FIRST, I AM DOING WHAT ANY SUCH LIST COMPILER SHOULD DO IF THEY ARE TRYING TO BE AS OBJECTIVE AS POSSIBLE: I am omitting the most recent presidents because of the way emotion (and hysteria in some cases) can color perceptions of them. Presidential rankings lists which go all the way up to the present year are used simply as partisan political propaganda, not as true assessments.
ABRAHAM LINCOLN
FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT
GEORGE WASHINGTON
THEODORE ROOSEVELT Continue reading
Filed under Neglected History, opinion
As Presidents Day Weekend continues here’s another seasonal post from Balladeer’s Blog. This item looks at the three former presidents who occupied other United States federal government positions after their years in the White House.
WILLIAM HOWARD TAFT
Gang Affiliation: Republican
Post-Presidency Office: Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
Comment: In July of 1921, President Warren G. Harding took time out from letting his criminal cronies run the country to appoint former President Taft as the new Chief Justice.
Among the Associate Justices serving on the Supreme Court when Taft took the position were three of the legends of the Court – Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr, Louis Brandeis and Willis Van Devanter. (I like to think that when the other Justices dissented from a Willis Van Devanter opinion those dissents would start with the words “Whatchoo talkin’ ’bout, Willis?” But I’m kind of weird.) Continue reading
Filed under humor, Neglected History, opinion
Every Presidents Day, Democrat media outlets release their hilariously biased lists ranking the presidents – lists compiled by Democrats who call themselves “historians.” (LMAO) Remember, the past decades have seen Democrats drive most non-Democrats from the “educational” profession.
Democrats like to pretend those prejudiced historians’ opinions carry more weight than the opinions of other people as part of their overall philosophy that everyone must bow to so-called “experts.” Remember, Democrats idiotically think someone has to be a biologist to define what a woman is as another example of their “Only experts who subscribe to The Party’s talking points should be listened to” approach.
I’m presenting my own ranking of the presidents in this blog post, but obviously people are free to disregard it as readily as they disregard all other such lists. These lists are fun conversationally, but none of them – including mine – have any relevance in the real world.
FIRST, I AM DOING WHAT ANY SUCH LIST COMPILER SHOULD DO IF THEY ARE SUPPOSEDLY TRYING TO BE AS OBJECTIVE AS POSSIBLE: I am omitting the most recent presidents because of the way emotion (and hysteria in some cases) can color perceptions of them. Presidential rankings lists which go all the way up to the present year are used simply as partisan political propaganda, not as true assessments.
Here is my ranking of U.S. presidents: Continue reading
Filed under opinion
It’s Presidents Day, so here are some sarcastic takes on the more recent presidents, with both political parties shown the irreverence they deserve.
DWIGHT EISENHOWER
Character Type: Well-meaning but befuddled sitcom grandfather.
Military Service: World War One and World War Two
Motto: “FOOORE!” (Remember, the traditional cry as you’re teeing off in golf? Oh, never mind!)
Nickname: Uncle Milty
Pro: Knew enough to distrust Richard Nixon long before it became the national pastime.
Con: Was the first president to pronounce nuclear as “nucular”.
JOHN F KENNEDY
Character Type: Rich playboy who disdained both Liberals and Conservatives and played by his own rules.
Military Service: World War Two
Motto: “Thank God for television!”
Nickname: FDR
Pro: The man was shrewd enough to distrust both liberals and conservatives equally. I can’t praise that attitude highly enough given our present circumstances.
Con: I can’t find out what happened to this guy. Anybody hear anything? Continue reading
Filed under humor, Neglected History, opinion, Presidential Rap Sheets
Today is Presidents Day, so here are several articles about America’s executive branch.
AMERICAN PRESIDENTS FROM EISENHOWER TO TRUMP – Be forewarned that my takes on U.S. Presidents can offend members of both major parties since I’m an Independent Voter. Anyway, don’t try accusing me of belonging to either party. I go after both sides’ presidents. Click HERE.
U.S. PRESIDENTS FROM WASHINGTON ONWARD – If you want takes on our presidents from the very beginning this is the post for you. Click HERE.
VICE PRESIDENTS: JOKES ABOUT THESE ULTIMATE SECOND BANANAS – Prefer to see jokes about America’s various Vice Presidents instead? Click HERE.
THE FOUR MOST INCOMPETENT PRESIDENTS IN HISTORY – There are two Republicans and two Democrats on the list. Click HERE.
1912: BATTLE OF THE THREE PRESIDENTS – My take on the 1912 election, which pitted Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft against each other. Click HERE.
FIVE MOST UNQUALIFIED PRESIDENTS IN HISTORY – This post does not go by how these presidents performed in office, just their levels of experience before the presidency. Click HERE. Continue reading
Filed under LIBERALS AND CONSERVATIVES, Neglected History, opinion
Independent Voter site Balladeer’s Blog is happy to report that America’s organized crime gangs called the Democrat and Republican Parties continue to enhance de facto Third Party President Donald Trump’s status as a folk hero! They doctored videotape “evidence,” they violated the Constitution by trying to impeach a president after they told us he was out of office AND they tried to pretend that the January 6th protests over vote fraud and other issues from the forever tainted 2020 election were “an insurrection.” LMAO.
