

45. So, how does your inexperience make the question unfair?

I'm confused.

[pinto]

69. Long story short, Nixon was a conflicted, paranoid kook, a cold warrior from the old school,

steeped in So Cal Chamber of Commerce Republicanism. Opened rapprochement with a very closed China, encouraged domestic wiretapping, surveillance and other 'dirty tricks' (it's his Presidency that gave us that phrase) which ultimately brought him down.

Carter was an idealistic Democratic populist of the old Southern school. Negotiated the first Camp David accords between Israel and Egypt, hosted the famous handshake between Israeli PM Menachim Begin and Egyptian President Anwar al Sadat. Probably one of our best in potential, yet over his head in Washington, got eaten alive by the hostage standoff in Iran (which largely contributed to his second term loss to Ronald Reagan - who got credited for the hostages' release immediately after his inauguration).

[Skittles]

71. I lived through all three

trust me, your answer is WAY correct

[Blue_In_AK]

3. No contest.

:rofl:

[tridim]

I can't even believe Carter is in the same poll as Bush and Nixon

:puke:

[Orangepeel]

25. that's our fair and balanced media. Everything has to be bipartisan

it doesn't matter if all our worst presidents WERE republican, they couldn't have only republicans in the poll

[Dulcinea]

75. You must not live in Georgia!

Every time Jimmy Carter does something newsworthy, there's a flurry of LTTEs in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution blathering about how he was a terrible president because their taxes went up under his administration.

No one here cares about anything but guns & taxes. Nobel Peace Prize? Habitat for Humanity? What does that matter if rednecks have to pay more taxes? :sarcasm:

[Straight Shooter]

4. bush 70%, Carter 21%, Nixon 9%

Carter worse than Nixon? :rofl:

[MissWaverly]

8. Carter was the victim of the Iran crisis over the hostages

I honestly believe he was a good president, and wise not to get us involved in an all out military confrontation in the Middle East,
it easier to get into a war that to get out of one.

[Straight Shooter]

15. Absolutely correct.

I was still a teen-ager then, and even I recognized what a hoax the release of the hostages was, just in time to make Reagan the Rat-Bastard look like a John Wayne hero.

After the election, I wandered around for days, muttering, "I can't believe America voted for a g'damn actor ..."

[MissWaverly]

18. then there was Iran-Contra

that was quickly shoved under the proverbial rug, wasn't it guns for hostages?

Iran-contra affair, in U.S. history, secret arrangement in the 1980s to provide funds to the Nicaraguan contra rebels from profits gained by selling arms to Iran. The Iran-contra affair was the product of two separate initiatives during the administration of President Ronald Reagan. The first was a commitment to aid the contras who were conducting a guerrilla war against the Sandinista government of Nicaragua. The second was to placate “moderates” within the Iranian government in order to secure the release of American hostages held by pro-Iranian groups in Lebanon and to influence Iranian foreign policy in a pro-Western direction.

In early Nov., 1986, the scandal broke when reports in Lebanese newspapers forced the Reagan administration to disclose the arms deals. Poindexter resigned before the end of the month; North was fired. Select congressional committees held joint hearings, and in Dec., 1986, Lawrence E. Walsh was named as special prosecutor to investigate the affair. Higher administration officials, particularly Reagan, Vice President Bush, and William J. Casey (former director of the CIA, who died in May, 1987), were implicated in some testimony, but the extent of their involvement remained unclear. North said he believed Reagan was largely aware of the secret arrangement, and the independent prosecutor's report (1994) said that Reagan and Bush had some knowledge of the affair or its coverup. Reagan and Bush both claimed to have been uninformed about the details of the affair, and no evidence was found to link them to any crime. A presidential commission was critical of the NSC, while congressional hearings uncovered a web of official deception, mismanagement, and illegality.

