Fake Outrage? Did Obama Claim To Be The 4th Best President Ever?
So I’m sitting here watching Morning Joe and they’re having a discussion about Obama’s supposed claim that he called himself the 4th best President ever. They are going on and on about whether or not his is the 4th best, did he leave other President’s out, and why isn’t he talking about the economy? Well, let’s take a look at the exact quote from the 60 Minutes interview:
‘The issue here is not going be a list of accomplishments. As you said yourself, Steve, you know, I would put our legislative and foreign policy accomplishments in our first two years against any president — with the possible exceptions of Johnson, F.D.R., and Lincoln — just in terms of what we’ve gotten done in modern history. But, you know, but when it comes to the economy, we’ve got a lot more work to do.’
Now, as they go to commercial Joe sarcastically says “I would never say I’m the ‘4th greatest Congressman of all-time.’”
Well Joe, neither did the President
And the right wing blogosphere has handled this with the grace and dedication to truth that you might expect:
Jim Hoft:
You have got to be kidding…
After destroying the American economy, tripling the national deficit, blowing a trillion dollars on a failed stimulus plan and nearly doubling the unemployment rate, Barack Obama told ‘60 Minutes’ last week that he considered himself the 4th best president in US history.
Unbelievable.
(Is this guy out to lunch or what?)
The Blaze:
Obama essentially declared himself the fourth best president in terms of his accomplishments.
Big Journalism:
Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your Obama. That’s because in his not so humble opinion, he ranks even higher than John F. Kennedy. Don’t feel so bad, President Kennedy. Obama also feels that his administration is better than that of Presidents Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, Jackson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Ronald Reagan to name a few.
I’m a fan of this President but calling President Obama the 4th best all time is an outrageous claim. That being said, putting his “legislative and foreign policy accomplishments” (which is the exact quote) up against nearly all of them is, in my opinion, completely fair.