Awful Leaders that can Top Trump [in awfulness]

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > C-SPAM > Awful Leaders that can Top Trump [in awfulness]

Nebakenezzer: Sep 13, 2005; The Mote in God's Eye

Let's assume for a moment, friends, that some of the rumors about Trump and Russian involvement are false or partially a deliberate attempt by the Russians to sew mistrust in government. He's still terrible in a way that is sorta mindblowing for me. He's the worst president I've ever experienced, and save the invention of pills that cure narcissistic personality disorder and senile dementia, it looks a lock to be one of the bottom presidents in history.

So I was gonna make a thread for arguing about who was the worst president, but I thought even the bad presidents your Buchanans, your Pierces, your Johnson the Firsts, it's *still not bad enough.* So feel free to compare Trump to crazy popes, Roman Emperors who thought they were Hercules, demented kings, Chinese Emperors who shat themselves, Ottoman rulers who were only fit to sit on, etc.

Collateral Damage posted:

I'm pretty sure the objectively worst president was Harrison who managed to give himself pneumonia during the inauguration and die less than a month into his term.

mlmp08 posted:

His death did less damage to the nation than some other presidents' lives did.

Mortabis posted:

no, worst president is a tie between Jackson and FDR. No contest. (Best was Coolidge)

mlmp08 posted:

FDR is pretty cool, man.

MikeCrotch posted:

Hahahahahahahaha How The gently caress Is Pneumonia Real Hahahaha Nigga Put On A Coat Like Nigga Just Go Inside Haha

bewbies posted:

what

Also it was Buchanan.

...possibly grant

Nebakenezzer posted:

I have to suggest Johnson (the first) to displace Grant, or maybe Taylor (or is it Tyler, always get those names confused.) Harrison's VP and subsequently President who's views on states rights caused him to constantly veto legeslation from his own party? If I remember correctly at one point his entire cabinet came into his office and quit?

Franklin Pierce also really bad, but he meant well and was mostly hapless - when your son dies right in front of you during a train crash in your ride to your inauguration and it breaks your beloved wife's mind, and your cabinet is filled with stumblefuck idiots for political reasons and they blow the legitimate chance Cuba had at becoming states in the USA, when your attempts to democratically solve the issue of Kansas and it leads to a mini civil war between Slavers and abolitionists, it might be time to start drinking 19th century style.

Nebakenezzer has issued a correction as of 22:20 on May 16, 2017

# ¿ May 16, 2017 22:14

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# ¿ Apr 29, 2024 09:13

Nebakenezzer: Sep 13, 2005; The Mote in God's Eye

Mortabis posted:

The case against Jackson is pretty straight forward: trail of tears, getting rid of the national bank.

I don't think anybody gonna disagree with you that Jackson was bad. I was gonna ask you about if you thought he was better than Buchanan (sided with the south over the nation he was president of) or Franklin Pierce the lessor (there is no greater) but your top pick is Coolidge, so I'm thinking you are assessing these dudes as the less they do, the better. Maybe William Harry Henderson has finally found a defender?

I've sorta lead you into the lion's den here, so I'm not gonna make a federal case out of it, but you do realize that when historians play the game of top Presidents, it's always Lincoln, Washington, FDR, right? Even Reagan was a huge admirer of FDR, even if he disagreed with the turn that politics took.

Badger of Basra posted:

grant was a good president and if you think he was bad you're just buying into lost causer bullshit

US Grant was a fuckin' awesome dude and a great American but I think he made a poor President. Nixon in contrast was a pretty good president but was a weird neurotic dude

I can't pick the worst President, as the ones at the bottom are all contestants on a reality game show, they all disgust me for different reasons. Tyler stood by his dumb, dumb principles and was soon reviled by everyone, Johnson went crazy and started trying to befriend the white house mice, Harding was like GW Bush a guy who embodied the peter principle and who's corrupt underlings were trying to sell the oil reserve of the Navy. Pierce had the midas touch in reverse: everything turned to poo poo.

