Historians Rank Worst Presidential Blunders
A survey of presidential historians ranked the top ten presidential blunders during a weekend conference for President’s Day entitled “Presidential Moments.” So who ranked where?
1. James Buchanan for failing to avert the Civil War claiming that he did not do enough to prevent the Southern states’ secession from the Union
2. Andrew Johnson’s decision to side with Southern whites and oppose improvements in justice for Southern blacks beyond abolishing slavery3. Lyndon Johnson for allowing the Vietnam War to escalate
4. Woodrow Wilson’s refusal to compromise on the Treaty of Versailles after World War I
5. Richard Nixon’s involvement in the Watergate cover-up
6. James Madison’s failure to keep the United States out of the War of 1812 with Britain
7. Thomas Jefferson’s Embargo Act of 1807, a self-imposed prohibition on trade with Europe during the Napoleonic Wars
8. John F. Kennedy allowing the Bay of Pigs Invasion that led to the Cuban Missile Crisis
9. Ronald Reagan and the Iran-Contra Affair, the effort to sell arms to Iran and use the money to finance an armed anti-communist group in Nicaragua
10. Bill Clinton’s affair with Monica Lewinsky
The scholars noted that the Lewinsky affair “probably affected Clinton’s presidency more than it did American history and the public,” thus the reason for its tenth ranking. I must say that I am completely surprised the current president is not on the list. It is possible he was excluded from consideration since he has just under three more years left but it is not stated in the article.
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