William McKinley 1897-1901

This is an entry in my Presidential Rankings series. To see the most up to date full rankings, and where each president ranks follow the link here: Presidential Rankings William McKinley was a transitionary president, serving as the last president of the 19th century and the first president of the 20th century. McKinley was the last…

Myths of the Great Depression

There are many misconceptions about the causes of the Great Depression, especially among historians. The general consensus is that rampant speculation in the stock market and economic mismanagement by Calvin Coolidge caused the Great Depression, but the truth is quite different. The main issue is that when historians get the causes and cures of the Great Depression…

Calvin Coolidge 1923-1929

This is an entry in my Presidential Rankings series. To see the most up to date full rankings, and where each president ranks follow the link here: Presidential Rankings Calvin Coolidge became president upon the death of Warren Harding. Coolidge was visiting family in Vermont when he got word of Harding’s death and was woken out of bed…

The Myth of the Southern Strategy

It is taken as a fact by many people, that after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Republican party engaged in a racism driven “southern strategy” that started during the election of 1968. Whereas Richard Nixon did have a strategy to court southern voters, it was not based on racism, but on appealing…

The Ramblings of a College Professor

I recently came across an article written by Alan Singer titled “My 10 Worst Presidents of All-Time” that was posted on Reddit. The article was published by the Huffington Post on June 5th of 2017, which is an important fact as that timeframe is a major sticking point in my assessment of the article. Mr….

Franklin Roosevelt 1933-1945

This is an entry in my Presidential Rankings series. To see the most up to date full rankings, and where each president ranks follow the link here: Presidential Rankings Franklin Roosevelt generally ranks amongst the top presidents in polls of academics. Roosevelt was one of the most consequential and effective presidents, which earns him a lot…

Herbert Hoover 1929-1933

This is an entry in my Presidential Rankings series. To see the most up to date full rankings, and where each president ranks follow the link here: Presidential Rankings Herbert Hoover became president shortly before the 1929 stock market crash. While many historians paint a picture of Hoover as a do-nothing president who was a victim…

Brion McClanahan’s 9 Presidents Who Screwed Up America Part III

I already explained Brion McClanahan’s ranking system and critiqued his reasoning on three presidents in Part I of this series and critiqued another three presidents in Part II of the series. In this part I will continue my analysis of his book. Harry Truman McClanahan states: “His (Truman’s) decision to use atomic weapons to bring Japan to…

Martin Van Buren 1837-1841

This is an entry in my Presidential Rankings series. To see the most up to date full rankings, and where each president ranks follow the link here: Presidential Rankings Martin Van Buren was the 8th president of the United States, and Andrew Jackson’s hand-picked successor. Van Buren had served as both Secretary of State and Vice-President in the…

Andrew Jackson 1829-1837

This is an entry in my Presidential Rankings series. To see the most up to date full rankings, and where each president ranks follow the link here: Presidential Rankings Andrew Jackson rose to power by building a coalition of the Southern and Western states. This coalition controlled the politics of Jackson and his democratic party, creating…