No, and he’s not even in the top 10.
It should be noted that, before I continue with this answer, I want to make it completely clear that I like Obama. It’s just that he was by no means the greatest or even one of the greatest presidents in history. He never saved the country from disunion, or established America as a dominant world power, or anything else of that nature.
It should also be noted that these presidents are listed chronologically, not by how I personally view them as effective commanders in chief.
George Washington (1789–1797)
There’s a reason Mr. President is considered the father of our country. Besides being a Revolutionary War Hero, he effectively established the office of president that we know today. A couple of his achievements are:
- Set the two term precedent (which later became law with the 22nd amendment) when he stepped down after being elected to two terms because he believed that no one should be a president for life.
- Signed the Jay Treaty with Britain in 1794 which established friendly relations and trade with the British.
- Signed the Pinckney Treaty with Spain in 1795 where the Spanish agreed to open up the port of New Orleans to Americans (the so-called Right of Deposit) and agreed to abandon their claims to American territory in Southern Alabama and Mississippi (Called West Florida by the Spaniards).
- Preserved American political neutrality by refusing to help the French Republic with their wars in Europe even after the Genet Affair in 1793. His neutral foreign policy in regards to European affairs would become a critical aspect of American diplomacy for over a century until WWII.
- Appointed Alexander Hamilton as Secretary of the Treasury who established a National Bank and implemented new taxes and tariffs to help pay off our Revolutionary war debt.
Thomas Jefferson (1801–1809)
Thomas Jefferson was our third president and is best known for:
- Buying the massive Louisiana Territory from Napoleonic France for $15 million. This was the single largest peaceful acquisition of land in our history, and is arguably the single largest acquisition of territory in our history period (The Mexican Cession following the Mexican War contends for the spot). The purchase gave us New Orleans, a vital port, and doubled our national territory.
- Sending the U.S Navy to Tripolitania (Modern Libya) from 1803–1805 to retaliate against the Barbary Pirates in the area who had been raiding American ships and enslaving American sailors. While we did eventually have to pay a ransom to get our sailors back, it was a show of force by the U.S which helped cement our status as a fully sovereign power that would not be pushed around.
- Staying neutral in the Napoleonic Wars despite being a Francophile and even after incidents with the British such as the continued impressment of American sailors and the Leopard-Chesapeake Affairs of 1807.
James Monroe (1817–1825)
James Monroe was our fifth president and is known for:
- Issuing the Monroe Doctrine in 1823 which stated that any attempt by a European power to re-colonize the Western Hemisphere would face retaliation by the United States. While this was more bark than bite back in 1823, it would help to secure the Western Hemisphere as a vital part of America’s sphere of influence.
- Signing the Adams-Onis Treaty with Spain in 1819 which resulted in Spain ceding Florida to the United States and resolved border disputes between Spanish Mexico and American Louisiana.
- Establishing joint Anglo-American control of the Oregon Territory (Which was then also the American Pacific Northwest and British Columbia) which prevented war and resolved the territorial dispute over the area at least temporarily.
- Supporting the Missouri Compromise of 1820 which prevented potential disunion and Civil War over the spread of slavery.
- Supporting the colonization of Liberia which, while colonization is never a good thing, would later become a vital source of American rubber and a strategic ally in West Africa for the United States when it became independent in 1847.
James K. Polk (1845–1849)
James K. Polk was our 11th President and is known for:
- Obtaining the Mexican Cession land from Mexico in the Mexican-American War of 1846–1848. This was the single largest acquisition of territory gained through war we ever obtained, and contends for the single largest acquisition of territory period with the Louisiana Purchase.
- Resolving the dispute over the Oregon Territory with Britain by agreeing to split the territory between the two countries along the 49th Parallel (Which is now the Western border between the U.S and Canada).
- Helping to establish the Independent Treasury in 1846 which effectively replaced the Second National Bank which was killed by Andrew Jackson.
Abraham Lincoln (1861–1865)
Abraham Lincoln, our 16th President, is known for one thing and one thing only: He preserved the union. When the South seceded, he demanded that they be re-integrated into the country by force if necessary (which is what inevitably happened). Even when the Civil War was looking bad for the Union after battles like Bull Run, Fredericksburg, Cold Harbor, and many more, he never relented. He committed everything the country had towards the effort to preserve the union. His unrelenting nature during the war is reason enough to elevate him to the status of one of the greatest presidents in American history. The 13th Amendment was also ratified with his backing in 1865, formally banning slavery.
