***(Editor’s Note: In conjunction with the Inauguration of America’s 44th President, “The Thirsty Quill” is publishing a series entitled “Ranking The Presidents.” There is no ‘exact science’ to these rankings other than personal opinion based on such factors as policy, performance, popularity, perseverance, integrity, and legacy. Aside from those Presidents ranked in the top 25% and the bottom 25%, there is a great deal of ‘wiggle room’ for discretionary placement and movement. These rankings are strictly the personal opinion of the Editor of ‘The Quill,’ and should not be regarded as an academic survey of any type. Debate of these rankings is highly encouraged and appreciated.)***

#2: Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1933-April 1945)

Let me begin by offering my apologies (in advance) to my fellow Conservatives. For those who know me best, I’m sure this pick will leave you scratching your head and wondering if I’ve turned to “the dark side” of Liberal ideology. While I will admit upfront that FDR was a stout Liberal who initiated many of the “dependency programs” that we (Conservatives) loathe today, I remain steadfast in my ranking of Roosevelt at a very healthy #2 all-time among the Presidents. I hope that the following essay provides enough evidence to support my position.

Born in 1882, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was raised in a very astute community in New York. Likewise, Roosevelt’s own family had considerable wealth, so it came as no surprise when Franklin chose to attend Harvard for his undergraduate work, and then went on to Columbia to study Law. While he never completed his study at Columbia, Roosevelt still became an attorney since he had already passed the state bar examination in New York. He later joined one of New York’s most reputable law firms.

FDR got his start in politics at the young age of 28, when he was elected to serve as a State Senator. Recognized for his wisdom and leadership, even in his youth, FDR was seen as “the future” of the Democratic Party due to his candor and outspokenness on important issues. He was appointed to the position of Assistant Secretary of the Navy in 1913, serving under Woodrow Wilson’s Administration. He would stay in that position throughout World War I, before running for Vice President in 1920 with James Cox, who ultimately lost the election to Warren Harding.

Tragedy struck FDR in 1921 when he contracted what is believed to have been polio. As a result, Roosevelt was paralyzed from the waist down, losing his ability to walk unassisted. The condition would remain with him for the rest of his life.

I’ll pause here to interject one of the more fascinating aspects about Roosevelt. Despite his condition, FDR refused to be deterred, and was ultimately able to have some very limited use of his legs. Braces and crutches sometimes took the place of his wheelchair. Remember, these were the days before the TV took precedence in America, so Roosevelt’s disability was rarely recognized by the public. Throughout his career, many of his speeches and addresses were delivered via the radio. It was not until he had won over the American people that FDR became the first President to actually appear on the newly-invented television.

When Roosevelt did speak publicly, he often supported himself as he stood (despite the recommendation of his doctors), giving the appearance that there was no disability. In fact, most Americans never even knew Roosevelt had any paralysis whatsoever, an amazing feat in itself considering that he was elected President four times!

In the height of the Great Depression, it is rumored that Roosevelt once told his advisors (who wanted him to remain seated while speaking in public), “how will I ever convince the American people to get back on their feet, if their President can’t even stand on his own?”

Throughout the remainder of his life, FDR would commit a great deal of time and money to rehabilitation efforts for Americans with disabilities, especially children. He even purchased and opened a clinic in Warm Springs, Georgia for just that cause. His efforts with early research organizations helped him establish one such effort that later became known as “The March of Dimes.” This is one reason why even today, we find FDR immortalized on our 10 cent piece.

In the late 1920s, Roosevelt successfully ran for Governor of New York, where he served two terms before being chosen to run as the Democratic nominee for President in 1932. For the next 12 years, America would lean on one of its most famous Presidents to help guide her through two of the darkest eras in our history. In the period before Presidential term limits had been established as a Constitutional Amendment, Americans were willing to forgo the “unwritten rule” as set forth by George Washington’s example, and entrusted FDR by electing him a record four times as their President.

The first two terms were obviously focused on the Great Depression. Roosevelt spoke candidly to the American people, using rousing public speeches about “fear itself” and his radio addresses (known as “Fireside Chats”) to reinvigorate the national spirit when there was none. He had an uncanny ability to relate to the American people, to identify with their daily struggle, even from his cozy residence along Pennsylvania Avenue. Americans were moved, at first in their hearts and later in their muscle, as they were stirred by Roosevelt’s call to action.

His New Deal introduced countless acronyms of programs and initiatives aimed at putting the country back to work, saving banks, and fixing the economy. Social Security and Welfare was established to support those who could not support themselves, especially the elderly. And while these programs were intended to be short-lived, many have been reaffirmed by Congress for decades. Sadly, FDR’s intention of helping those hardest hit by the Depression, has now eroded into a busted system of dependency in which only a fraction of its recipients are truly “helpless.” Still, the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps), TVA (Tennessee Valley Authority), and the endless parade of “alphabet soup” (government program acronyms) had a great deal of impact on stemming the tide of the Depression. While many historians debate whether or not FDR actually was the catalyst that pulled America through the worst economic disaster in our history (and around the globe), there is no denying the fact that he was chosen by our people to guide us during that time. Let’s face it, whether we like all of his ideas or not, Roosevelt was the motivational and driving force behind the resurgence in the American spirit. That must be recognized and applauded.

