May 15, 2014
Ivan Eland doesn't think Barack Obama has been a very good president. In a new updated version of his book Recarving Rushmore: Ranking the Presidents on Peace, Prosperity, and Liberty, being published this fall, he ranks him 34th of 41 presidents rated. His further injection of the government into the health care and financial industries, his temporary government takeover of two of the three major American auto companies, his massive pork-filled fiscal stimulus bill, and his only marginal improvement over George W. Bush's abysmal record on civil liberties have all been quite disappointing and troubling. Yet despite all the recent criticism, Ivan believes that Barack Obama's foreign policy may be the best since Republican and Democratic presidents in the mid- to late-1970s.