Worst Presidents of All Time

In honor of President’s Day and taking a page out of Steve’s blog, but owing to my more pessimistic side, I thought I would compile a list of worst presidents of all time. I’ll spare you the suspense; George W. Bush is not number one. Yes, as hard as it seems to believe there are presidents in our history that were worse. Unlike Steve, I will rank them in order of worst to just flat out bad.


James Buchanan (1857 – 1861): All you need to know about this president can be summed up by the remark he made to the incoming Abraham Lincoln, “If you are as happy in entering the White House as I shall feel on returning to Wheatland you are a happy man." A Northerner with Southern sympathies, his one-term administration presided over the breakup of the Union, which led to the Civil War. As Southern states declared their secession, he declared that while secession was illegal going to war to stop it was also illegal and hence remained inactive. While he should share the spotlight with fellow Civil War mid-wives Franklin Pierce and Millard Fillmore, the prize for worst president deservedly goes to Buchanan. He backed the Lecompton Constitution in Kansas, which would have admitted Kansas as a slave state, despite the fact that the majority of Kansans did not favor slavery. When the bill was blocked by the Senate and the Congress called for a new vote, Southerners were infuriated. As if that weren’t enough, Buchanan, upon receiving false reports that Utah governor Brigham Young was planning a revolt, sent the army to replace Young with Alfred Cummings. The incident was referred to as “Buchanan’s Blunder.”


Andrew Johnson (1865 – 1869): The other book end of the Lincoln era, Johnson was the only Southern senator not to quit the Senate upon secession. From there it goes downhill. Upon Lincoln’s assassination, Johnson took control of the first phase of the Reconstruction, rushing the reincorporation of Confederate states back into the Union and undermining many of the civil rights legislation passed by the Republican-controlled Congress, including allowing many Southern states to enact “Black Code” laws that gave freedmen second-class status. He tried, unsuccessfully, to block ratification of the Fourteenth Amendment, which overruled the Dread Scott decision. Johnson also was impeached by Congress for violation of the Tenure of Office Act, which said that the president could not remove from office any presidential appointee unless approved by the Senate. The Act was eventually ruled unconstitutional in 1926.


George W. Bush (2001 – 2009): Where do you begin? Iraq, Katrina, Gitmo, a total disregard for constitutional law, or just a complete lack of understanding of how to run a nation. How about all of the above? What is amazing is that he is one of only two two-term presidents to make the list, which speaks more to the electorate than it does to his lack of qualifications. Perhaps no other president in history displayed less intellectual curiosity or more contempt for his opponents. The damage his administration cost the nation, both domestically and globally has yet to be fully calculated. He virtually ignored warnings of a terrorist attack which led to 9/11, either used faulty intelligence or simply doctored intelligence to launch a costly war in Iraq, and encouraged an economic meltdown of epic proportions by not correctly recognizing and then correcting a dearth of federal regulations in the mortgage industry. When he left office on January 20th, he was the most unpopular president in over a century.


Herbert Hoover (1929 – 1933): The Nero of his day. Hoover’s economic policies might not have caused the Great Depression, but they undoubtedly contributed to its severity. While he publicly denounced laissez-faire thinking, when the economy started heading south after the stock market crash, Hoover declined to pursue legislative relief, believing it would make people dependent on the federal government. The Smoot-Hawley Tariff of 1930 did little to stem the economic decline, since trade represented only 6% of the U.S. economy. Under his administration 5,000 banks failed. By the time FDR arrived in 1933, the nation had hit rock bottom. Way to go, Herbie!


Jimmy Carter (1977 – 1981): I would not be fair if I didn’t include him here. Despite his tremendous accomplishments over the last twenty years as a statesman, he was, sadly, in over his head as chief executive of the nation. Crises continued to mire his presidency. During his term the nation witnessed double-digit inflation, endless lines at gas stations, the ill-fated decision to turn control of the Panama Canal over to the nation of Panama, and, as the Coup de grâce, the Iran-hostage crisis. The lone bright spot was the Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt. For many it was too little too late.


Richard M. Nixon (1969 – 1974): The greatest example of high ambition coupled with the most power hungry, almost paranoid, personality ever exhibited in a U.S. president, Nixon was, if nothing else, complex. The dichotomy of establishing relations with China and the Watergate scandal remains the most illustrious example of his tumultuous administration. Had it not been for Watergate and his inability to end Vietnam, he might have been regarded as one of the more successful presidents of the 20th century. For one thing he was far more moderate than his detractors claim, imposing price controls on large corporations to help reduce inflation, and he did manage to take the U.S. off the gold standard. Still, he cannot escape his ultimate downfall. Like it or not, Watergate damaged his presidency irrevocably and forever changed the course of politics in this country.


Andrew Jackson (1829 – 1837): America’s first emperor, Jackson was a polarizing figure in American politics in the 1820s and 1830s and his ambition was second to none. While marred by political scandals, including the Petticoat Affair, Jackson will forever be known for the Indian Removal Act of 1830, which forced the Cherokee nation westward when gold had been discovered on their lands. Though the Act had been declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, Jackson said, “John Marshall has made his decision, now let him enforce it.” More than 45,000 Indians were relocated west during Jackson’s administration during the infamous Indian Removal era.


Warren Harding (1921 – 1923): Talk about reluctant leader, before the end Harding's short presidency, in which he summed up by stating "I am not fit for this office and should never have been here," he both supported and refuted the American sponsorship of the League of Nations following World War I. Harding was one of the most unfit presidents in American history, and sacrificed time needed for his presidential duties and instead gambled and took recreational golf outings. Harding’s propensity for taking vacation time during his administration would’ve made George Bush blush, if anything could make him blush. All the relaxation of golf, however, wasn't enough to keep stress from overcoming Harding, who suffered a stroke and died in office.