Ronald Reagan Rated as Best President of Modern Era, Obama Worst

Dignitas News Service ^ | July 2, 2014 | Paul M Winters

[dignitasnews]

In a Quinnipiac University poll released today, Americans rated Ronald Reagan as the best US President since World War II, while the current White House occupant, Barack Obama, was listed as the worst. The same revealed that for the first time since his term began, Americans consider former President George W Bush to have done a better job than President Obama.

The poll also provided Obama with some of the worst approval ratings of his presidency, and an overwhelming number of Americans believe the nation would be better off had Mitt Romney won the election of 2012. Only 40 percent of those surveyed approve of the job he is doing, with 53 percent disapproving. 45 percent of Americans and 47 percent of independents believe the country would be better off with had the former Massachusetts Governor prevailed in 2012, while 38 percent (33 percent of independents) believe the nation is better off due to Obama's stewardship. Even more troubling for the Administration, 19 percent of Democrats believe things would be the same or better with Romney in office.

Quinnipiac University poll July 2, 2014

The survey reflected a growing admiration for Ronald Reagan among all groups. A similar poll conducted by Quinnipiac in 2006 also listed Reagan as the best post World War II President, as 28 percent listed his as most successful against 25 percent for Bill Clinton. Today's numbers show that 35 percent of Americans cited Ronald Reagan, while Clinton dropped to 18 percent, three points higher than John F Kennedy. Reagan's popularity is growing among younger Americans as well, as 18 percent of those aged 18-29 listed the Gipper as greatest.

Quinnipiac University poll July 2, 2014

The results are not only a reflection of former President Reagan's leadership skills, but justification of his conservative policies. Both he and current President Barack Obama inherited a nation facing similar circumstances of an ailing economy, an erosion of confidence in American leadership both internationally and domestically. The two men took a very different approach to these problems, as Reagan set about on a course to lessen the influence of federal government disruption in the commerce and daily lives of Americans, while Obama sought to increase the bureaucratic reach of the state in hopes of fundamentally transforming American society and reducing the income gap between the haves and have-nots. Six years into the tenure of his presidency, Barack Obama's policies have yet to produce their desired results as the economy continues to perform in a sluggish malaise, while following a rough start, at this point Reagan's economy was already producing the boom that would result in the single greatest period of growth in the nation's history.

Ronald Reagan was also successful in re-establishing American prestige and hegemony abroad as his "peace through strength" approach to the long-running Cold War with the Soviet Union pushed the Communist juggernaut to the brink of extinction and the regime collapsed shortly after he left office. In contrast, Obama has pursued a policy of "cordiality" and appeasement, which many Americans fear has left the nation weakened and placed us in a reactive state, with foreign aggressors such as Vladimir Putin leading a revitalized Russia to expand its borders and influence at the expense of smaller countries. The world finds itself in a precarious position due to the lack of a strong American voice, with China flexing its muscles against its weaker neighbors and a tyrannical Marxist regime in Venezuela violating the human rights of its citizens with impunity as America has remained largely silent.

These concerns are reflected in the same poll showing President Barack Obama as the worst post-World War II leader. An overwhelming number of Republicans and independents list the current White House occupant as the least effective, while Democrats have remained fairly loyal. By a margin of 33 to 28 percent, he overtook George W Bush for this dubious distinction. Democrats aside, he rates poorly among all various demographic groups, although younger voters list him as slightly preferable to Bush the second.

Quinnipiac University poll July 2, 2014

Their historical relevance aside, the numbers do not bode well for President Obama heading into the final election campaign of his political career. As polls indicate a potential Republican Party landslide across the country, Obama must overcome a slew of political scandals involving the Democratic Party on national, state and local levels. A sluggish economy and increasingly dangerous international situation will make it difficult for his party to capture the needed seats to gain the majority in the House of Representatives and the likelihood of a Republican takeover of the Senate grows with each day. These factors will make it nearly impossible for him to achieve many legislative victories in the final two years of his presidency.

Although it garners little attention from the media, a potentially more troubling aspect of November for Obama and Democrats are the statehouse races, in which Republicans are poised to make historic gains. According to recent polling, the GOP is in a position to claim full legislative control of no less than 33 states. By invoking provisions of Article V of the US Constitution, Republicans may be able to call a Constitutional Convention to address such issues as abortion, welfare, immigration and election integrity. This would not only render Obama and Democrats in DC impotent in terms of their legislative agenda, but could potentially inflict wounds that would cripple liberal-Progressives for decades to come.

