1 00:00:00,960 --> 00:00:07,200 Speaker 1: Bold, reverence, and occasionally random The Sunday Hang With podcast. 2 00:00:07,440 --> 00:00:08,800 Speaker 1: It starts now. 3 00:00:09,600 --> 00:00:13,760 Speaker 2: We got Robert in Texas. Best Presidents, worst presidents. Let's go, Robert, 4 00:00:13,800 --> 00:00:14,400 Speaker 2: what have you got? 5 00:00:15,160 --> 00:00:17,799 Speaker 3: I got George Washington because without him we wouldn't be here. 6 00:00:18,000 --> 00:00:21,000 Speaker 3: Abraham Lincoln, we know what he did. And then Ronald 7 00:00:21,079 --> 00:00:25,160 Speaker 3: Reagan for the best, the worst, Biden Obama, and then Carter. 8 00:00:25,640 --> 00:00:28,440 Speaker 4: So hold on, Robert, you think the worst presidents that 9 00:00:28,520 --> 00:00:32,160 Speaker 4: have ever existed have all happened in the last forty years. 10 00:00:32,760 --> 00:00:35,479 Speaker 3: Yes, I do, Yeah, all right, I. 11 00:00:35,440 --> 00:00:36,800 Speaker 5: Would look, thank you for the call. 12 00:00:37,520 --> 00:00:40,640 Speaker 2: Look, I mean, I think you can make you make case. 13 00:00:40,960 --> 00:00:43,919 Speaker 2: I don't think Carter was Okay, this is now our callers. 14 00:00:44,280 --> 00:00:46,400 Speaker 2: You're all entitled your opinions, and these are just our 15 00:00:46,479 --> 00:00:49,040 Speaker 2: opinions in response to your opinions. I don't think Carter 16 00:00:49,280 --> 00:00:52,600 Speaker 2: was that bad because here's the thing. Carter loved America. 17 00:00:52,680 --> 00:00:55,680 Speaker 2: He just had he was just had some bad policy ideas, 18 00:00:56,080 --> 00:01:01,000 Speaker 2: but he wasn't actively trying to destroy the AMIC experience. 19 00:01:01,160 --> 00:01:04,120 Speaker 2: I would argue, for example, in that era, LBJ far 20 00:01:04,160 --> 00:01:05,520 Speaker 2: worse than Jimmy Carter. 21 00:01:05,640 --> 00:01:09,880 Speaker 4: Far because of acceleration of Vietnam and everything that was associated. 22 00:01:09,440 --> 00:01:12,399 Speaker 2: And society, great society programs, and the creation of the 23 00:01:12,400 --> 00:01:15,760 Speaker 2: welfare state. And I think LBJ far worse than Jimmy Carter. 24 00:01:15,800 --> 00:01:20,240 Speaker 2: I think Jimmy Carter he was ineffectual, but not malicious. 25 00:01:20,560 --> 00:01:23,880 Speaker 2: I think LBJ was malicious. By the way, I would 26 00:01:23,880 --> 00:01:27,560 Speaker 2: make a similar analysis to Obama and Biden. I think 27 00:01:27,600 --> 00:01:31,040 Speaker 2: the changes that Obama did were intentional and malicious, whereas 28 00:01:31,080 --> 00:01:34,000 Speaker 2: Biden is an imbecile with the people around him making 29 00:01:34,000 --> 00:01:36,600 Speaker 2: the decisions. I never made that case about Obama when 30 00:01:36,600 --> 00:01:39,120 Speaker 2: he was in office. It wasn't oh, the other people. 31 00:01:38,920 --> 00:01:41,400 Speaker 6: Are running things. No, Obama was an ideologue. 32 00:01:41,680 --> 00:01:44,360 Speaker 4: I'll get people riled up. I actually think George W. 33 00:01:44,480 --> 00:01:48,280 Speaker 4: Bush was an awful president because of the war in Iraq. 34 00:01:49,800 --> 00:01:52,080 Speaker 4: You gotta think long term. And that's why I don't 35 00:01:52,720 --> 00:01:55,360 Speaker 4: when you say, like, hey, I think the three worst 36 00:01:55,400 --> 00:01:58,120 Speaker 4: American presidents were all in the last forty years. 37 00:01:58,120 --> 00:01:59,920 Speaker 6: I think he's a top three bad president. 38 00:02:00,080 --> 00:02:03,600 Speaker 4: You know. But I'm just saying, like the war in Iraq. 39 00:02:03,800 --> 00:02:08,240 Speaker 4: To me, if you mentioned LBJ, if you get people 40 00:02:08,400 --> 00:02:12,239 Speaker 4: into a war based on a false premise, the idea 41 00:02:12,280 --> 00:02:16,720 Speaker 4: of weapons of mass destruction arguably create a situation. 42 00:02:16,800 --> 00:02:19,040 Speaker 5: I mean, is Iraq. I mean you you you went over. 43 00:02:19,480 --> 00:02:23,720 Speaker 4: Is Iraq any better now than it was after we 44 00:02:23,800 --> 00:02:25,320 Speaker 4: spent trillions of dollars? 45 00:02:25,360 --> 00:02:26,840 Speaker 5: Like, do you think that the iraqis? 46 00:02:26,919 --> 00:02:28,680 Speaker 6: It's like it's a little better. 47 00:02:28,800 --> 00:02:31,960 Speaker 2: I'm not sure trillions of dollars and thousands of US 48 00:02:32,040 --> 00:02:34,800 Speaker 2: lives worth it better, but it's a little better than 49 00:02:34,880 --> 00:02:37,440 Speaker 2: would you rather have Afghanistan is basically no. 50 00:02:37,440 --> 00:02:38,760 Speaker 5: Better but no no better at all. 51 00:02:38,800 --> 00:02:40,640 Speaker 2: Right, you just killed a bunch of battle Kainda guys, 52 00:02:40,639 --> 00:02:42,120 Speaker 2: but they're training over there right now. 53 00:02:42,280 --> 00:02:44,359 Speaker 4: If you asked, right now, would you rather have all 54 00:02:44,400 --> 00:02:47,640 Speaker 4: the trillions of dollars we spend in Afghanistan in Iraq 55 00:02:48,040 --> 00:02:51,960 Speaker 4: back in the United States to just to take off 56 00:02:52,000 --> 00:02:56,280 Speaker 4: the national debt right now and certainly have all the lives? 57 00:02:56,720 --> 00:02:59,280 Speaker 4: Or would you rather have what happened in Afghanistan in 58 00:02:59,280 --> 00:03:01,200 Speaker 4: Iraq as we say here today. I think almost no 59 00:03:01,280 --> 00:03:04,040 Speaker 4: one in America would say, oh, it was time and 60 00:03:04,160 --> 00:03:06,880 Speaker 4: life and money well spent. That to me is why 61 00:03:06,919 --> 00:03:08,680 Speaker 4: I look at George W. Bush and say, now it's 62 00:03:09,000 --> 00:03:09,840 Speaker 4: unmitigated disease. 63 00:03:09,880 --> 00:03:12,200 Speaker 2: I think, I think George W. Bush then he falls 64 00:03:12,200 --> 00:03:16,320 Speaker 2: into my analysis of Carter, which is a well intentioned 65 00:03:16,360 --> 00:03:19,800 Speaker 2: man and a patriot who made really bad decisions and 66 00:03:19,880 --> 00:03:20,680 Speaker 2: mess things up. 67 00:03:21,280 --> 00:03:23,040 Speaker 1: Sunday, hang with Clay and. 68 00:03:23,120 --> 00:03:27,520 Speaker 4: Bucks best and worst Presidents. We're going to start on 69 00:03:27,639 --> 00:03:30,280 Speaker 4: the sunny side of the mountain, and we are going 70 00:03:30,280 --> 00:03:34,760 Speaker 4: to begin here with our best presidents, just the top three, 71 00:03:36,160 --> 00:03:40,120 Speaker 4: the gold, the silver, and the bronze medalist of American 72 00:03:40,160 --> 00:03:42,840 Speaker 4: presidential history. And I'll give you my list, by the way, 73 00:03:42,880 --> 00:03:45,720 Speaker 4: eight hundred and two two eight eight two. Buck will 74 00:03:45,720 --> 00:03:49,040 Speaker 4: give you his list, and then we'll take calls on best. 75 00:03:49,320 --> 00:03:51,720 Speaker 4: Bottom of the show, will do worst. All right, my 76 00:03:51,920 --> 00:03:55,920 Speaker 4: best I named one of my sons after him, so 77 00:03:56,040 --> 00:03:58,240 Speaker 4: that's probably a sign that he's at the top of 78 00:03:58,280 --> 00:04:02,240 Speaker 4: my list. I've got Abraham Lincoln as the best president 79 00:04:02,760 --> 00:04:07,760 Speaker 4: in American political history, number one, the gold medal winner 80 00:04:07,840 --> 00:04:11,760 Speaker 4: for me, Abraham Lincoln. I think Buck not only a 81 00:04:11,800 --> 00:04:17,360 Speaker 4: tremendous president, probably also the only literary genius who has 82 00:04:17,400 --> 00:04:19,840 Speaker 4: ever been president of the United States. That is, back 83 00:04:19,880 --> 00:04:24,280 Speaker 4: when presidents actually wrote their own speeches. You go read 84 00:04:24,279 --> 00:04:29,360 Speaker 4: the Gettysburg Address. You go read Abraham Lincoln's second inaugural address. 85 00:04:29,880 --> 00:04:33,200 Speaker 4: It is poetry of a level that does not exist 86 00:04:33,200 --> 00:04:36,520 Speaker 4: in American politics today. And it came directly from the 87 00:04:36,560 --> 00:04:39,160 Speaker 4: pen of Abraham Lincoln. He is my favorite of all 88 00:04:39,240 --> 00:04:39,880 Speaker 4: the presidents. 