It should also be noted that his Emancipation Proclamation in January 1863 only “freed” the slaves in Confederate held territory (I.e, territory he had no control over at the time) and was more to show that Confederate secession was illegal than anything else.
Theodore Roosevelt (1901–1909)
Theodore Roosevelt was our 26th president and is known for:
- Supporting a revolution in Colombia in 1903 which resulted in Panama seceding from the country so that we could then build the Panama Canal to connect the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans in Central America.
- Busting numerous large monopolies called trusts such as J.P Morgan’s Northern Securities Trust in 1903 which was then split into three smaller railroad companies.
- Dispatching the Great White Fleet in 1907 on a global tour in order to show off American naval power.
- Ending the Anthracite Coal Strike of 1902 by personally negotiating a compromise between labor and business (A major turning point because business would always be favored over the workers by the President prior to this).
- Issuing the Roosevelt Corollary after the Second Venezuelan Crisis of 1903 which stated that the U.S had a right to intervene in the affairs of any nation in the Western Hemisphere if it suited American interests. This was used to further solidify the area as a part of the American Sphere of Influence.
- Supporting regulations like the Pure Food and Drug Act which established the Food and Drug Administration which ensured that products for consumer consumption were labelled correctly and were not contaminated in any way.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1933–1945)
Franklin Delano Roosevelt was our 32nd President and is best known for:
- Helping to soften the blow of the Great Depression by ordering a bank holiday and establishing programs such as the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Works Progress Administration to at least get people back to work.
- Leading America through WWII and laying the groundwork for America’s role as a major world power.
- Issuing Executive Order 8802 which banned discrimination in the National Defense Industry.
Harry S. Truman (1945–1953)
Harry Truman was our 33rd President and is best known for:
- Dropping the Atomic Bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, ending the Second World War decisively and avoiding a bloody and costly invasion of Japan.
- Issuing the Truman Doctrine, which stated the need to contain Communism where it was and not actively try to exterminate Communism so as to avoid another World War.
- Rebuilding Western Europe with the Marshall Plan which provided $12 billion (What would now be $100 billion) to the war torn area. This solidified U.S influence over the area and prevented the spread of communism there (A similar scenario played out in Japan).
- Issuing Executive Order 9981 in 1948 which banned segregation in the Armed Forces.
- Aiding anti-communist forces in Greece defeat the communists in their Civil War in 1949 and provided money to the Turkish government, securing the area for U.S influence.
- Aiding South Korea in their war against North Korea from 1950–1953.
- Playing a vital role in the establishment of NATO which further cemented U.S influence in Western Europe.
- Airdropping supplies and food into West Berlin following a Soviet blockade of the city in an attempt to force the West to give up on West Berlin. The Soviets eventually gave up and lifted the blockade.
Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953–1961)
Dwight Eisenhower was our 34th President and is best known for:
- Ending the Korean War in 1953 by signing an armistice still in effect today.
- Supporting the build up of America’s nuclear arsenal in order to counter Soviet buildup.
- Issuing the Eisenhower Doctrine which made securing the Middle East from Soviet influence a top priority.
- Supporting the Federal Aid Highway Act, which in effect established the Interstate Highway System that makes driving from one end of the country to another incredibly easy.
- Sending the U.S army to Little Rock, Arkansas in 1957 to ensure that the schools there were being racially integrated following Brown v. B.O.E in 1954.
Ronald Reagan (1981–1989)
Ronald Reagan was our 40th President and is best known for:
- Bluffing to the Soviets about the Star Wars program where Reagan tricked the Soviets into spending tons of money into trying to counter the non-existent program we had developed.
- Issuing the Reagan Doctrine, which focused on aiding groups in communist countries with the aim of rolling back communist expansion in countries such as Afghanistan, Nicaragua, and Angola.
- Invading Grenada in 1983 to prevent communism from spreading to the country and to save American college students stuck on the island.
- Restoring a sense of national pride that had been effectively eroded by the traumatic events of the 1960’s and 1970’s.
- Cutting taxes and regulations to help kickstart the economy again after the stagflation of the 1970’s.
Now, with all of these great presidents, I must ask you: Can Obama really compete with any of these giants?
