Who was the most "well intentioned" president in history?

[Brampton_Boy]

With a career politician and a snake oil salesperson as your current two candidates, I am curious as to when the last time a "genuine good guy" was elected to office.

Most politicians are self serving and have little genuine interest in affecting meaningful change beyond being a talking head.

I'm not talking about actual results (I personally believe all politicians, regardless of intention, will be rendered ineffectual due to bureaucracy), but somebody who genuinely wanted what was best for the American people.

My knowledge of American political history is a little bit fuzzy, but from what I can glean, Jimmy Carter seemed like a pretty good dude. Even Obama had me convinced that he really wanted to make a difference - what ultimately happened was something entirely different though.

Thoughts?

 

[Damien Karras]

Franklin D Roosevelt

Abraham Lincoln

 

[ripskater]

Carter possibly? I don't know though.

Obama is maybe the most evil and probably trollish with all the bashing Christianity and praising Islam, praising Ahmed the clock boy, praising Bruce Jenner for going tranny, and stirring racial animosity between the black community and cops.

 

[Brampton_Boy]

Carter possibly? I don't know though.

Obama is maybe the most evil and probably trollish with all the bashing Christianity and praising Islam, praising Ahmed the clock boy, praising Bruce Jenner for going tranny, and stirring racial animosity between the black community and cops.

When Obama was campaigning in 2008, did you also have a negative impression of him, or were you neutral/positive?

I'll be honest, I "drank the kool-aid" and genuinely thought Obama was going to be a watershed in American politics for the better. How wrong we all were.

 

[Higus]

Carter. Had strong spiritual convictions that guided his decisions. Was transparent, humble and prudent. Unfortunately, these traits are seen as weakness by voters. He was besieged by both parties and was probably too idealistic for his own good.
He's accomplished more good out of office than any president has while in office, imo. Washington is not a place for good men. He's a very interesting person to read about.

 

[Rex Kwon Do]

James A. Garfield

Tough upbringing, but seemed like a really good dude.

Was assassinated.

 

[Skarr]

he may not have started off as his own man but he certainly worked his way to that point....

JFK, after that it was all downhill with a series of yes men...progressively worse until you arrive at present day choice of Clinton or Trump, lol

 

[uncommon]

Washington refused office at first.

 

[HunterSdVa29]

Rutherford b hayes, IMO

 

[ncordless]

Washington.

 

[kickboxjh]

No such thing as a well intentioned politician at that level, they're all sociopaths.

 

[Fawlty]

The answer almost has to be Washington by default, but on intentions I think Obama is pretty high in the historical pack. FDR, Lincoln, and Johnson deservedly get high marks for their intentions, but I think their political viciousness kind of taints that.

 

[ripskater]

When Obama was campaigning in 2008, did you also have a negative impression of him, or were you neutral/positive?

I'll be honest, I "drank the kool-aid" and genuinely thought Obama was going to be a watershed in American politics for the better. How wrong we all were.

I did have a negative impression of Obama but remember I was already into conspiracy theory and I'm Christian so I was listening to people that were talking about Obama's past Muslim background and really analyzing his speeches for content. Otherwise I might not have picked up on it. My wife actually did get the creeps when she saw him on Oprah before he got elected. But my wife is pretty attuned to people that are bad characters.

Don't beat yourself up too much. Obama is a smooth politician. People actually claim to have near religious experiences hearing his speeches. He does have the "it factor."

 

[Gazwald]

Donald Trump.

 

[HunterSdVa29]

William henry harrisson, if only he lived.....

 

[Rational Poster]

Woodrow Wilson

 

[Zankou]

Carter, no doubt.

LOL at the mentions of FDR, JFK, and Lincoln. They were brutal pragmatists who wouldn't shy away from even the most heinous and under-handed acts if it they thought it benefited the nation. It wouldn't even trouble their conscience. That doesn't mean they were bad presidents, of course, any more than Carter's good intentions made him a good president.

You could say Washington, but I think he barely had any intentions. He didn't even want to be president. He had the intention of 'not being a megalomaniacal asshole,' which counts for a lot, but he came into the office more with a 'let's not fuck it up' attitude than with great plans and schemes for spreading goodness across the land.

 

[SouthoftheAndes]

Andrew Johnson
Andrew Jackson
Richard Nixon
LBJ
FDR
Harry Truman
Obama
Bill Clinton
George HW Bush
George W Bush

Also, lol at FDR as a serious pick

 

[Jack V Savage]

They all have good intentions. Like no one wants anything but to be a great president and do great for the country as they see it. I don't see how you distinguish here.

 

[LucasWithLidOff]

I was going to say on before Andrew Jackson, but alas, I was thwarted.