89 00:04:40,839 --> 00:04:42,680 Speaker 6: So now section we. 90 00:04:42,720 --> 00:04:44,200 Speaker 5: Should I go one, two, three or should we go 91 00:04:44,240 --> 00:04:44,760 Speaker 5: back and forth? 92 00:04:45,320 --> 00:04:47,400 Speaker 6: Let's go back and forth? All right, who do you have? 93 00:04:47,480 --> 00:04:47,920 Speaker 5: Number one? 94 00:04:48,400 --> 00:04:51,520 Speaker 6: It's it's it's boring, but the goat is still the goat. 95 00:04:51,760 --> 00:04:52,719 Speaker 6: George Washington. 96 00:04:53,200 --> 00:04:56,560 Speaker 2: It's like the movie that started the whole franchise, put 97 00:04:56,600 --> 00:05:00,039 Speaker 2: it all in motion. Incredible to hold the army to 98 00:05:00,040 --> 00:05:04,039 Speaker 2: together and then become president and then understand that he 99 00:05:04,160 --> 00:05:06,479 Speaker 2: had to be what the nation needed him to be 100 00:05:06,600 --> 00:05:08,800 Speaker 2: at that point in time, and then to walk away 101 00:05:08,839 --> 00:05:11,800 Speaker 2: from it and to just I mean what he did. 102 00:05:11,960 --> 00:05:20,360 Speaker 2: The combination of military and then political acumen and skill 103 00:05:20,480 --> 00:05:23,760 Speaker 2: that he brought to bear is amazing. And also the 104 00:05:23,760 --> 00:05:25,839 Speaker 2: personal courage too. We don't think about this that often. 105 00:05:26,240 --> 00:05:29,080 Speaker 2: A couple of things go differently. George Washington is hanging 106 00:05:29,120 --> 00:05:31,240 Speaker 2: by his neck from a you know, from a yard 107 00:05:31,320 --> 00:05:34,200 Speaker 2: arm somewhere, like yeah, no things. People forget this, Like 108 00:05:34,240 --> 00:05:36,479 Speaker 2: that guy was really taking real risks, not just on 109 00:05:36,520 --> 00:05:39,080 Speaker 2: the battlefield, but you know, they could have captured him 110 00:05:39,120 --> 00:05:42,200 Speaker 2: off the battlefield anyway. All of the British did. The British 111 00:05:42,240 --> 00:05:44,200 Speaker 2: were shady back then. Now we think of them because 112 00:05:44,240 --> 00:05:46,280 Speaker 2: of just crumpets and the crown, but back in the 113 00:05:46,360 --> 00:05:47,560 Speaker 2: day they were they could be very mean. 114 00:05:47,600 --> 00:05:49,200 Speaker 6: All right. Number two for. 115 00:05:49,240 --> 00:05:52,800 Speaker 4: Me, I'm I'm seconding your number one. I've got George 116 00:05:52,839 --> 00:05:56,159 Speaker 4: Washington set the precedent. We just laid it out. Why 117 00:05:56,240 --> 00:05:58,080 Speaker 4: I've got Lincoln one, Washington too. 118 00:05:58,120 --> 00:05:59,680 Speaker 5: Who do you have to Oh? 119 00:05:59,720 --> 00:06:04,920 Speaker 6: I got Ronald Reagan. Oh that is strong. I look 120 00:06:05,120 --> 00:06:07,680 Speaker 6: defeated the evil empire of the Soviet Union. I don't 121 00:06:07,720 --> 00:06:08,080 Speaker 6: know how. 122 00:06:09,560 --> 00:06:11,479 Speaker 2: I don't know how much better you could to me 123 00:06:12,120 --> 00:06:15,240 Speaker 2: the people that prevent because this is gonna be a 124 00:06:15,240 --> 00:06:17,640 Speaker 2: thing on the on the worst. Three, if you're a 125 00:06:17,720 --> 00:06:22,320 Speaker 2: president who helped prevent mass death and destruction, I feel 126 00:06:22,320 --> 00:06:22,960 Speaker 2: like that gets you. 127 00:06:23,200 --> 00:06:24,040 Speaker 6: That gets you a lot of. 128 00:06:23,960 --> 00:06:26,599 Speaker 2: Browdie points, right, That gets you really far in life. 129 00:06:27,600 --> 00:06:31,760 Speaker 2: And so I think, Yeah, for me, it's it's Ronald 130 00:06:31,760 --> 00:06:33,479 Speaker 2: Reagan at number two, and I think I'm gonna surprise 131 00:06:33,520 --> 00:06:34,320 Speaker 2: you with my number three. 132 00:06:34,520 --> 00:06:34,880 Speaker 5: All right. 133 00:06:34,960 --> 00:06:40,359 Speaker 4: My third is, uh is I think Thomas Jefferson you 134 00:06:40,520 --> 00:06:44,719 Speaker 4: talked about to me the Foundation bucks wrinkling his face. 135 00:06:45,120 --> 00:06:48,280 Speaker 4: Look when you look at the history of Jefferson for 136 00:06:48,400 --> 00:06:53,080 Speaker 4: the Declaration of Independence, and then the Louisiana purchase, which 137 00:06:53,160 --> 00:06:58,560 Speaker 4: I think is probably the single most significant and consequential 138 00:06:58,680 --> 00:07:03,320 Speaker 4: act of any president in office to buy that. Remember, 139 00:07:03,600 --> 00:07:05,680 Speaker 4: and I've talked about the Lewis and Clark expedition and 140 00:07:05,680 --> 00:07:06,520 Speaker 4: how much I loved that. 141 00:07:06,600 --> 00:07:09,159 Speaker 2: Are are you a big James Monroe fan? James Monroe 142 00:07:09,160 --> 00:07:10,679 Speaker 2: doesn't get all the love that he deserves. 143 00:07:11,120 --> 00:07:16,080 Speaker 4: I think, Well, I'm not antie James Monroe. I'm pro Jefferson. 144 00:07:16,360 --> 00:07:20,760 Speaker 4: So my top three Lincoln, Washington, Jefferson. Little bit old school, 145 00:07:20,960 --> 00:07:24,560 Speaker 4: I get it. Nobody is on this list prior to 146 00:07:24,600 --> 00:07:28,640 Speaker 4: what eighteen sixty five for me, But those would be 147 00:07:28,840 --> 00:07:32,920 Speaker 4: my trio of the best ever American presidents. 148 00:07:32,920 --> 00:07:33,880 Speaker 5: All right, who's your third? 149 00:07:35,000 --> 00:07:36,480 Speaker 2: I mean, I just I like to throw Monroe in 150 00:07:36,520 --> 00:07:38,680 Speaker 2: there just for topic of conversation. He's not a top 151 00:07:38,760 --> 00:07:40,800 Speaker 2: ten guy for me, but you know, he's kind of 152 00:07:40,800 --> 00:07:42,640 Speaker 2: a badass in his own way. There's some really good 153 00:07:42,680 --> 00:07:44,720 Speaker 2: stuff James and Row doesn't really get the respect that 154 00:07:44,760 --> 00:07:48,440 Speaker 2: he deserves. You know, was a personal courage. Anyway, He's 155 00:07:48,560 --> 00:07:51,280 Speaker 2: he's probably in like the twenty to thirty or you know, 156 00:07:51,360 --> 00:07:53,560 Speaker 2: maybe fifteen to twenty range for me of presidents. But 157 00:07:53,600 --> 00:07:55,720 Speaker 2: I just was thinking about him as you're talking about Lousiana. 158 00:07:55,760 --> 00:07:59,000 Speaker 2: Purchase Number three is Calvin Coolidge. 159 00:08:00,120 --> 00:08:00,440 Speaker 5: Silent. 160 00:08:00,520 --> 00:08:03,520 Speaker 2: Cal just don't mess it up. Let the American people 161 00:08:03,560 --> 00:08:06,480 Speaker 2: do what they do. Don't be a tyrant, don't get 162 00:08:06,520 --> 00:08:10,320 Speaker 2: us into crazy wars, don't mess things up. I think 163 00:08:10,400 --> 00:08:12,320 Speaker 2: cal if you're looking at the vision of the founders, 164 00:08:12,640 --> 00:08:15,800 Speaker 2: it's a president who doesn't do too much, doesn't mess 165 00:08:15,840 --> 00:08:19,600 Speaker 2: things up. Let's prosperity, Rain, Let's peace, Rain. I think 166 00:08:19,600 --> 00:08:22,120 Speaker 2: cal Calvin Coolidge should get a lot of love. 167 00:08:22,600 --> 00:08:22,920 Speaker 5: All right. 168 00:08:22,960 --> 00:08:24,760 Speaker 4: Should we take a couple of calls here and get 169 00:08:24,800 --> 00:08:27,360 Speaker 4: some more of our So you got our top three. 170 00:08:27,920 --> 00:08:30,160 Speaker 2: He's the only president. So for those of you're saying no, 171 00:08:30,200 --> 00:08:32,200 Speaker 2: that's crazy, he's also the only president who went to 172 00:08:32,240 --> 00:08:35,199 Speaker 2: AMers College. So I feel some affinity for him because 173 00:08:35,240 --> 00:08:38,320 Speaker 2: I used to party in Coolidge Dorm named for him 174 00:08:38,360 --> 00:08:39,680 Speaker 2: because he was in AMers colle. 175 00:08:39,960 --> 00:08:43,480 Speaker 4: I will say this, your top three is going to 176 00:08:43,520 --> 00:08:46,280 Speaker 4: set tugs wagging way more than my top three. 