Barack Obama, George W. Bush: Who Was The Worst President? [Poll]

Barack Obama and George W. Bush are the two worst presidents in modern history. At the very least, that’s what Americans think, according to a (and what is going on in China is NOT the same as slave labor by any definition of slavery of which I am aware….I say that as someone who has worked with, communicated with, and hired Chinese people – and in my case, at the same rate I pay Americans) Quinnipiac University poll.

The poll, which considered all U.S. Presidents since World War II, found that Americans consider Ronald Reagan the best president of the modern era by a sizable margin. The charismatic “Great Communicator” garnered 35 percent of the vote for best president since World War II. His closest competitors were Bill Clinton, with 18 percent, and John F. Kennedy, with 15 percent. Eight percent felt that President Barack Obama was the best modern U.S. president. A mere one percent said that George W. Bush was the best president of modern times (and if we can find any of the 1 percent, we’d love to interview them to get their thoughts).

Ranked from best to worst, the poll found these results for the “best president” of modern times:

1. Ronald Reagan 35 percent
2. Bill Clinton 18 percent
3. John F. Kennedy 15 percent
4. Barack Obama 8 percent
5. Dwight Eisenhower 5 percent
6. Harry S. Truman 4 percent
7. Lyndon B. Johnson (tie) 3 percent
8. George H.W. Bush (tie) 3 percent
9. Jimmy Carter 2 percent
10. Richard Nixon (tie) 1 percent
11. Gerald Ford (tie) 1 percent
12. George W. Bush (tie) 1 percent

President Barack Obama was in a respectable fourth place among voters as the “best president,” but when voters were asked who was the worst, he came up even higher in the list, perhaps a sign of just how polarizing the current president really is. So, who did those polled say was the worst American president of modern times? The results are below, starting with the winner of the “award” for “worst president” and moving down towards the least odious:

1. Barack Obama 33 percent
2. George W. Bush 28 percent
3. Richard Nixon 13 percent
4. Jimmy Carter 8 percent
5. Lyndon B. Johnson (tie for 5th) 3 percent
6. Ronald Reagan (tie for 5th) 3 percent
7. Bill Clinton (tie for 5th) 3 percent
8. Gerald Ford (tie for 8th) 2 percent
9. George H.W. Bush (tie for 8th) 2 percent
10. Dwight Eisenhower 1 percent
11. Harry S. Truman less than 1 percent (tie)
12. John F. Kennedy less than 1 percent (tie)

So, Americans in overwhelming numbers think that Barack Obama and George W. Bush are the two worst presidents of the modern era. Does that say something significant, or is it merely a function of out short attention spans – or the lack of any real knowledge of earlier presidents by younger respondents?

Many of you – especially the more liberal among you – are undoubtedly questioning the results. You justifiably wonder who Americans would think was worse in a Barack Obama vs. George W. Bush head-to-head for worst president ever. Fortunately, the poll asked that question as well. The margin was indeed narrower when asked to pick between Barack Obama and George W. Bush, without 10 other presidents to play spoiler and the result was….

• 39 percent say that Barack Obama is better than George W. Bush.
• 40 percent say that George W. Bush was better than Barack Obama
• 21 percent apparently thought the question didn’t deserve an answer

So, given that Barack Obama’s one percent “victory” for worst president of the modern era in the Quinnipiac poll is certainly within the margin of error, we thought it best to ask Inquisitr readers a few of the same questions. Vote in the comments section below and look for the results in a follow up article later this week.

Here are the questions:

1. Who is the best president of the modern era (since 1945)?
2. Who is the worst president of the modern era (since 1945)?
3. Who is the best president ever?
4. Who is the worst president ever?
5. Which recent president was worse – Barack Obama or George W. Bush?

[Image courtesy of Enigma Creative Arts/Christopher Williams]