Remember, I’m a former Democrat who spent years of my life around them and trust me, Democrats feel nothing but contempt for the Capitol Building and also feel contempt for people who DO revere the Capitol Building and its “symbolism” so it was especially nauseating to hear them act like they cared about anything except political theater with their absurd overreaction to the events of January 6th.
At any rate, instead of letting Trump peter out into a spent force the Democrats decided to make him even MORE of a martyr and a figure of hopeful defiance for the working class and the poor by trying this idiotic impeachment attempt.
With his image as a maverick populist hero who fights America’s corrupt politicians cemented, here’s another revisiting of the blog post I wrote when Trump first won in 2016: Continue reading
Filed under humor, LIBERALS AND CONSERVATIVES, Neglected History, opinion
Happy Presidents Day Weekend! Balladeer’s Blog’s seasonal posts continue with this look at the presidential election of 1912.
I won’t bury this item in unnecessary detail to the point where it becomes boring. My emphasis will be on its three-way battle’s relevance to us today.
DEMOCRAT: Woodrow Wilson, the victor. To this very day many Republicans blame Wilson for starting the country on its path toward all the things they don’t like.
They ignore the fact that their own party’s movers and shakers of the time spitefully ensured Wilson’s victory by refusing to accept the popular Theodore Roosevelt as the Republican candidate.
That drove him to the Third Party called the Progressive Party, thus splitting the anti-Wilson vote in such a way that enabled the Democrat to win.
PROGRESSIVE: Former Republican President Theodore Roosevelt had come out of retirement to run again because he was thoroughly disenchanted with his hand-picked successor, incumbent Republican President William Howard Taft.
The reason? Theodore felt that Taft was undoing the few inroads that he (Theodore) had made against the moneyed rich pig class. Republican tycoons of the time often expressed their feeling that Teddy was a traitor to his class – an accusation that they would REALLY overuse against Theodore’s Democrat cousin Franklin Roosevelt decades later. Continue reading
Filed under Neglected History, opinion
With President’s Day coming here’s a look at some of the people who proved pivotal to the administrations of the Presidents of the United States. Many of those Secretaries may not be household names here in the 21st Century but they would definitely stand out on any staff. Here is an examination of sixteen such figures in chronological order.
Figures like James G Blaine, William Seward, and Henry Kissinger are so well-known that they are not included on this list.
1. TIMOTHY PICKERING (1795-1800)
Served under: Presidents George Washington and John Adams
Noted for: Conspiring with Alexander Hamilton to undermine some of the policies of the Washington and Adams administrations. When Adams discovered this he ordered Pickering to resign, but Pickering refused, forcing Adams to fire him. Pickering remains the only Secretary of State to officially be fired by the President.
2. HENRY CLAY (1825-1829)
Served under: President John Quincy Adams
Noted for: Fighting a duel with Senator John Randolph, one of Clay’s critics who felt he had struck a “corrupt bargain” with Adams to get this prized cabinet position. Also for completing the first commerce treaties between the young United States and the various nations in Scandinavia and Latin America.
3. JOHN FORSYTH (1834-1841)
Served under: Presidents Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren
Noted for: Obtaining long-disputed reparations from France for U.S. commercial losses suffered during the Napoleonic Wars. Also for threatening to resign early in Van Buren’s administration before his relationship with the new president improved. Continue reading
Filed under Neglected History
As Presidents Day Weekend draws to a close here’s one last seasonal post from Balladeer’s Blog. This item looks at the three former presidents who occupied other United States federal government positions after their years in the White House.
WILLIAM HOWARD TAFT
Gang Affiliation: Republican
Post-Presidency Office: Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
Comment: In July of 1921, President Warren G Harding took time out from letting his criminal cronies run the country to appoint former President Taft as the new Chief Justice.
Among the Associate Justices serving on the Court when Taft took the position were three of the legends of the Court – Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr, Louis Brandeis and Willis Van Devanter (insert your own “Whatchoo talkin’ ’bout, Willis?” joke here). Continue reading
Filed under Neglected History
It’s Presidents Day Weekend! Here are some of Balladeer’s Blog’s takes on the more recent presidents.
DWIGHT EISENHOWER
Character Type: Well-meaning but befuddled sitcom grandfather.
Military Service: World War One and World War Two
Motto: “FOOORE!” (Remember, the traditional cry as you’re teeing off in golf? Oh, never mind!)
Nickname: Uncle Milty
Pro: Knew enough to distrust Richard Nixon long before it became the national pasttime.
Con: Was the first president to pronounce nuclear as “nucular”. Continue reading
Filed under humor, LIBERALS AND CONSERVATIVES, Neglected History, opinion
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