A number of criminal convictions resulted, including those of McFarlane, North, and Poindexter, but North's and Poindexter's were vacated on appeal because of immunity agreements with the Senate concerning their testimony. Former State Dept. and CIA officials pleaded guilty in 1991 to withholding information about the contra aid from Congress, and Caspar Weinberger, defense secretary under Reagan, was charged (1992) with the same offense. In 1992 then-president Bush pardoned Weinberger and other officials who had been indicted or convicted for withholding information on or obstructing investigation of the affair. The Iran-contra affair raised serious questions about the nature and scope of congressional oversight of foreign affairs and the limits of the executive branch.

http://www.factmonster.com/ce6/history/A0825447.html

[Lobster Martini]

22. Withdrawn. n/t

[MissWaverly]

23. yes, but who's to say that it didn't start during Carter

many have felt that the release of the hostages coinciding with Reagan becoming president was a little too convenient and who
was Reagan's vice president, only an former director of the CIA. Let me add that Jimmy Carter was the only democratic presdident
elected after Richard Nixon's folly. Jimmy, who as a real Christian attracted the fundies, he could have started a
legacy of democrats being elected to the White House. The Iran event kept that from happening.

I included a snip for the newbies, the newly inaugurated Reagan announced the hostages were freed.

CBS) Jimmy Carter spent his last minutes in office trying to end the 444-day Iran hostage crisis that many say cost him the presidency. He even took a telephone with him to Ronald Reagan's swearing in and was engaged in last-minute talks as the two drove up to the Capitol.

But it was the newly inaugurated President Reagan who made the announcement that afternoon - that the 52 American hostages had been released from Tehran and were coming home.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2001/01/18/iran/main265244.shtml

[Usrename]

73. Hawk missiles.

Oliver North sold Hawk missiles to Iran.



Reagan's minions had traveled to Iran during his campaign and made deals with the kidnappers such that they would not release the hostages while Carter was president.

Many of the Iran/Contra conspirators have resurface and have held key positions in this administration.

from wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran-Contra_Affair"> Iran-Contra_Affair

Persons involved pardoned and reinstated

In 1992 U.S. President George H.W. Bush pardoned six people involved in the scandal,<35> namely Elliott Abrams, Duane R. Clarridge, Alan Fiers, Clair George, Robert C. McFarlane, and Caspar W. Weinberger.

George W. Bush selected some individuals that served under Reagan for high-level posts in his presidential administration.<36><37> They include:

Elliott Abrams:<38> under Bush, the Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director on the National Security Council for Near East and North African Affairs; in Iran Contra, pleaded guilty on two counts of unlawfully withholding information, pardoned.

Otto Reich:<39> head of the Office of Public Diplomacy under Reagan.

John Negroponte:<40> under Bush, the National Intelligence Director.

Admiral John Poindexter:<41> under Bush, Director of the Information Awareness Office; in Iran Contra found guilty of multiple felony counts for conspiracy, obstruction of justice, lying to Congress, defrauding the government, and the alteration and destruction of evidence, convictions reversed.

Robert Gates: <42> under Bush, confirmed on December 6, 2006 as the new Secretary of Defense to replace the resigning Donald Rumsfeld. Served as Director of Central Intelligence from 1991–1993 under George H.W. Bush. During Iran Contra he was Deputy Director of Central Intelligence.

Charles E. Allen: <43> under Bush, appointed in August 2005 to be chief intelligence officer at the Department of Homeland Security. Allen's position at DHS was not subject to Senate confirmation. Prior to the DHS appointment, Allen had worked 47 years at the CIA. Director of Central Intelligence William Webster formally reprimanded Allen for failing to fully comply with the DCI's request for full cooperation in the agency's internal Iran-Contra scandal investigation. However coworkers of Allen pointed out that Webster reprimanded the one person in the CIA who had brought his suspicions of a funds diversion to Robert Gates.

[MissWaverly]

77. thanks for the confirmation

Your post is so good, I think you should repost it as a seperate thread, more people need to be made aware of this.


:-)

[question everything]

6. I would say that this is an unfair question since Bush is still

in office.