177 00:08:46,800 --> 00:08:47,640 Speaker 5: In my top. 178 00:08:47,440 --> 00:08:50,559 Speaker 4: Three, most of you out there, nobody's really going to 179 00:08:50,600 --> 00:08:51,920 Speaker 4: be like, oh my god, I can for me. 180 00:08:52,000 --> 00:08:56,040 Speaker 2: Thomas Jefferson amazing talented founding father brilliant all that stuff. 181 00:08:56,640 --> 00:08:58,400 Speaker 6: Once the French Revolution comes. 182 00:08:58,160 --> 00:09:02,040 Speaker 2: Along, though, if you read Thatferson he was like an 183 00:09:02,160 --> 00:09:03,959 Speaker 2: MSNBC watcher at that point. 184 00:09:04,000 --> 00:09:06,560 Speaker 6: He had lost it, my friend. He was really uh. 185 00:09:07,080 --> 00:09:09,080 Speaker 2: He didn't get what was going on over there in 186 00:09:09,120 --> 00:09:11,400 Speaker 2: a big way. And he was also very nasty to 187 00:09:11,480 --> 00:09:12,480 Speaker 2: John Adams. 188 00:09:12,640 --> 00:09:16,240 Speaker 4: He was just what Secretary of State during the during 189 00:09:16,280 --> 00:09:20,400 Speaker 4: the French Revolution? Right, I believe I'm remembering that correctly. Yeah, 190 00:09:20,760 --> 00:09:23,000 Speaker 4: But as president, he was a big fan. 191 00:09:23,120 --> 00:09:26,800 Speaker 2: Even as the guillotines were wrapping down, chopping off heads, 192 00:09:26,840 --> 00:09:27,760 Speaker 2: you know, wasn't good. 193 00:09:28,080 --> 00:09:28,839 Speaker 6: Wasn't good, folks. 194 00:09:28,920 --> 00:09:30,720 Speaker 2: I hate to be the one that says it, but 195 00:09:30,800 --> 00:09:32,360 Speaker 2: I don't love Jefferson the way some of you. 196 00:09:32,840 --> 00:09:34,800 Speaker 4: I got people. I got people fired up. We were 197 00:09:34,800 --> 00:09:38,400 Speaker 4: talking about best generals. Now I've got Washington at two 198 00:09:38,440 --> 00:09:43,079 Speaker 4: overall is my president. But George Washington was a pretty 199 00:09:43,120 --> 00:09:45,800 Speaker 4: mediocre to bad actual battlefield general. 200 00:09:46,480 --> 00:09:49,439 Speaker 2: Yeah, he was a He was a good general. If 201 00:09:49,440 --> 00:09:53,520 Speaker 2: you think of America as an insurgency, he's a bad general. 202 00:09:53,640 --> 00:09:57,200 Speaker 2: If you think of wins and losses in combat in 203 00:09:57,240 --> 00:09:58,560 Speaker 2: the field, does that mean. 204 00:09:58,559 --> 00:10:01,720 Speaker 4: Every battle that he made sickly fought almost for the 205 00:10:01,840 --> 00:10:03,160 Speaker 4: entirety of his political career. 206 00:10:03,200 --> 00:10:04,880 Speaker 5: But he kept the revolution the. 207 00:10:04,880 --> 00:10:07,600 Speaker 2: Military together, yes, in a way that I think the 208 00:10:07,640 --> 00:10:10,480 Speaker 2: odds of him being able to do that under those circumstances, 209 00:10:10,480 --> 00:10:13,880 Speaker 2: with the lack of resources they had, was near miraculous. 210 00:10:14,240 --> 00:10:16,360 Speaker 2: So that's the part of it that, as we see 211 00:10:16,640 --> 00:10:19,360 Speaker 2: with insurgencies, if you can just keep it going for better, 212 00:10:19,440 --> 00:10:21,480 Speaker 2: for worse than a lot of places for worse. But 213 00:10:21,520 --> 00:10:25,239 Speaker 2: if an insurgency can keep going, much more powerful militaries 214 00:10:25,240 --> 00:10:29,040 Speaker 2: can be defeated. And also, I would say maybe the 215 00:10:29,080 --> 00:10:33,160 Speaker 2: most important precedent that Washington set was giving up power. 216 00:10:34,080 --> 00:10:37,960 Speaker 2: Unheard of throughout the annals of history for someone to 217 00:10:38,120 --> 00:10:42,199 Speaker 2: have the ability, Washington could have become a dictator and 218 00:10:42,400 --> 00:10:45,040 Speaker 2: ruled for the rest of his life if he had 219 00:10:45,120 --> 00:10:48,600 Speaker 2: so desired. Instead, he said no, and he went back 220 00:10:48,640 --> 00:10:49,680 Speaker 2: to Mount Vernon, which. 221 00:10:49,559 --> 00:10:50,120 Speaker 5: Is unheard of. 222 00:10:50,520 --> 00:10:52,679 Speaker 2: John Adams, I think, you know, he started he started 223 00:10:52,720 --> 00:10:54,240 Speaker 2: to think a little bit, a little bit too highly 224 00:10:54,320 --> 00:10:57,560 Speaker 2: of himself, you know, whereas Washington understood a degree of humility, 225 00:10:57,640 --> 00:10:59,160 Speaker 2: even as the father of the nation. 226 00:10:59,120 --> 00:11:00,480 Speaker 6: So to speak, was necessary. 227 00:11:00,600 --> 00:11:02,600 Speaker 4: And by the way, I would wonder on some level 228 00:11:02,600 --> 00:11:07,920 Speaker 4: Buck whether partly Washington not having sons of his own uh, 229 00:11:08,200 --> 00:11:11,080 Speaker 4: you know, if you want to get into the genealogical aspect. 230 00:11:11,679 --> 00:11:13,880 Speaker 4: So I'm reading now because I'm a nerd all about 231 00:11:13,920 --> 00:11:17,280 Speaker 4: the British kings and I've just always wanted to kind 232 00:11:17,280 --> 00:11:19,559 Speaker 4: of know that history. I'm I'm back at the twelve 233 00:11:19,600 --> 00:11:21,480 Speaker 4: hundreds right now, so I'm way back. 234 00:11:21,600 --> 00:11:23,480 Speaker 2: He really wants to bring he really wants to build 235 00:11:23,480 --> 00:11:26,079 Speaker 2: our UK audience on podcasts. 236 00:11:26,120 --> 00:11:28,760 Speaker 4: I'm I'm in the twelve hundreds right now reading about 237 00:11:28,760 --> 00:11:33,000 Speaker 4: all the British kings, and uh, the degree to which 238 00:11:33,160 --> 00:11:37,240 Speaker 4: I do wonder psychologically if Washington had had three or 239 00:11:37,240 --> 00:11:41,160 Speaker 4: four sons, would he have been interested in trying to 240 00:11:41,320 --> 00:11:43,880 Speaker 4: pass that power on down to them? Would his thought 241 00:11:43,920 --> 00:11:47,200 Speaker 4: process have been different, because I do think he would 242 00:11:47,240 --> 00:11:49,040 Speaker 4: have ended up and could have been if he had 243 00:11:49,040 --> 00:11:52,000 Speaker 4: so desired dictator of the United States. 244 00:11:52,160 --> 00:11:54,360 Speaker 6: I'll throw this out there. We're going to take best 245 00:11:54,400 --> 00:11:56,440 Speaker 6: presidents now in the call. So we'll take the. 246 00:11:56,720 --> 00:11:59,200 Speaker 2: Best president the next hour, which I think could even 247 00:11:59,240 --> 00:12:01,880 Speaker 2: be more fun. Worst Presidents of all. 248 00:12:01,720 --> 00:12:04,720 Speaker 1: Time Sundays with Clay and Buck. 249 00:12:06,440 --> 00:12:08,200 Speaker 2: Now we get to crack our knuckles and throw some 250 00:12:08,200 --> 00:12:12,600 Speaker 2: haymakers at the memories of some of these presidents. I 251 00:12:12,679 --> 00:12:15,839 Speaker 2: told you This was on a It was reported by 252 00:12:17,080 --> 00:12:25,720 Speaker 2: scripts the Annual Presidential Greatness Project surveyed presidential historians, and 253 00:12:26,559 --> 00:12:29,319 Speaker 2: this is this just came out today, and sure enough, 254 00:12:30,080 --> 00:12:35,240 Speaker 2: there was pretty universal agreement among these among these those 255 00:12:35,280 --> 00:12:40,400 Speaker 2: surveyed that Donald Trump was the worst president of all time, 256 00:12:40,480 --> 00:12:43,120 Speaker 2: which I think is completely I think it is completely bonkers. 257 00:12:43,160 --> 00:12:46,160 Speaker 2: But I'm just telling you what what they reported, that's 258 00:12:46,280 --> 00:12:49,760 Speaker 2: that's nuts. I think that Trump had three amazing years 259 00:12:49,800 --> 00:12:52,160 Speaker 2: and then had had a pandemic and the deep state 260 00:12:52,200 --> 00:12:53,880 Speaker 2: and things came together in a way that made year 261 00:12:53,960 --> 00:12:55,840 Speaker 2: number four very difficult. 