# ¿ May 17, 2017 02:01

Nebakenezzer: Sep 13, 2005; The Mote in God's Eye

BrutalistMcDonalds posted:

I think this has already happened but the Pope in Question was Clint Eastwood

# ¿ May 17, 2017 14:58

Nebakenezzer: Sep 13, 2005; The Mote in God's Eye

https://krugman.blogs.nytimes.com/2...ogs&region=Body

quote:

People inside the White House also called the new Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue. Perdue had only been confirmed, like, a day or two earlier. And they called him in, [saying], �You need to come over here now! You need to! He�s about to withdraw from NAFTA.�

So Sonny Perdue literally asked his staff to draw up a map of the bits of America that had voted for Donald Trump and the bits of America that do well from exporting grain and corn through NAFTA. [The map] showed how these two areas often overlap. So he went in, said to Donald Trump, �Actually, Trump America, your voters, they do pretty well out of NAFTA.� And the president said, �Oh. Then maybe I won�t withdraw from NAFTA.�

# ¿ May 17, 2017 15:22

Nebakenezzer: Sep 13, 2005; The Mote in God's Eye

P-Mack posted:

at running the country sure, at seizing and maintaining power no, that's the distinction I was trying to make

It's a good distinction to draw

What with Trump I was thinking of "pig-fuckingly incompetent" simply because well that's the most entertaining one, but there's also leaders who "did lasting horrible poo poo to their country" or "morally bad".

# ¿ May 17, 2017 17:49

Nebakenezzer: Sep 13, 2005; The Mote in God's Eye

QuoProQuid posted:

When you say "awful," do you mean in terms of their agenda or their effectiveness? There are world leaders alive today, like Putin, whom I would consider worse than Trump because they are masters at manipulating the levers of power to promote abhorrent policies. I can also think of a number of historical leaders who were well-intentioned, but possessed an even worse understanding of the limitations of their power than Trump.

The former option is going to get you answers like Andrew Jackson who committed genocide against the natives but managed to completely remake the American political system in his image.

The latter option is going to get you answers like James Buchanan and Benjamin Harrison, the former of whom accelerated the United States' path towards civil war and the latter of whom obviously died before he could pursue an agenda.

If we can agree on some metrics, I think this could be an interesting conversation.

IMO I think we should go with the latter, since the former ~~doesn't especially play to comedy~~ would get us in a race to the bottom with a bunch of Pol Pots, Hitlers, etc and it's pretty clear while Trump aspires to that poo poo he doesn't have the abilities of a Putin or a Pinochet.

I actually think it's a bit unfair to have Harrison in, as he was a guy who gave his inauguration speech in the pouring rain, got pneumonia, and died. It's a bit like making GBS threads on James A. Garfield or something

I am grimly intrigued when you say that there were leaders who understood less about the limitations of their power because my reaction is "isn't that literally impossible?"

P-Mack posted:

Now Francisco Solano Lopez, that's top tier awful by any metric.

lol agreed

# ¿ May 17, 2017 22:51

Nebakenezzer: Sep 13, 2005; The Mote in God's Eye

chitoryu12 posted:

Harrison also ran on a platform of being a simple man's man who ate raw beef and biscuits all the time, while his opponent Van Buren was a dainty rich boy who supped on veal fricassee and fine wines. If that's true, I don't think his diet did his constitution any favors.

Harrison was the guy who's campaign promise was "log cabins and hard cider" right?

He coulda beat Hillary, anyway

# ¿ May 19, 2017 23:01

Nebakenezzer: Sep 13, 2005; The Mote in God's Eye

Agnosticnixie posted:

Trump will have to do some serious hard work at being a monster to top either Jackson or Buchanan.

In the immediate aftermath of Trump's election, even Meygan Kelly reacted with incredulous shock at a Trump flunky citing the mass internment of Japanese Citizens in World War 2 as an example of what Trump wants to do to Muslims.

Who knows what weirdness if Bannondorf gets full control

# ¿ May 20, 2017 22:39

Nebakenezzer: Sep 13, 2005; The Mote in God's Eye

Trump is planning on selling half the strategic oil reserve. :11tea:

# ¿ May 24, 2017 16:40

Nebakenezzer: Sep 13, 2005; The Mote in God's Eye

Badger of Basra posted:

why is he trying to bankrupt a bunch of fracking companies

I think the saudis said to Trump "Hey we're trying to drive down the price of oil, little help?"

And Trump is all "Sure I'll help!"

And then the Saudis are all "wow, you are change I can believe in."

e: actually Russia approved this move too so they just asked Trump to help

Nebakenezzer has issued a correction as of 02:24 on May 26, 2017

# ¿ May 26, 2017 02:22

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# ¿ Apr 29, 2024 09:13

Nebakenezzer: Sep 13, 2005; The Mote in God's Eye

So has there ever been a president who sided with foreigners over his own nation because that's how dumb he was?

Has there ever been a president who literally didn't understand the concept of trade, and said that another nation selling things in America was "very bad" and vowed to stop them?

I guess Reagan and Bush re: cocaine to the second one

# ¿ May 26, 2017 02:30

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > C-SPAM > Awful Leaders that can Top Trump [in awfulness]