As Democrats recall the optimism and excitement of liberals and Progressives on election night of 2008, today's report should serve as a sobering reminder that political power and direction in America is fluid. The American voters are far less ideological than they are results-orientated. For a Democratic Party that relies more on rhetoric and a leadership style that is centered on the "constant campaign" they seemed to forget this lesson. Rather than focus on workable solutions to the problems of everyday Americans and an increasingly dangerous world, they have (and continue to) relied on a blame-game strategy of demonizing conservatives and Republicans as the source of all that is wrong in the country and world. This strategy at best makes Democrats appear impotent and at worst incompetent. For conservatives, today's Quinnipiac University poll showing Ronald Reagan as the best President of the modern era and Barack Obama as worst, the values of limited government at home and strong American leadership abroad have been vindicated.

Commentary by Paul M Winters

Editor in Chief, Dignitas News Service

Sources:

Quinnipiac University RealClearPolitics BradfordTraywick (via YouTube)

[ConservativeStatement]

Someone really thinks Ike was the worst president since WW2?

[TonyM]

I have only been so fortunate to meet one U.S. president in my life, and I so glad that was Ronald Reagan.

[Old Teufel Hunden]

Sanity returns to the American people...

[oldbrowser]

The people under 50 YO favor Obama while the people over 50 YO favor Romney.

The younger the respondent the more they favor Obama. It's going to get worse!

[laplata]

Washington remains the very best. Reagan is right up there with the best.

[glennaro]

We are indeed privileged to have lived during the time when Ronald Reagan was president. He was truly a great man and he loved America and Americans.

[muir_redwoods]

I would rank them as follows:

Reagan
Eisenhower
Truman
Bush II
Kennedy *
Ford
Bush I
Clinton
Nixon
Johnson
Carter
Obama

*Kennedy gets the benefit of the doubt due to such a short term.

[Old Teufel Hunden]

"The younger the respondent the more they favor Obama. It's going to get worse!"

Not necessarily. Remember that Winston Churchill, Ronald Reagan and Frank Sinatra were all liberals as young men. Reagan and Sinatra were fierce believers in the "New Deal" and FDR.

When asked by daughter Nancy in the late 60s why her Dad had changed his politics, Frank famously replied "The older you get the more conservative you get".

One of Churchill's famous quotes goes something like this: "Show me a young man who is a conservative and I'll show you a man with no heart. Show me an old man who is a liberal and I'll show you a man with no head"...

[Blood of Tyrants]

In 20 short years we went from the best to the worst.

[Parley Baer]

Not a bad list. Kennedy was Conservative on most issues but liberal on some. One has to remember that the media gave its full support to the dimoKKKRATS and tried to tear down the Republicans.

[oldbrowser]

One of Churchill's famous quotes goes something like this: "Show me a young man who is a conservative and I'll show you a man with no heart. Show me an old man who is a liberal and I'll show you a man with no head"...

Here's hoping.

[Moonman62]

Reagan won landslides and brought a lot of Republicans with him, yet the GOPe hates him.

[cld51860]

Yes, obviously a different country back then. I can proudly say Ronaldus Magnus was the first president I voted for.

[Stayfree]

The first order of business for our next president:
1)Remove all of Obama's executive orders
2)Require all future presidents to provide an original birth certificate
Sign a document under penalty of perjury that he is not a Marxist nor a Muslim, but a believer in God, Judeo-Christian principles and the right to keep and bear arms...among others.

[Ray76]

One loved the United States and its ideals, the other hates the United States and wants to fundamentally transform it, i.e. abolish its ideals.

[Old Teufel Hunden]

"One loved the United States and its ideals, the other hates the United States and wants to fundamentally transform it, i.e. abolish its ideals."

One believed in the shining city on the hill. The other is trying to turn the lights off in that city....

[skinkinthegrass]

Why just stop @ WWII? ...why not the 20th century?

[St_Thomas_Aquinas]

Hey Zero, you might want to put some ice on that.

[SES1066]

*Kennedy gets the benefit of the doubt due to such a short term.

It may surprise you that Ford's term was 5+ months shorter than Kennedy's;
Kennedy: 01/20/61 to 11/22/1963 = 1,036 days
G. Ford : 08/09/74 to 01/20/1977 = 895 days

A difference of 141 Days.

Of course add all of the rancor following Nixon and Watergate and I think Ford did as well as can be expected, actually better!

[jjsheridan5]

The critical number is Reagan’s strength with independents. Strong, conservative politicians appeal to independent voters, even moreso than “moderate” democrats like Kennedy and Clinton. RINO’s have virtually no appeal among this group.

For decades, the mantra from the left (especially within the Republican party), has been that conservatives have a disadvantage with independent (erroneously viewed as “moderate”) voters, when the fact is that the exact opposite is true.

The McCain’s and Romney’s win primaries because Republican voters are duped into thinking that “moderate” == electable, when, in fact, the opposite is generally true.