Yes, I know, our gut reaction is to say Bush but since we judge Carter and Nixon through the eyes of history we need to do the same for Bush.

Plus, Nixon and Bush were elected twice - what many DUers feel about Florida and Ohio notwithstanding - Carter only once.

[mrcheerful]

12. Ok then name a prezinut that has even come close to what shrub has done to the US

So far shrubs has had more cronnies get caught up in scandals then Grant. He has more unemployed under paid workers the Hoover and FDR combined. Has managed to out spend Reagan. And involved us in a war with more casulties then the first 7 years of the Veitnam war, remember Veitnam didn't take off until LBJ in 64, the american involvement started under DDE. So yeah bush already has a history to compare to the rest. The only thing is that he still has another 2 years in office.

[1monster]

17. I lived through Nixon, Carter, and thus far, Bush II. Belive me, there

is no contest. Bush is the worst. Even during the worst of times in both Nixon's and Carter's administration, there was never the fear of being a police state that there is now.

Druing the worst of the Nixon administration, we still believed that the Constituion did work, was unassailable, and would prevail.

And Nixon wasn't all bad. He did do some good things for this country and this world.

(I can't think of even ONE good thing Bush has done for this country or this world.)

And during the worst period of high interest rates and Middle East disasters, there was no fear that the military was broken and middle level officers were not resigning as soon as their original committment was honored and done.

Even though economic times were tough because of the price of oil raised gas prices, groceries, other necessities, and interest rates, the population of homeless people was virtually unheard of, and medical care was available for almost everyone, including those who had next to nothing.

And from the hind sight of history, Jimmy Carter was right on so many issues. I didn't love Jimmy when he was in office, but I didn't despise him either.

[melody]

24. The pain and damage this country has experienced under Bush can never be resolved by "history"

I was alive during Nixon, Carter AND Bush. Bush and Nixon are/were criminals. That's the difference.
Carter was a decent man who was torpedoed by that very decency -- he stayed home to resolve the hostage
crisis instead of campaign. He was set-up by the same monsters we're dealing with now.

[lutefisk]

65. Very nicely put!

And Cheney has had his soft little hands in this crap since he was in the Nixon White House. In addition to being evil to the core, he is a very patient creature.

[sandnsea]

43. Are you kidding me?

What the fucking hell is WRONG WITH THIS GODDAMN COUNTRY. Go read a fucking book. Compare, contrast. THINK. Take a goddamn stand. Jesus christ.

[Garbo 2004]

48. W's undermining of the Constitution, expansion of imperial presidential

power, foreign, domestic and fiscal policies already provide a basis for evaluation.

A historian's view: http://www.truthout.org/cgi-bin/artman/exec/view.cgi/59/19222

[Marr]

50. Wait- you're saying we should ignore the issue of election fraud when considering

a president's number of terms as an indicator of his effectiveness?

So you're saying, "If you ignore the fact that he stole the election, GW Bush's election is clear evidence of his popularity!".

Huh?

[whopis01]

63. That is true, Bush needs to be given a fair chance.

We should wait until we have had two entire terms of screwups, atrocities and crimes before we judge him. He may get unfairly rated higher if we don't.

Just because he is winning the game and is up to bat in the bottom on the ninth doesn't mean he can't hit a few more 'homers'.

[Vidar]

7. done

[wildbilln864]

9. 70/21/9....

yep!

[Vexatious Ape]

10. Done.

[blogslut]

11. They left out Ronnie

I'd still vote for Dubya as worst, but Ronnie runs a close second in my book.

[KoKo]

30. Yes....I agree with that. They were too scared to put in St. Ronnie!

But Reagan comes in next to Bush. He set the stage for Bush but then there's also Poppy Bush...so we've had a run.

[ananda]

33. Exactly. It shoulda been Bush43 worst..

Reagan second worst and Nixon third worst.

Reagan and Bush41 arranged it so that the hostages
wouldn't be released while Carter was in office.