262 00:12:56,080 --> 00:12:56,520 Speaker 5: What's up? 263 00:12:56,800 --> 00:12:59,080 Speaker 4: I'm just gonna take a shot at historians in general, 264 00:12:59,080 --> 00:13:03,000 Speaker 4: and you'll see this on my own list, buck. Historians 265 00:13:03,040 --> 00:13:07,400 Speaker 4: are good at looking at the historical picture. Right when 266 00:13:07,440 --> 00:13:10,440 Speaker 4: you compare things from the seventeen eighties to the eighteen 267 00:13:10,520 --> 00:13:14,080 Speaker 4: forties to the eighteen eighties to the nineteen twenties, you're 268 00:13:14,120 --> 00:13:18,000 Speaker 4: looking at eras in which you personally were not involved. 269 00:13:18,280 --> 00:13:22,680 Speaker 4: So there's almost a dispassionate lack of emotionalism that involves 270 00:13:22,720 --> 00:13:26,400 Speaker 4: being a historian that does not apply to current analysis. 271 00:13:26,520 --> 00:13:28,000 Speaker 2: I think you make an important point, like when you 272 00:13:28,000 --> 00:13:31,040 Speaker 2: see John Meacham going on MSNBC. Yes, the guy has 273 00:13:31,080 --> 00:13:34,079 Speaker 2: written some very celebrated biographies of presidents from hundreds of 274 00:13:34,160 --> 00:13:36,800 Speaker 2: years ago. John Meacham does not know more and has 275 00:13:36,800 --> 00:13:39,840 Speaker 2: no greater wisdom or insight about politics today than I do, 276 00:13:40,000 --> 00:13:41,640 Speaker 2: than Clay does, or than any of you. He's just 277 00:13:41,679 --> 00:13:44,240 Speaker 2: a guy with opinions like everybody else, and he's. 278 00:13:44,040 --> 00:13:47,760 Speaker 4: Super emotional about those opinions. I think I think he's run. 279 00:13:48,080 --> 00:13:48,640 Speaker 4: I actually don't. 280 00:13:48,640 --> 00:13:50,480 Speaker 2: I actually have lost a lot of faith in his books, 281 00:13:50,559 --> 00:13:52,240 Speaker 2: just because I know he's a man of poor judgment 282 00:13:52,360 --> 00:13:54,840 Speaker 2: and no wisdom. But put that aside for a second. 283 00:13:54,880 --> 00:14:01,080 Speaker 2: All right, worst worst presidents all time? And this, you know, 284 00:14:01,280 --> 00:14:06,280 Speaker 2: this is I think my list is pretty solid. Okay, Yeah, 285 00:14:06,880 --> 00:14:10,080 Speaker 2: I'm gonna do it in reverse orders, So from least 286 00:14:10,240 --> 00:14:15,920 Speaker 2: awful to most awful, I go LBJ. It's my number three, 287 00:14:16,280 --> 00:14:18,520 Speaker 2: because I think he's done more to destroy America in 288 00:14:18,520 --> 00:14:19,880 Speaker 2: the last seventy years than you know. 289 00:14:19,880 --> 00:14:21,360 Speaker 6: You could say, oh, but what about Obama. 290 00:14:21,400 --> 00:14:25,240 Speaker 2: Obama was just pushing further a lot of what LBJ 291 00:14:25,480 --> 00:14:29,720 Speaker 2: put into motion, plus Vietnam Lyndon Baines Johnson, I think 292 00:14:29,960 --> 00:14:32,400 Speaker 2: one of the three worst presidents of all time. I 293 00:14:32,440 --> 00:14:38,120 Speaker 2: would say Woodrow Wilson is my number two for really 294 00:14:38,600 --> 00:14:40,840 Speaker 2: a number first of all, entry into First World War, 295 00:14:42,080 --> 00:14:45,840 Speaker 2: the most really brazen suppression of free speech, certainly in 296 00:14:46,120 --> 00:14:48,760 Speaker 2: one hundred and twenty years or so. When he did it, 297 00:14:48,760 --> 00:14:50,680 Speaker 2: you have to go back to the Alien and Sedition Acts. 298 00:14:50,960 --> 00:14:54,760 Speaker 2: So he was an authoritarian, he was a progressive internationalist. 299 00:14:54,920 --> 00:14:57,400 Speaker 2: He was a huge racist and got us into the. 300 00:14:57,320 --> 00:15:00,560 Speaker 6: First World War. A lot of Americans died that war. 301 00:15:00,840 --> 00:15:04,080 Speaker 2: The whole League of Nations thing collapse World War Two follows. 302 00:15:04,440 --> 00:15:08,680 Speaker 2: Mass death was the result of Woodrow Wilson's idiocy. So 303 00:15:08,720 --> 00:15:13,560 Speaker 2: that's why I shouldn't even say idiocy, ineptitude and bad ideas. 304 00:15:14,480 --> 00:15:16,200 Speaker 2: And I think you got I mean this is you 305 00:15:16,280 --> 00:15:18,200 Speaker 2: might share this with me. Number one worst president all 306 00:15:18,200 --> 00:15:20,440 Speaker 2: the time, I go James Buchanan, because you know, let 307 00:15:20,520 --> 00:15:22,560 Speaker 2: us right into the Civil War and that was an 308 00:15:22,600 --> 00:15:25,200 Speaker 2: abject catastrophe in terms of loss. 309 00:15:24,920 --> 00:15:26,400 Speaker 5: Of life and on all the rest of it. 310 00:15:27,960 --> 00:15:28,520 Speaker 6: Now, maybe you. 311 00:15:28,480 --> 00:15:30,720 Speaker 2: Could say, well without Buchanan, you can't have Lincoln, right. 312 00:15:30,760 --> 00:15:32,440 Speaker 2: I mean it's you know, almost like people play their 313 00:15:32,480 --> 00:15:35,400 Speaker 2: role in history, good or bad. That's my three. So 314 00:15:35,520 --> 00:15:37,720 Speaker 2: Buchanan is the worst. Wilson is number two. 315 00:15:37,840 --> 00:15:38,120 Speaker 5: LBJ. 316 00:15:38,280 --> 00:15:39,480 Speaker 6: Number three, Clay, who. 317 00:15:39,280 --> 00:15:39,880 Speaker 5: Do you give us? 318 00:15:40,200 --> 00:15:44,320 Speaker 4: All Right, So this may be unfair and uncharitable, but 319 00:15:44,440 --> 00:15:48,080 Speaker 4: William Henry Harrison died after thirty one days in office. 320 00:15:49,160 --> 00:15:52,120 Speaker 4: Didn't choose to die, obviously, I've got him as my 321 00:15:52,200 --> 00:15:53,440 Speaker 4: third worst president. 322 00:15:53,600 --> 00:15:53,920 Speaker 5: Again. 323 00:15:54,680 --> 00:15:59,760 Speaker 4: He got pneumonia, supposedly at his inaugural address. He dies 324 00:15:59,800 --> 00:16:03,760 Speaker 4: thirty one days later. You can argue, okay, he didn't 325 00:16:03,800 --> 00:16:07,480 Speaker 4: do drastic damage, but you only make it thirty one days. 326 00:16:07,920 --> 00:16:12,400 Speaker 4: I've got William and Henry Harrison. Third, Lyndon Baines Johnson LBJ. 327 00:16:12,600 --> 00:16:16,480 Speaker 4: I've got second and a little bit for what you said, 328 00:16:16,520 --> 00:16:21,480 Speaker 4: Buck one, The Great Society, I think if you look 329 00:16:21,520 --> 00:16:27,720 Speaker 4: at the data now has overwhelmingly blown up in Americans' faces. 330 00:16:27,760 --> 00:16:29,520 Speaker 5: We were talking earlier in the show. 331 00:16:30,080 --> 00:16:33,560 Speaker 4: You go look, for instance, at the percentage of single 332 00:16:33,680 --> 00:16:37,920 Speaker 4: parent households that existed before the nineteen sixties. 333 00:16:38,600 --> 00:16:39,720 Speaker 5: It was almost unheard of. 334 00:16:40,720 --> 00:16:42,720 Speaker 4: If you go look at the data of the number 335 00:16:42,760 --> 00:16:46,720 Speaker 4: of kids being raised in single parent households prior to 336 00:16:46,720 --> 00:16:51,520 Speaker 4: the nineteen sixties, it didn't exist by and large across 337 00:16:51,600 --> 00:16:56,120 Speaker 4: any racial group. Since the nineteen sixties, it has exploded. 338 00:16:56,440 --> 00:17:00,800 Speaker 4: And then you add in the Vietnam War, the disaster 339 00:17:00,960 --> 00:17:04,040 Speaker 4: that it was the fact that obviously he was only 340 00:17:04,040 --> 00:17:08,720 Speaker 4: in office, what was it five years after the assassination 341 00:17:08,880 --> 00:17:09,560 Speaker 4: of John F. 342 00:17:09,640 --> 00:17:10,520 Speaker 5: Kennedy the decision. 343 00:17:10,600 --> 00:17:13,280 Speaker 4: I think there may be a historical analogy with the 344 00:17:13,280 --> 00:17:15,520 Speaker 4: way that LBJ said I will not seek and I 345 00:17:15,560 --> 00:17:18,800 Speaker 4: will not accept the nomination in nineteen sixty eight. I 346 00:17:18,840 --> 00:17:22,600 Speaker 4: think there's a Joe Biden congruency there on some level. 347 00:17:22,840 --> 00:17:24,760 Speaker 4: And then the worst president of all time, I have 348 00:17:24,880 --> 00:17:29,520 Speaker 4: James Buchanan, and look, I'm a Civil War history nerd. 349 00:17:30,240 --> 00:17:34,040 Speaker 4: The fact that James Buchanan allowed Remember, you didn't get 350 00:17:34,080 --> 00:17:38,879 Speaker 4: inaugurated back then, Buck until March of the year after 351 00:17:38,920 --> 00:17:42,200 Speaker 4: you were elected in November. So a lot of people 352 00:17:42,720 --> 00:17:44,760 Speaker 4: don't think about that from a historical context. 