Many would argue that it was America being pulled into World War II that was the final piece of the puzzle toward economic recovery. Most people don’t realize that the Great Depression was not just an American problem. It was, in fact, a global crisis, and was probably one of the driving forces behind Nazi Germany’s motivation for a global war. While I will leave the “transitional period” that was Germany between the World Wars for a different discussion, it is important to realize just how World War II helped pull America out of the Depression for good.

As Americans braced for what they had hoped would be an avoidable war, they re-upped their support for the most consistent thing they had known for the past decade: FDR. When the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor, they did more than send “The Greatest Generation” to the shores of Europe and the islands of the Pacific, they reunited our people behind a common effort. And while America saved the world from tyranny, fascism, and the atrocities of the Axis, World War II saved America from the depths of despair. We were reinvented in the 1940s, and the United States of America was once again alive and well. After the war, we never looked back.

Sadly, after being elected to serve a fourth term, Roosevelt died suddenly from a brain aneurysm on April 12, 1945. He never witnessed the end of the greatest war the world has ever known…one that he helped win.

FDR had much to do with America’s position as the leader of the free world today. When he spoke of us as “the great arsenal of democracy,” many didn’t realize that Roosevelt wasn’t confining our role strictly to the defeat of Adolph Hitler. He was extending John Winthrop’s vision of the New World as a “shining city upon a hill,” and as a beacon of freedom for the rest of mankind. It’s too bad so many have forgotten what that is all about… 

Notable Quotations: “Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself; nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.”

“The ablest man I ever met is the man you think you are.”

“When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on.”

“Be sincere; be brief; be seated.” (on public speaking)

“It’s a terrible thing to look over your shoulder when you are trying to lead, and find that no one is there.”

“A government can be no better than the public opinion which sustains it.”

“Democracy is not a static thing. It is an everlasting march.”

“We can afford all that we need, but we cannot afford all that we want.”

“I pledge you, I pledge myself, to a ‘new deal’ for the American people.”

“To some generations much is given. Of others much is expected. This generation of Americans has a rendezvous with destiny.”

“We (the United States) must be the great arsenal of democracy.”

“A just war in the long run is far better for a man’s soul than the most prosperous peace.”

“In the future days, which we seek to make secure, we look forward to a world founded upon four essential human freedoms. The first is freedom of speech and expression–everywhere in the world. The second is freedom of every person to worship God in his own way–everywhere in the world. The third is freedom from want–…everywhere in the world. The fourth is freedom from fear–…anywhere in the world.”

“We would rather die on our feet than live on our knees.”

“The first twelve years are the hardest.” (on being President)

“Yesterday, December 7^th, 1941, a date which will live in infamy…” (following the attack on Pearl Harbor; read the full speech by clicking here)

Read FDR’s First Inaugural Address by clicking here.

#2: Franklin D. Roosevelt

PRESIDENTIAL RANKINGS & REVIEWS SO FAR: 

#1:

#2: Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1933-April 1945)

#3: Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865)

#4: Ronald Reagan (1981-1989)

#5: James Madison (1809-1817)

#6: Thomas Jefferson (1801-1809)

#7: Andrew Jackson (1829-1837)

#8: Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt (1901-1909)

#9: Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961)

#10: James Monroe (1817-1825)

#11: Harry S. Truman (1945-1953)

#12: John F. Kennedy (1961-1963)

#13: Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921)

#14: James K. Polk (1845-1849)

#15: Lyndon B. Johnson (1963-1969)

#16: George W. Bush (2001-2009)

#17: John Adams (1797-1801)

#18: William McKinley (1897-1901)

#19: William Taft (1909-1913)

#21/20: Grover Cleveland (1885-89/1893-97)

#22: George H.W. Bush (1989-1993)

#23: Herbert Hoover (1929-1933)

#24: Martin Van Buren (1837-1841)

#25: John Quincy Adams (1825-1829)

#26: Rutherford B. Hayes (1877-1881)

#27: Gerald Ford (1974-1977)

#28: Calvin Coolidge (1923-1929)

#29: Zachary Taylor (March 1849-July 1850)

#30: Benjamin Harrison (1889-1893)

#31: Chester Arthur (1881-1885)

#32: Jimmy Carter (1977-1981)

#33: John Tyler (1841-1845)

#34: Ulysses S. Grant (1869-1877)

#35: Millard Fillmore (1850-1853)

#36: Franklin Pierce (1853-1857)

#37: James Buchanan (1857-1861)

#38: Richard Nixon (1969-1974)

#39: Bill Clinton (1993-2001)

#40: Warren Harding (March 1921-August 1923)

#41: Andrew Johnson (1865-1869)

#42*: James Garfield (March 1881-September 1881)

#43*: William Henry Harrison (March 1841-April 1841)