{"id":2406,"date":"2026-06-14T09:33:40","date_gmt":"2026-06-14T09:33:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406"},"modified":"2026-06-14T09:33:40","modified_gmt":"2026-06-14T09:33:40","slug":"americas-best-president-no-readers-say-who-and-why-from-washington-to-fdr","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406","title":{"rendered":"America\u2019s best president? N&O readers say who and why, from Washington to FDR"},"content":{"rendered":"

AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.<\/p>\n

Read our AI Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n

Hello and welcome to our Under the Dome<\/b> newsletter. Happy Flag Day! I\u2019m Capitol bureau chief Dawn Vaughan<\/b>.<\/p>\n

Read more UFC Freedom 250: Date, Time, Matches and How to Watch the Event<\/a><\/p>\n

Flag Day<\/b> commemorates the day \u2014 June 14, 1777 \u2014 when the Continental Congress approved the design of a national flag, according to the Library of Congress. Symbols of our country are top of mind as we approach the United States\u2019 250th birthday on the Fourth of July.<\/p>\n

In last week\u2019s newsletter, I shared Elon Poll results about who Americans rank as the best president in U.S. history, as well as what our state\u2019s top leaders said. I also asked readers to weigh in, and you most certainly have, so I\u2019m sharing many of those reader responses today.<\/p>\n

From Franklin D. Roosevelt<\/b> to Dwight Eisenhower<\/b>, I heard from a few dozen Under the Dome readers who wanted to share their picks for the best president.<\/p>\n

Some of you have more than one favorite. And one thing I noted in your responses is that some readers listed presidents from both parties.<\/p>\n

Reader Jane Caulton<\/b> of Wake Forest told me she favors the presidents who \u201cimpacted the trajectory of the country.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Caulton, that includes George Washington<\/b>, because as the first president, \u201che established the country\u2019s expectations for the office. He strongly renounced the establishment of a monarchy and supported the people\u2019s election of an executive officer.\u201d Her list also includes Abraham Lincoln<\/b>, FDR<\/b> and Lyndon Johnson<\/b>.<\/p>\n

On Roosevelt, Caulton said \u201che led the country through what I think was its second most traumatic period. Understanding that the people\u2019s plight determined the government\u2019s stability, he advocated for policies to help common people. Barely establishing a new direction, he then faced what became the Second World War.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reader Richard Chapman<\/b> wrote: \u201cFDR hands down.\u201d More readers gave reasons they chose FDR, including pulling the country out of the Great Depression, and said that FDR should be on Mount Rushmore rather than his cousin. One reader had both FDR and Teddy Roosevelt<\/b> on their list.<\/p>\n

Reader Barbara Hamlett<\/b>\u2019s picks, ranked in order first to fifth, are Washington, Thomas Jefferson<\/b>, Lincoln, Ronald Reagan<\/b> and Donald Trump<\/b>.<\/p>\n

Read more Americans face homebuying decision as mortgage rates stay high<\/a><\/p>\n

Some readers listed them out by time period, with reader Randy Fenninger<\/b> listing Washington, Lincoln, Jefferson and FDR before his lifetime, and Barack Obama<\/b>, John F. Kennedy<\/b> and LBJ during his lifetime.<\/p>\n

Reader Carl F. Cromwell<\/b> responded with both FDR and Reagan.<\/p>\n

I also received several answers of Lincoln, who is also the top-ranked president based on Elon Poll\u2019s survey of 1,000 Americans, as well as Washington, who was the third choice in the Elon Poll. Obama was second.<\/p>\n

Reader John Davis III<\/b> wrote, \u201cwe would not have a country without Washington. And then he voluntarily stepped down.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kristin Christensen<\/b>, a reader in Raleigh, offered this perspective on the question itself of which president is \u201cbest.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe fact is absolute, no one has or ever will be \u2018the best\u2019 president of the United States. Every era has been strikingly different as to the norms of the time, the economy, war and peace, all fluctuating on different scales with laws and moral codes being the stabilizers that hopefully bring matters back to a semblance of normalcy,\u201d she wrote.<\/p>\n

Reader Jim Johnson<\/b> shared lists of both best and worst. He said the question is \u201ctimely and important in understanding our 250 history.\u201d<\/p>\n

Johnson\u2019s ranking, first to fifth best, are Harry Truman<\/b>, John Adams<\/b>, Lincoln, FDR and JFK. His opinion on the worst five are Martin Van Buren<\/b>, Andrew Johnson<\/b>, Trump, Zachary Taylor<\/b> and Woodrow Wilson<\/b>.<\/p>\n