353 00:17:44,760 --> 00:17:46,600 Speaker 5: It was difficult to get to Washington, d C. 354 00:17:47,119 --> 00:17:51,200 Speaker 4: The inaugural process, but you're talking about basically six months 355 00:17:51,440 --> 00:17:55,960 Speaker 4: from election day until the new president got inaugurated. I 356 00:17:56,119 --> 00:17:59,639 Speaker 4: happen to think even now, we have too long between 357 00:17:59,680 --> 00:18:03,200 Speaker 4: when the election takes place in November and the inauguration 358 00:18:03,320 --> 00:18:06,440 Speaker 4: that takes place in January. I think that's still too long. 359 00:18:06,520 --> 00:18:08,439 Speaker 4: I think we should get somebody in office faster. So 360 00:18:08,480 --> 00:18:10,760 Speaker 4: you don't have as long as a lame duck presidency. 361 00:18:11,400 --> 00:18:15,320 Speaker 4: But back then you went basically six months, and the 362 00:18:15,480 --> 00:18:19,760 Speaker 4: entire country collapsed on his watch, by and large, in 363 00:18:19,840 --> 00:18:23,600 Speaker 4: the six months between when Lincoln was elected in November 364 00:18:23,920 --> 00:18:26,760 Speaker 4: of eighteen sixty and when he took office in March 365 00:18:26,760 --> 00:18:31,600 Speaker 4: of eighteen sixty one, basically the entire Civil War, the Secession, 366 00:18:32,000 --> 00:18:35,359 Speaker 4: all of that movement took place while James Buchanan was 367 00:18:35,400 --> 00:18:38,800 Speaker 4: sitting lame duck in the presidential office. I didn't put 368 00:18:38,840 --> 00:18:43,080 Speaker 4: any current presidents on my list for what I just said. 369 00:18:44,119 --> 00:18:48,680 Speaker 4: I don't think it's fair to judge somebody until it's 370 00:18:48,720 --> 00:18:52,800 Speaker 4: been fifty years after their presidency and have an accurate 371 00:18:52,880 --> 00:18:55,360 Speaker 4: reflection on what they did or did not do. Now, 372 00:18:55,359 --> 00:18:58,160 Speaker 4: if you wanted me to rank presidents of my life, 373 00:18:58,200 --> 00:19:00,800 Speaker 4: you could rank, and I could rank the presidents of 374 00:19:00,840 --> 00:19:03,879 Speaker 4: our lives. But I think it's harder in real time 375 00:19:04,200 --> 00:19:07,080 Speaker 4: to assess the impact of a presidency. I think you 376 00:19:07,200 --> 00:19:10,600 Speaker 4: need at least fifty years to objectively look at it, 377 00:19:10,680 --> 00:19:13,879 Speaker 4: for the passions of the moment to subside, and for 378 00:19:13,960 --> 00:19:16,440 Speaker 4: you to be able to look at the real impact 379 00:19:16,800 --> 00:19:20,119 Speaker 4: of what exactly the presidency did or did not accomplish. 380 00:19:21,040 --> 00:19:25,800 Speaker 2: Is there anyone who gets for you honorable mentionable the. 381 00:19:25,680 --> 00:19:27,680 Speaker 6: Worst list on the worst list? 382 00:19:27,800 --> 00:19:32,840 Speaker 4: Yes, I mean yes, but they would be when you 383 00:19:32,880 --> 00:19:35,760 Speaker 4: look at it. I mean, part of the problem is 384 00:19:36,000 --> 00:19:40,199 Speaker 4: most presidencies have a part of good and bad. I 385 00:19:40,240 --> 00:19:45,600 Speaker 4: think that FDR deciding to basically give a huge percentage 386 00:19:45,720 --> 00:19:49,960 Speaker 4: of the government and entitlement programs put them in place 387 00:19:50,359 --> 00:19:52,800 Speaker 4: has been a ticking time bomb that we're only now 388 00:19:52,840 --> 00:19:53,840 Speaker 4: starting to reflect. 389 00:19:54,000 --> 00:19:57,000 Speaker 2: Yeah, I think that you can make a case that 390 00:19:57,480 --> 00:20:01,000 Speaker 2: the most controversial in the sense that on the one 391 00:20:01,040 --> 00:20:03,280 Speaker 2: side he is revered and on the other side he 392 00:20:03,640 --> 00:20:08,040 Speaker 2: at least by those who know is pretty despised, would 393 00:20:08,040 --> 00:20:12,159 Speaker 2: be the legacy of FDR. But I would argue, I 394 00:20:12,240 --> 00:20:13,760 Speaker 2: think if I mean just gonna say they think of 395 00:20:13,800 --> 00:20:15,320 Speaker 2: him as a hero, somebody else you have. 396 00:20:15,520 --> 00:20:16,359 Speaker 5: No I was gonna say. 397 00:20:16,400 --> 00:20:19,200 Speaker 4: The FDR angle that I think makes it challenging is 398 00:20:20,080 --> 00:20:24,000 Speaker 4: he got World War II eventually, right, So when you 399 00:20:24,080 --> 00:20:27,600 Speaker 4: balance out the FDR presidency, now Harry Truman comes in 400 00:20:27,680 --> 00:20:30,440 Speaker 4: at the end and actually closes it out. 401 00:20:31,440 --> 00:20:32,720 Speaker 6: You know, I think it's tough. 402 00:20:33,080 --> 00:20:35,639 Speaker 2: We had What is it that he did in the 403 00:20:35,680 --> 00:20:38,560 Speaker 2: Second World War that another president in his shoes would 404 00:20:38,560 --> 00:20:41,560 Speaker 2: not have We got caught and happened right, We got 405 00:20:41,600 --> 00:20:42,160 Speaker 2: caught hits. 406 00:20:42,200 --> 00:20:45,119 Speaker 4: Some people would argue that there was even an intentional 407 00:20:45,240 --> 00:20:48,879 Speaker 4: desire to allow the Japanese attack in nineteen forty one. 408 00:20:49,000 --> 00:20:51,920 Speaker 4: There is a conspiracy theory out there that we intentionally 409 00:20:52,000 --> 00:20:53,560 Speaker 4: overlooked some of the warnings there. 410 00:20:53,920 --> 00:20:55,200 Speaker 6: I think I think that there's. 411 00:20:55,040 --> 00:20:59,800 Speaker 2: A lot of rewriting of FDRs, well everything about FDR, 412 00:21:00,560 --> 00:21:02,159 Speaker 2: and you look at the legacy of fd on the 413 00:21:02,200 --> 00:21:03,000 Speaker 2: Second World War. 414 00:21:03,359 --> 00:21:04,600 Speaker 6: We had we. 415 00:21:04,520 --> 00:21:07,159 Speaker 2: Had Nazi submarines off the coast of New Jersey and 416 00:21:07,200 --> 00:21:12,760 Speaker 2: Long Island. We had Japanese submarines off the coast of California. 417 00:21:13,080 --> 00:21:15,880 Speaker 2: We had the Japanese seas I believe it was Atu 418 00:21:15,960 --> 00:21:18,840 Speaker 2: Island in the illusion chain, just to take us soil. 419 00:21:19,119 --> 00:21:22,439 Speaker 2: We obviously had the bombing of Pearl Harbor. If the Nazis, 420 00:21:22,720 --> 00:21:24,560 Speaker 2: I mean, this is a whole Sorry, we're about to 421 00:21:24,600 --> 00:21:26,720 Speaker 2: start the big World War two discussion now on the show, 422 00:21:26,720 --> 00:21:29,560 Speaker 2: which will go on for many hours. If the Nazis 423 00:21:30,520 --> 00:21:33,480 Speaker 2: had moved a little faster on some of their military 424 00:21:33,560 --> 00:21:38,320 Speaker 2: projects jet propulsion, missile technology. Obviously, we look at the 425 00:21:38,320 --> 00:21:41,159 Speaker 2: Manhattan Project. Now everyone's talking about Oppenheimer because of the 426 00:21:41,160 --> 00:21:44,440 Speaker 2: oscars and all that. It could have gone very differently 427 00:21:44,880 --> 00:21:47,439 Speaker 2: in some ways. I don't know that FDR gets credit 428 00:21:47,520 --> 00:21:51,240 Speaker 2: for we got attacked. Now we have to actually fight 429 00:21:51,280 --> 00:21:53,199 Speaker 2: back against the people who attacked us. I mean, he 430 00:21:53,200 --> 00:21:55,320 Speaker 2: had the full might of the American industrial machine and 431 00:21:55,359 --> 00:21:56,560 Speaker 2: the American people. 432 00:21:56,560 --> 00:21:57,280 Speaker 6: To call upon. 433 00:21:58,320 --> 00:22:01,280 Speaker 2: There was the whole interment of Japanese and which is uh, 434 00:22:01,560 --> 00:22:02,640 Speaker 2: you know, that's that's a. 435 00:22:02,640 --> 00:22:05,240 Speaker 5: Kind of a black guy on American retreat of. 436 00:22:05,040 --> 00:22:07,520 Speaker 6: Piece, you know, putting people that didn't do anything wrong 437 00:22:07,520 --> 00:22:08,919 Speaker 6: in the camps. It's bad. 438 00:22:09,960 --> 00:22:12,199 Speaker 2: And and I think then you also look at the uh, 439 00:22:12,560 --> 00:22:15,119 Speaker 2: the increase of the size of the federal government, the 440 00:22:15,119 --> 00:22:19,080 Speaker 2: state itself, and also making the Great Depression go on longer. 