Very very nasty and sinister.

[MissWaverly]

36. yes, considering who these deals were with

and what was the price tag?

[otherlander]

68. I would have voted for ketchup-and-coke boy.

I know that we're not supposed to say that anyone's worse than Shrub, but damn, that motherfucker was evil, and I only wish he could have died a more painful death.

[acmavm]

13. bush** 70% Carter 21% Nixon 9%

21% of the voters are republican morans.

[AspenRose]

14. Well, DUH...

...we don't have to wait for twenty-twenty hindsight of history to tell us THAT.....

[Bitwit1234]

16. How could Carter be anywhere near as bad as Nixon

OH I know. The MSM is panning him. They are posting over and over he was the worst president going. Why because Reagan's people, even before Reagan won the nomination went to Iran and got the leaders there not to release the prisoners until after Reagan took office.

But then you didn't hear anything about him sending envoys to Iran. YOU did hear where a speaker of the House went to visit the ME and Syria. Looks like the press was controlled by the republicans then. Or else they would not have threatened Discovery and had them pull the documentary about the child porno ring with connections to Reagan's white house.

[MissWaverly]

20. no, he was seen as a "wimp" for not nuking Iran over the

hostage crisis and has been flagellated by the right wingers ever since, but what good did Bush's "Bring 'em on" macho posturing
do for our American soldiers, Iraq or the American people.

[Edgeoforever]

26. Yup. Bad press.

[MissWaverly]

28. Yes, I think that he was the original victim of smear

that controls our present day political process, people are remade in the media into carricatures which can be knocked down, often,
with little basis in fact, look at Kerry.

[Celebration]

27. Two Repugs to split vote, one dem

Not very fair is it? The Democrats could split the vote between Nixon and Bush, the Republicans only have one to vote against.

No worries, Bush is bad enough to cream both of them.

Carter did a great job and would have been a hero if the rescue effort hadn't failed.

[emilyg]

29. Happily done B u S H

[ananda]

31. Carter 21?? Nixon 9!!!???

Oh pulleeezze.

Carter shouldn't even be in the equation.

[Madspirit]

34. I think

I think a lot of people here don't even remember Nixon. A lot don't even remember Carter. I think Carter is great, just btw. ...and I was around for all of them.
Lee

[Madspirit]

32. George is FINALLY winning something...

Done and k&r...
Lee

[Booster]

35. Wow, People's is pissed (as Bush would say).

[hfojvt]

37. Why is Carter even on this list?

When Reagan was far worse.
National debt in 1976 - 629 billion. in 1981 - 994.8 Carter total - 365.8 billion
National debt in 1985 - 1,817.5 billion - four years of Reagan - 822.7 billion
National debt in 1989 - 2,868 billion - four more years - 1,050.5 billion
National debt in 1993 - 4,351.4 billion - four more years - 1,483.4 billion

As a percentage of GDP in 1976 - 35.4%. In 1981 - 32.5%. In 1985 - 43.9% in 1989 - 53.1%. In 1993 - 66.9%

Trade balance in 1976 - (-6.5) In 1981 (-22.3). In 1985 (-117.7). In 1989 (-109.4) (Although I notice this got alot worse under Clinton. It was -436.1 by 2000.)

Share of income going to the top 5% in 1981 - 15.6%. In 1989 - 18.9%. In 1993 (as his policies continued) - 21%

[whopis01]

64. So the RW fundies could play too. n/t

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

38. 70% W, 21% Carter, 9% Nixon

I bet about 20% of the anti Carter vote comes from his current comments rather than his administration during the 70s.

[in_cog_ni_to]

39. 70% Bush n/t

[Downtown Hound]

40. Done, Bush still at 70%.

[sam sarrha]

44. the media did a Charactor assination on Carter.. cause he wasnt Belt Way connected

[sam sarrha]

46. they put up three people to lower W's horrific results, would be 91% !!! for 2 people

[HockeyMom]

47. I lived through all three also

BUSH is the worse. Not even close. At the time, I never though anybody could be worse than Nixon. lol WRONG. Not even Nixon was as cold hearted, or I will say it, EVIL as Bush.