Thanks for reading, and for responding with your choices of the best president. Here\u2019s Elon Poll\u2019s toplines and methodology<\/a> for its America250 poll.<\/p>\n

And my previous coverage:<\/p>\n

Be sure to stay up to date with our Under the Dome podcast<\/a><\/b>, too. Reach me at dvaughan@newsobserver.com or our entire politics team at dome@newsobserver.com.<\/p>\n

Read more Michael Burry buys another beaten-down forgotten fintech stock<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Under the Dome collects reader rankings and Elon Poll findings on top U.S. presidents \u2014 Lincoln, Washington, FDR and others \u2014 ahead of America\u2019s 250th birthday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2404,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2406","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-read-todays-edition"],"yoast_head":"\nAmerica\u2019s best president? N&O readers say who and why, from Washington to FDR - Durham Moving Hub<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"America\u2019s best president? N&O readers say who and why, from Washington to FDR - Durham Moving Hub\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Under the Dome collects reader rankings and Elon Poll findings on top U.S. presidents \u2014 Lincoln, Washington, FDR and others \u2014 ahead of America\u2019s 250th birthday.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Durham Moving Hub\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-14T09:33:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?p=2406#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?p=2406\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/bf1f081e7f06a3ab66052e5f6015fd85\"},\"headline\":\"America\u2019s best president? N&O readers say who and why, from Washington to FDR\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-14T09:33:40+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?p=2406\"},\"wordCount\":706,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?p=2406#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/c86a341c79c6a789ae18436335183741.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Read today's Edition\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?p=2406#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?p=2406\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?p=2406\",\"name\":\"America\u2019s best president? N&O readers say who and why, from Washington to FDR - Durham Moving Hub\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?p=2406#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?p=2406#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/c86a341c79c6a789ae18436335183741.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-14T09:33:40+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/bf1f081e7f06a3ab66052e5f6015fd85\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?p=2406#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?p=2406\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?p=2406#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/c86a341c79c6a789ae18436335183741.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/c86a341c79c6a789ae18436335183741.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":674,\"caption\":\"A statue of George Washington is seen on the grounds of the North Carolina State Capitol on Thursday, May 22, 2025, in Raleigh, N.C.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?p=2406#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"America\u2019s best president? N&O readers say who and why, from Washington to FDR\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Durham Moving Hub\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/bf1f081e7f06a3ab66052e5f6015fd85\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/durhammovinghub.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"America\u2019s best president? N&O readers say who and why, from Washington to FDR - Durham Moving Hub","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"America\u2019s best president? N&O readers say who and why, from Washington to FDR - Durham Moving Hub","og_description":"Under the Dome collects reader rankings and Elon Poll findings on top U.S. presidents \u2014 Lincoln, Washington, FDR and others \u2014 ahead of America\u2019s 250th birthday.","og_url":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406","og_site_name":"Durham Moving Hub","article_published_time":"2026-06-14T09:33:40+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/#\/schema\/person\/bf1f081e7f06a3ab66052e5f6015fd85"},"headline":"America\u2019s best president? N&O readers say who and why, from Washington to FDR","datePublished":"2026-06-14T09:33:40+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406"},"wordCount":706,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/c86a341c79c6a789ae18436335183741.jpg","articleSection":["Read today's Edition"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406","url":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406","name":"America\u2019s best president? N&O readers say who and why, from Washington to FDR - Durham Moving Hub","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/c86a341c79c6a789ae18436335183741.jpg","datePublished":"2026-06-14T09:33:40+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/#\/schema\/person\/bf1f081e7f06a3ab66052e5f6015fd85"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/c86a341c79c6a789ae18436335183741.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/c86a341c79c6a789ae18436335183741.jpg","width":1200,"height":674,"caption":"A statue of George Washington is seen on the grounds of the North Carolina State Capitol on Thursday, May 22, 2025, in Raleigh, N.C."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?p=2406#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"America\u2019s best president? N&O readers say who and why, from Washington to FDR"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/","name":"Durham Moving Hub","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/#\/schema\/person\/bf1f081e7f06a3ab66052e5f6015fd85","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/durhammovinghub.com"],"url":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2406","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2406"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2406\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2404"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2406"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2406"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/durhammovinghub.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2406"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}