MARCH 4th – AT 9:14 A.M. ET:  This is an important day in American history.  March 4th, up through FDR's first term, was the day we inaugurated new presidents.  We changed the date to January 20th with FDR's second inauguration in 1937. 

The date prompts us to recall the presidents who have served since inauguration day was changed to January 20th – Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush 41, Clinton, Bush 43, Obama.

You know that's not bad.  Yes, there are some clunkers on that list – the pathetic Carter, the ethically challenged Nixon, the unspeakable Obama.  But look at the other side.  There are some very impressive presidents on that list.  I don't know of any other country that has produced leaders of such caliber (faults and all) in such a short period.  All, except Carter and Obama, were united in the belief that America is a force for good, and that our engagement in the world was a profound necessity. 

Will any of them eventually wind up on the lists of "great" presidents.  Well, Roosevelt is already there.  I think Truman qualifies, and certainly Reagan.  Eisenhower, a president whose reputation has risen steadily, probably won't make the list because of the relatively quiet era in which he served, but is now widely seen as a man of substantial intelligence and judgment.  Kennedy's tenure was tragically cut short so no judgment can be made.  Johnson, despised at the time, might come close, but his mishandling of much of the Vietnam War, will keep him off the list.  He was, though, a brilliant legislator. 

The intellectual classes love to knock America and ridicule its leaders.  But I think, on balance, we've done rather well, although one wouldn't know it looking at our situation today.

March 4, 2014