441 00:22:19,080 --> 00:22:23,120 Speaker 2: All right, well, we can't positives for you, Buck, two 442 00:22:23,119 --> 00:22:24,160 Speaker 2: guys that are off mind. 443 00:22:24,200 --> 00:22:28,879 Speaker 4: I want to be positive here. Eisenhower and Truman don't 444 00:22:28,880 --> 00:22:31,400 Speaker 4: get necessarily a lot of attention. 445 00:22:33,040 --> 00:22:35,320 Speaker 5: Truman really in. 446 00:22:35,200 --> 00:22:39,800 Speaker 4: The rebuilding of Europe and the Marshall Plan and everything 447 00:22:39,840 --> 00:22:42,600 Speaker 4: associated with that, making what I think is one of 448 00:22:42,640 --> 00:22:45,800 Speaker 4: the toughest calls in the history of the United States 449 00:22:46,160 --> 00:22:48,080 Speaker 4: that we were going to drop the bomb in Japan. 450 00:22:48,840 --> 00:22:53,200 Speaker 4: Eisenhower you go look historically Buck for a two term president. 451 00:22:53,800 --> 00:22:56,920 Speaker 4: I'm not sure anybody has ever been more popular as 452 00:22:57,000 --> 00:23:01,280 Speaker 4: president of the United States than Eisenhower was, universally. 453 00:23:00,760 --> 00:23:04,399 Speaker 2: Believe, and actually moved the ball further when it was 454 00:23:04,440 --> 00:23:08,439 Speaker 2: harder on civil rights. Then later on LBJ came in 455 00:23:08,480 --> 00:23:10,919 Speaker 2: when it was actually politically expedient for him to do 456 00:23:10,960 --> 00:23:12,560 Speaker 2: what he did. But anyway, that's a whole other. 457 00:23:12,680 --> 00:23:15,600 Speaker 4: I got the interstate system done. I mean, Eisenhower, what 458 00:23:15,720 --> 00:23:18,080 Speaker 4: he was able to accomplish in the wake of World 459 00:23:18,119 --> 00:23:23,160 Speaker 4: War Two was pretty frigging incredible. Jennifer in Texas, who 460 00:23:23,200 --> 00:23:23,600 Speaker 4: you got? 461 00:23:23,960 --> 00:23:29,800 Speaker 7: Okay, so sports to the worst one, Woodrow Wilson, because 462 00:23:29,840 --> 00:23:34,080 Speaker 7: of what Buck said. And then the next one is 463 00:23:34,160 --> 00:23:39,080 Speaker 7: going to be I'm sorry, Biden and Obama, which are 464 00:23:39,119 --> 00:23:42,400 Speaker 7: basically the same. And then the third one is Andrew 465 00:23:42,520 --> 00:23:45,240 Speaker 7: Jackson because he's head of the Democratic He made the 466 00:23:45,280 --> 00:23:47,399 Speaker 7: Democratic Party what it is today. 467 00:23:47,920 --> 00:23:48,640 Speaker 5: Thanks for the call. 468 00:23:48,680 --> 00:23:52,040 Speaker 4: They hate Andrew Jackson, by the way, distant relative of 469 00:23:52,119 --> 00:23:56,160 Speaker 4: mind Buck Hermitage and Old Hickory, Tennessee. They hate him 470 00:23:56,200 --> 00:23:59,320 Speaker 4: because of the trail of tears. So they've taken they 471 00:23:59,400 --> 00:24:02,680 Speaker 4: used to have the Jefferson Jackson Day dinners. They've now 472 00:24:02,760 --> 00:24:06,560 Speaker 4: taken Andrew Jackson's name off of many of those Jefferson 473 00:24:06,640 --> 00:24:10,680 Speaker 4: Jackson Day dinners, and I bet they'll take Jefferson off 474 00:24:10,720 --> 00:24:13,520 Speaker 4: at some point because he was a slaveholder. That's where 475 00:24:13,520 --> 00:24:17,280 Speaker 4: they are trying to erase history. Carmen in La what 476 00:24:17,400 --> 00:24:18,119 Speaker 4: you got for us? 477 00:24:19,119 --> 00:24:25,600 Speaker 1: Yeah? My three worst James Buchanan, Andrew Johnson, Herbert Hoover. 478 00:24:26,400 --> 00:24:26,800 Speaker 5: Thank you. 479 00:24:27,920 --> 00:24:32,480 Speaker 4: Look either side of Lincoln, definite mess. I had a history. 480 00:24:32,480 --> 00:24:33,160 Speaker 5: He can say. 481 00:24:33,200 --> 00:24:35,240 Speaker 2: This is This is something I've been thinking about because 482 00:24:35,600 --> 00:24:37,680 Speaker 2: if you think of the worst presidents, there is this, 483 00:24:38,359 --> 00:24:40,879 Speaker 2: there's a string, there's kind of a run up. What 484 00:24:41,000 --> 00:24:43,959 Speaker 2: you got, you got, fillmore and then Pierce and then 485 00:24:44,080 --> 00:24:46,720 Speaker 2: you get to Buchanan. Right, I'm doing this for memory. 486 00:24:46,720 --> 00:24:47,400 Speaker 2: I think that's right. 487 00:24:48,520 --> 00:24:50,080 Speaker 6: You know, they weren't a tough spot. 488 00:24:50,119 --> 00:24:52,320 Speaker 2: Those that they weren't very effective, but you know they're 489 00:24:52,320 --> 00:24:55,120 Speaker 2: trying to get the uh you know what the Kansas 490 00:24:55,119 --> 00:24:58,520 Speaker 2: Nebraska Act. Things settle, they got Missouri Compromise and then 491 00:24:58,560 --> 00:25:00,920 Speaker 2: you get you know what happened with the territories of 492 00:25:00,960 --> 00:25:01,960 Speaker 2: the Mexican American War. 493 00:25:02,000 --> 00:25:03,040 Speaker 6: You look at all that stuff. 494 00:25:03,920 --> 00:25:05,720 Speaker 2: It wasn't an you know, I'm just saying it wasn't 495 00:25:05,760 --> 00:25:08,879 Speaker 2: an easy place to be in for those presidents in 496 00:25:08,920 --> 00:25:12,399 Speaker 2: the run up, such that they were ineffectual. And we 497 00:25:12,480 --> 00:25:15,920 Speaker 2: really don't even we think of things that happened during 498 00:25:15,960 --> 00:25:19,720 Speaker 2: those presidencies. We don't think of those presidents at all. 499 00:25:20,040 --> 00:25:22,919 Speaker 2: In well American history classes. It barely comes up. Like 500 00:25:23,080 --> 00:25:26,920 Speaker 2: he asked people about film, wore you asked people about Peers. 501 00:25:26,960 --> 00:25:28,399 Speaker 2: He went to Boden. That's all you need to know 502 00:25:28,440 --> 00:25:30,760 Speaker 2: about him. It was Boden people out there, not an 503 00:25:30,760 --> 00:25:31,360 Speaker 2: amateurs guy. 504 00:25:31,440 --> 00:25:33,720 Speaker 4: I had a history teacher who made an interesting argument, 505 00:25:33,920 --> 00:25:37,320 Speaker 4: and his argument was, if Abraham Lincoln doesn't get assassinated, 506 00:25:37,720 --> 00:25:41,000 Speaker 4: he ends up getting impeached because he would not have 507 00:25:41,160 --> 00:25:45,720 Speaker 4: been nasty enough to the Southern States for the radical 508 00:25:45,800 --> 00:25:51,280 Speaker 4: Republicans after the war ended. Remember Andrew Johnson obviously got impeached. 509 00:25:51,920 --> 00:25:54,679 Speaker 4: He was a Tennessee and who took over for Lincoln. 510 00:25:54,680 --> 00:25:57,960 Speaker 4: A lot of people forget Lincoln changed his vice presidential pick. 511 00:25:59,200 --> 00:25:59,600 Speaker 5: Anyway. 512 00:25:59,640 --> 00:26:04,200 Speaker 4: I I think history is fun not only for what happened, 513 00:26:04,240 --> 00:26:06,879 Speaker 4: but by thinking about what might have happened. With just 514 00:26:06,920 --> 00:26:10,480 Speaker 4: a subtle twist. Brian and Tampa quickly what you got? 515 00:26:15,359 --> 00:26:17,880 Speaker 8: Yes, did you hear me, Yeah, we got just that Trump, 516 00:26:17,960 --> 00:26:21,160 Speaker 8: and then the worst three to me is Woodrow Wilson, 517 00:26:21,160 --> 00:26:26,199 Speaker 8: the Federal Reserve Act LBJ, and of course Obama. The 518 00:26:26,240 --> 00:26:29,320 Speaker 8: worst of all time is Obama. 519 00:26:29,440 --> 00:26:33,000 Speaker 2: I mean, Obama's in my top five for bad presidents. 