List of presidential rankings

Presidential rankings according to 65 historians and professional observers of the presidency surveyed by the cable channel C-SPAN. Participants ranked each president by 10 leadership attributes.

President: 2009 rank, 2000 rank

Abraham Lincoln: 1, 1

George Washington: 2, 3

Franklin D. Roosevelt: 3, 2

Theodore Roosevelt: 4, 4

Harry S. Truman: 5, 5

John F. Kennedy: 6, 8

Thomas Jefferson: 7, 7

Dwight D. Eisenhower: 8, 9

Woodrow Wilson: 9, 6

1. Other political news of note
   1. Military shrinks in size, scope under Obama

      In two major speeches, President Obama signaled a scaling back of drone attacks and a more targeted approach to fighting terrorism. Add recent budget cuts, and it's clear the military is in for a serious downsizing.

   2. Obama challenges Naval Academy graduates to help restore trust in institutions
   3. Republicans' 'Mad Lib' IRS controversy
   4. Obama reframes rules of engagement on terrorism
   5. IRS official Lerner placed on leave

Ronald Reagan: 10, 11

Lyndon B. Johnson: 11, 10

James K. Polk: 12, 12

Andrew Jackson: 13, 13

James Monroe: 14, 14

Bill Clinton: 15, 21

William McKinley: 16, 15

John Adams: 17, 16

George H.W. Bush: 18, 20

John Quincy Adams: 19, 19

James Madison: 20, 18

Grover Cleveland: 21, 17

Gerald R. Ford: 22, 23

Ulysses S. Grant: 23, 33

William Howard Taft: 24, 24

Jimmy Carter: 25, 22

Calvin Coolidge: 26, 27

Richard M. Nixon: 27, 25

James A. Garfield: 28, 29

Video: Lincoln's legacy impacts President Obama Zachary Taylor: 29, 28

Benjamin Harrison: 30, 31

Martin Van Buren: 31, 30

Chester A. Arthur: 32, 32

Rutherford B. Hayes: 33, 26

Herbert Hoover: 34, 34

John Tyler: 35, 36

George W. Bush: 36, NA

Millard Fillmore: 37, 35

Warren G. Harding: 38, 38

William Henry Harrison: 39, 37

Franklin D. Pierce: 40, 39

Andrew Johnson: 41, 40

James Buchanan: 42, 41