Carter made a lot of mistakes as President, but I do think the man really cared, and still does, about people -- ALL people. Carter is a good man. Bush and good anything doesn't belong in the same sentence.

[Marr]

49. How could anyone say Nixon?

Everything criminal thing Nixon did, GW Bush has done 10 times worse, and 100 times more often.

Carter seems to be the token Democrat, but Reagan really deserves the slot more that Carter.

[BlooInBloo]

51. LOL! You can always count on that 20-30%!

[LWolf]

52. er.....

Is there really any question here?

Which is bigger, a dog, a horse, or an elephant?

Which is hotter, a bell pepper, an anaheim chile, or an habanero?

Which is wetter? rocks, dirt, or water?

Which is worse, a scratch, an allergy, or cancer?

[etherealtruth]

53. Bush has succeeded in making really bad presidents look good in comparison ...

*I am not considering Carter:loveya: a bad president.

[williesgirl]

54. done - k&r

[SalmonChantedEvening]

55. done! K&R!

:kick:

[wildhorses]

56. gives new meaning to the term 'no-brainer'

:kick:

[JohnnyRingo]

57. Which is the worst poison?

1. Cyanide laced with arsenic
2. High fructose corn syrup
3. Trans fats


Common sense says #1 by a long way.

[kurth]

58. STUPID poll

Did Carter invade Iraq, kill 3,455 U.S. soldiers, and give us $3/gal gas?
Did Carter burglarize and obstruct justice?

[Herman74]

59. I see a bunch of shallow-thinking freepers are voting for Carter...

...which of course is idiotic. Jimmy Carter won the Nobel Peace Prize, largely for establishing a lasting peace between Israel and Egypt, and he gave Panama its canal. He was basically our first energy-conscious president, wearing a sweater indoors, and (I believe) putting solar panels on the White House. He announced boldly that he stood for "Human Rights." He messed up a bit with the male-only draft registration, but no one's perfect.

People tend to forget how bad Nixon was. I came close to voting for Tricky Dick, but ultimately wound up voting for The Chimp. Still, it may very well be that more people lost their lives because Nixon wouldn't get out of Indochina his first term (even extending the Vietnam War into Cambodia), than have lost their lives in Dumbya's Pet Project in Iraq. And the Nixon crew broke into Democratic Party Headquarters, probably on orders from Nixon.

[progressoid]

60. Waaaaay idiotic poll.

[nam78_two]

61. Carter? Alongside * and Nixon?

Yeah CNN -keep working on that fairness & balance....:eyes:

[Akoto]

62. Nixon doesn't hold a candle to Bush.

At least Nixon tried to hide what he was doing, and eventually gave it up when caught.

As for Carter, I find it bizarre that he's even on that list. :shrug:

[yorkiemommie1]

66. done

n/t

[orleans]

67. bush sees the poll & smiles: look! i'm at 69%

[Jack Rabbit]

70. Interesting

Votes for somebody other than Bush amount to 30%.

My, those 30%ers are consistant.

[IChing]

72. 30%ers are constant....great observation!!

:) :thumbsup:

[andlor]

74. done

[Hersheygirl]

76. Done

No thinking about it. And that's how * will go down in history. The worst, mosted hated, stupidest man sitting in the White House.

[NotGivingUp]

78. bush, CARTER, or nixon? more like bush1, bush2, clinton, nixon. nt

[SergeyDovlatov]

79. They wouldn't have asked if they didn't think that Bush Jr is the worst

:patriot:

[Gravel2008]

80. Done!

But I don't get why Carter is even on there as a choice. :eyes:

[Sewsojm]

81. Agreed,

Reagan should be on the list instead of Carter.

[mnhtnbb]

82. Big win for Bushie boy