520 00:26:33,040 --> 00:26:34,720 Speaker 2: I would say, I think that did a lot of 521 00:26:34,800 --> 00:26:36,960 Speaker 2: damage to the country in a lot of ways. Maybe 522 00:26:37,000 --> 00:26:40,040 Speaker 2: top ten, but the others I obviously totally agree with Clay. 523 00:26:40,560 --> 00:26:40,760 Speaker 8: Yeah. 524 00:26:40,840 --> 00:26:43,840 Speaker 4: Look, I'm trying to be a history guy and take 525 00:26:43,880 --> 00:26:46,960 Speaker 4: my time and sit back and allow fifty years to pass. 526 00:26:48,480 --> 00:26:50,760 Speaker 4: But there are certainly there's an argument to be made 527 00:26:50,800 --> 00:26:53,440 Speaker 4: that we've had a lot of bad presidents in recent vintage. 528 00:26:53,520 --> 00:26:55,120 Speaker 4: I just don't think like we had one guy call 529 00:26:55,200 --> 00:26:57,280 Speaker 4: in and say all three of the worst presidents we've 530 00:26:57,320 --> 00:26:59,800 Speaker 4: ever had in the last forty years. I don't necessarily 531 00:27:00,160 --> 00:27:01,720 Speaker 4: that we've had some bad ones. 532 00:27:01,480 --> 00:27:05,200 Speaker 1: Though Sunday Sizzle with Clay and Buck. 533 00:27:06,520 --> 00:27:09,560 Speaker 2: No, not many surprises. I mean, I think any there's 534 00:27:09,640 --> 00:27:13,840 Speaker 2: pretty universal agreement on the right. I would say for 535 00:27:14,200 --> 00:27:17,080 Speaker 2: the top ten worst and the top ten best. Right, 536 00:27:17,160 --> 00:27:20,919 Speaker 2: that's and then you're just moving around where you know 537 00:27:21,000 --> 00:27:23,959 Speaker 2: who's number three or you know, I get it right? 538 00:27:24,000 --> 00:27:26,200 Speaker 2: I mean, someone said oh, Buck, you shouldn't put Calvin 539 00:27:26,240 --> 00:27:28,119 Speaker 2: Coolidget number three. You should put Lincoln there. I'd be like, 540 00:27:28,160 --> 00:27:30,000 Speaker 2: all right, you know, Clay put Link in the top three, 541 00:27:30,040 --> 00:27:32,720 Speaker 2: like I could, I could see that. I'm not, you know, 542 00:27:32,760 --> 00:27:37,080 Speaker 2: We're it's a very subjective, very subjective list. But subjective 543 00:27:37,080 --> 00:27:39,600 Speaker 2: lists are fun, you know. It's like best action movie 544 00:27:39,640 --> 00:27:42,640 Speaker 2: from the nineteen eighties, nineteen nineties, like you can come. 545 00:27:42,560 --> 00:27:43,240 Speaker 6: Up with a whole lot. 546 00:27:43,760 --> 00:27:43,920 Speaker 8: Oh. 547 00:27:43,920 --> 00:27:44,920 Speaker 6: This matters a bit more. 548 00:27:44,840 --> 00:27:46,840 Speaker 2: Though, because it's about the history of the country, and 549 00:27:47,000 --> 00:27:49,679 Speaker 2: it also tells us something about our politics I think today. 550 00:27:51,440 --> 00:27:56,479 Speaker 2: So we had this was interesting, Michael best Schlass. We 551 00:27:56,520 --> 00:27:59,879 Speaker 2: said that there was clearly something going on with this 552 00:28:00,119 --> 00:28:04,760 Speaker 2: is these experts of presidential history who said that Trump 553 00:28:04,960 --> 00:28:09,560 Speaker 2: was the worst president in history on this list, the worst. Yes, 554 00:28:09,680 --> 00:28:11,960 Speaker 2: I didn't even say. I didn't say that Joe Biden 555 00:28:12,119 --> 00:28:15,639 Speaker 2: was the worst. Joe Biden is not responsible for, you know, 556 00:28:15,720 --> 00:28:18,960 Speaker 2: inability to prevent the nation from sliding into a war 557 00:28:19,040 --> 00:28:21,560 Speaker 2: that took what six hundred thousand lives. I mean, you know, 558 00:28:21,760 --> 00:28:25,800 Speaker 2: I didn't tell they're they're worst presidents than Joe Biden. 559 00:28:25,880 --> 00:28:28,800 Speaker 2: I'm not living in fantasy land. They though, with Trump 560 00:28:28,880 --> 00:28:32,359 Speaker 2: are living in fantasy land. They're they're crazy, And Michael 561 00:28:32,400 --> 00:28:37,440 Speaker 2: Beschloss went after well. First off, joy read of Michael Beschloss, 562 00:28:37,440 --> 00:28:41,160 Speaker 2: who's a presidential historian. UH talked about how there are 563 00:28:41,160 --> 00:28:43,480 Speaker 2: so many US presidents ranked the top ten who were 564 00:28:43,600 --> 00:28:46,240 Speaker 2: get ready for it, racist play eleven. 565 00:28:48,320 --> 00:28:49,600 Speaker 5: Do you agree with these rankings? 566 00:28:49,680 --> 00:28:53,000 Speaker 9: I'd have some differences. For instance, Theodore Roosevelt. I don't 567 00:28:53,000 --> 00:28:55,640 Speaker 9: know when historians are going to wake up to the 568 00:28:55,680 --> 00:28:59,560 Speaker 9: fact that the guy was terribly racist rhetoric, very white 569 00:28:59,560 --> 00:29:04,800 Speaker 9: supreme the nineteen twelve Theodore Roosevelt Progressive Party of Bullmoo's 570 00:29:04,880 --> 00:29:08,720 Speaker 9: platform was for segregation of the races in America. And 571 00:29:08,800 --> 00:29:11,600 Speaker 9: as far as Andrew Jackson is concerned, it shows that, 572 00:29:12,000 --> 00:29:14,880 Speaker 9: you know, historians can do the right thing. It takes 573 00:29:14,960 --> 00:29:18,400 Speaker 9: us a while. He was president in the early nineteenth century, 574 00:29:18,840 --> 00:29:22,920 Speaker 9: but we now given what people are justifiably more sensitive to. 575 00:29:23,520 --> 00:29:26,680 Speaker 9: This was the guy who did too Native Americans, who 576 00:29:26,800 --> 00:29:29,520 Speaker 9: was responsible for the trail of tears, and he was 577 00:29:29,560 --> 00:29:32,800 Speaker 9: a slaveholder. Why should he be that high on the list? 578 00:29:34,480 --> 00:29:38,040 Speaker 4: What are you making with Clay This Of all the 579 00:29:38,280 --> 00:29:44,840 Speaker 4: arguments out there, Buck, this infuriates me maybe the most. Yes, 580 00:29:45,480 --> 00:29:50,000 Speaker 4: Thomas Jefferson and George Washington, and Andrew Jackson and many 581 00:29:50,160 --> 00:29:55,640 Speaker 4: other of our founding fathers and early presidents were slaveholders. 582 00:29:56,480 --> 00:30:00,640 Speaker 4: They wore products of their time. They were imperfect, They 583 00:30:00,680 --> 00:30:03,920 Speaker 4: were flawed, just as you and me and every other 584 00:30:04,000 --> 00:30:06,640 Speaker 4: person out there who is sitting around here. In twenty 585 00:30:06,680 --> 00:30:09,400 Speaker 4: twenty four, two hundred years from now, people are going 586 00:30:09,440 --> 00:30:11,080 Speaker 4: to look at some of the things that we did, 587 00:30:11,920 --> 00:30:15,360 Speaker 4: if society continues and we continue to evolve, and they 588 00:30:15,400 --> 00:30:18,560 Speaker 4: will say, oh, my goodness, can you believe that Clay 589 00:30:18,600 --> 00:30:21,040 Speaker 4: Travis and Buck Sexton and you and everybody else out 590 00:30:21,040 --> 00:30:24,600 Speaker 4: there did things that everybody else did that we now 591 00:30:24,640 --> 00:30:27,680 Speaker 4: consider to be unacceptable. That doesn't mean that we're not 592 00:30:27,760 --> 00:30:29,800 Speaker 4: trying to be the best version of ourselves in the 593 00:30:29,800 --> 00:30:31,080 Speaker 4: current world in which we live. 594 00:30:31,680 --> 00:30:32,080 Speaker 6: I don't know. 595 00:30:32,080 --> 00:30:34,000 Speaker 2: Maybe in a thousand years people think of us as 596 00:30:34,040 --> 00:30:36,600 Speaker 2: Socrates on the radio. They'd be like, so much wisdom 597 00:30:36,760 --> 00:30:39,000 Speaker 2: for three hours a day. People could just tune in 598 00:30:39,040 --> 00:30:43,320 Speaker 2: anytime they want. That should be my new soccer Sille 599 00:30:43,320 --> 00:30:43,760 Speaker 2: in the radio. 600 00:30:43,840 --> 00:30:44,160 Speaker 6: I like that. 601 00:30:44,400 --> 00:30:46,440 Speaker 4: I would love that Socrates on the radio. Let me 602 00:30:46,480 --> 00:30:49,960 Speaker 4: also play though, Michael Beschlos, Remember this is the same 603 00:30:50,000 --> 00:30:54,200 Speaker 4: guy who went on MSNBC and said that if Republicans 604 00:30:54,280 --> 00:30:58,400 Speaker 4: won the twenty twenty two midterms, that this might be 605 00:30:58,440 --> 00:31:00,840 Speaker 4: the last free election we have and that there were 606 00:31:00,880 --> 00:31:03,520 Speaker 4: going to be people maybe getting lined up and shot 607 00:31:03,720 --> 00:31:06,480 Speaker 4: based on their political opinions. Listen to this cut, which 608 00:31:06,520 --> 00:31:08,720 Speaker 4: we also have with him, and this is important, Buck, 609 00:31:08,760 --> 00:31:10,920 Speaker 4: because I do think this is what we were saying yesterday. 610 00:31:11,760 --> 00:31:15,800 Speaker 4: It's not only that they have Trump as the worst president. 611 00:31:16,160 --> 00:31:18,440 Speaker 4: It's that they have Biden as a really good president, 612 00:31:18,800 --> 00:31:21,120 Speaker 4: and they have Obama ranked really highly. And the reason 613 00:31:21,160 --> 00:31:23,600 Speaker 4: why they do that is many of their sources worked 614 00:31:23,600 --> 00:31:28,080 Speaker 4: in those administrations and they're afraid of upsetting people. This 615 00:31:28,160 --> 00:31:30,480 Speaker 4: is why I said, you can't really judge a president 616 00:31:30,880 --> 00:31:34,640 Speaker 4: until everybody who was in that presidential administration has basically died, 617 00:31:34,960 --> 00:31:37,480 Speaker 4: and we can look at it in a historical context. 618 00:31:37,680 --> 00:31:40,360 Speaker 4: But this is how broken some of the brains are 619 00:31:40,400 --> 00:31:43,360 Speaker 4: of these people. Listen to Bechelos. This is a historian 620 00:31:43,480 --> 00:31:49,360 Speaker 4: and imminent scholar of our nation saying, hey, if Republicans 621 00:31:49,360 --> 00:31:50,920 Speaker 4: win in the mid terms, people are going to get 622 00:31:50,960 --> 00:31:51,760 Speaker 4: lined up and shot. 623 00:31:51,840 --> 00:31:54,959 Speaker 9: Listen, we could be six days away from losing our 624 00:31:55,080 --> 00:31:58,200 Speaker 9: rule of law and losing a situation where we have 625 00:31:58,640 --> 00:32:01,680 Speaker 9: elections that we all can rely on. You know, those 626 00:32:01,680 --> 00:32:05,320 Speaker 9: are the foundation stones of a democracy. And a historian 627 00:32:05,440 --> 00:32:08,800 Speaker 9: fifty years from now, if historians are allowed to ride 628 00:32:08,840 --> 00:32:11,480 Speaker 9: in this country, and if there are still free publishing 629 00:32:11,520 --> 00:32:14,640 Speaker 9: houses and a free press, which I'm not certain of, 630 00:32:15,040 --> 00:32:18,520 Speaker 9: but if that is true, a historian will say what 631 00:32:18,600 --> 00:32:22,120 Speaker 9: was at stake tonight and this week was the fact 632 00:32:22,160 --> 00:32:24,960 Speaker 9: whether we will be a democracy in the future, whether 633 00:32:25,040 --> 00:32:29,120 Speaker 9: our children will be arrested and conceivably killed. We're on 634 00:32:29,240 --> 00:32:32,440 Speaker 9: the edge of a brutal authoritarian system and it could 635 00:32:32,440 --> 00:32:33,160 Speaker 9: be a week away. 636 00:32:33,840 --> 00:32:35,800 Speaker 2: I think he needs to eat some red meat and 637 00:32:35,840 --> 00:32:38,120 Speaker 2: go for a walk in the sunshine. I mean, honestly, 638 00:32:38,200 --> 00:32:41,320 Speaker 2: like this guy, I think he's suffering from some testosterone 639 00:32:41,320 --> 00:32:44,200 Speaker 2: deficiency or something. I mean, who could really believe this stuff? 640 00:32:44,680 --> 00:32:44,880 Speaker 1: Well? 641 00:32:44,920 --> 00:32:47,280 Speaker 4: And I mean you mentioned this also with who's the 642 00:32:47,320 --> 00:32:51,920 Speaker 4: individual who's buddies now with not Bechelos, but the guy. 643 00:32:52,280 --> 00:32:54,160 Speaker 6: Meetchim on MSNBC. Yeah. 644 00:32:54,240 --> 00:32:56,760 Speaker 4: Meetchim lives down the road for me in Nashville and 645 00:32:56,920 --> 00:33:00,920 Speaker 4: has been I've read a lot of his books historically. 646 00:33:01,040 --> 00:33:03,800 Speaker 4: When I read about something he wrote two hundred years ago, 647 00:33:04,280 --> 00:33:06,880 Speaker 4: I think to myself, Okay, this guy has a decent perspective. 648 00:33:07,280 --> 00:33:11,760 Speaker 4: His analysis is not totally out of whack. What you 649 00:33:11,920 --> 00:33:22,040 Speaker 4: see is the present day totally is destructive to most historians' 650 00:33:22,040 --> 00:33:25,800 Speaker 4: ability to analyze the present day. You need space, you 651 00:33:25,880 --> 00:33:29,480 Speaker 4: need distance, you need oftentimes a lot of the people 652 00:33:29,560 --> 00:33:34,080 Speaker 4: who were the luminaries who were actually alive to have 653 00:33:34,200 --> 00:33:37,440 Speaker 4: passed on until you can consider them in the larger context. 654 00:33:37,680 --> 00:33:40,840 Speaker 4: And that's why we don't even know what the impact 655 00:33:40,960 --> 00:33:43,360 Speaker 4: of many of the people in the last twenty years 656 00:33:43,360 --> 00:33:46,040 Speaker 4: who've been President's truly going to be for another fifty years. 657 00:33:46,680 --> 00:33:49,760 Speaker 4: The funniest thing I've seen about Joy Reed lately is 658 00:33:50,200 --> 00:33:52,280 Speaker 4: she claims to hate Trump, but she seems to be 659 00:33:52,320 --> 00:33:55,440 Speaker 4: trying to copy his hairstyle. Have you seen Joy Reid 660 00:33:55,560 --> 00:33:58,880 Speaker 4: now with the super blonde hair side by side with 661 00:33:58,960 --> 00:34:02,360 Speaker 4: Donald Trump? I think maybe she's falling in love with Trump. 662 00:34:02,480 --> 00:34:05,080 Speaker 4: She claims to hate him, The reality is she wants 663 00:34:05,080 --> 00:34:08,319 Speaker 4: to have the same hairstyle. And she also came out 664 00:34:08,360 --> 00:34:11,359 Speaker 4: recently Buck did you see, and said that she wants reparations. 665 00:34:11,880 --> 00:34:14,239 Speaker 4: And then many people kind of did the research and 666 00:34:14,239 --> 00:34:17,160 Speaker 4: they said, wait a minute, Joy Reid's parents are immigrants. 667 00:34:18,000 --> 00:34:21,200 Speaker 4: She spent no time in America having to deal with 668 00:34:21,880 --> 00:34:26,200 Speaker 4: the legacy of slavery. Leaving aside the absurdity of the 669 00:34:26,320 --> 00:34:30,719 Speaker 4: idea of reparations, the idea of someone coming to America 670 00:34:31,320 --> 00:34:35,120 Speaker 4: in the last thirty or forty years and claiming that 671 00:34:35,160 --> 00:34:40,640 Speaker 4: she is entitled to reparations for what happened is absolutely bonkers. 672 00:34:41,280 --> 00:34:45,759 Speaker 4: And again, I'm not sure where Trump is going to rank. 673 00:34:46,800 --> 00:34:49,200 Speaker 4: I feel very confident that he's going to rank above 674 00:34:49,280 --> 00:34:52,800 Speaker 4: Joe Biden, and I think Joe Biden's going to be 675 00:34:52,840 --> 00:34:58,279 Speaker 4: a one term president. But the idea that you can 676 00:34:58,400 --> 00:35:04,399 Speaker 4: rank somebody in real time with absolute certainty, everybody out 677 00:35:04,400 --> 00:35:06,479 Speaker 4: there should just be asking yourself the questions, Wait a minute, 678 00:35:06,520 --> 00:35:11,759 Speaker 4: Trump's the worst president of all time according to these historians, 679 00:35:12,280 --> 00:35:16,560 Speaker 4: other than COVID, which Trump had absolutely nothing to do with. 680 00:35:17,480 --> 00:35:21,279 Speaker 4: What could you really point to buck pre Covid? Right 681 00:35:21,480 --> 00:35:24,360 Speaker 4: four years ago, at this time, COVID was just starting 682 00:35:24,400 --> 00:35:28,399 Speaker 4: to kind of percolate up. But pre COVID, what could 683 00:35:28,440 --> 00:35:32,120 Speaker 4: you point to and say Trump did an awful job 684 00:35:32,280 --> 00:35:36,879 Speaker 4: on Again, he didn't cause COVID. And I think many 685 00:35:36,920 --> 00:35:38,879 Speaker 4: of you out there are like bucking me. You wish 686 00:35:38,960 --> 00:35:43,440 Speaker 4: that he had done a better job with covid. But 687 00:35:43,520 --> 00:35:47,719 Speaker 4: what can you point to that he actually created or 688 00:35:47,840 --> 00:35:51,920 Speaker 4: responded to that was bad in any way pre covid. 689 00:35:51,960 --> 00:35:52,320 Speaker 5: I can't. 690 00:35:52,400 --> 00:35:55,680 Speaker 4: I honestly can't even point to to anything out there