5 Presidents Who Were Worse Than Donald Trump

Let’s be real, Donald Trump’s presidency was certainly far from the best. Two impeachments, awful handling of the pandemic, and a multitude of other scandals surely left a black mark on his time in office.

That being said, calling him the worst President in history may be a bit of a stretch. His overall character aside, he has had his share of successes in office. Lowering taxes, issuing greater stability in the Middle East, and avoiding war with other countries can be seen as wins.

Sure, while he’s had more misses than he did hits and his ranking near the bottom on C-Span’s Presidential ranking is not without merit, there have been worse. Be it due to their characters or performances, these are 5 Presidents who did worse than Donald Trump.

5. William Henry Harrison

Most Presidents are remembered for their accomplishments be it good ones or bad. William Henry Harrison did not get to accomplish all that much in his 31 days in office.

America’s 9th President spent just a month in office, a good portion of which he spent unwell. It’s not nice to criticize a person just because they were sick but in Harrison’s case he did bring it upon himself somewhat.

Perhaps best known for giving the longest inauguration speech in US history, Harrison spent nearly two hours in cold and rainy weather delivering his speech of over 8000 words. He then became unwell but continued to take walks in the inhospitable weather before dying of pneumonia.

The fact that there is literally not much else to say about Harrison’s Presidency aside from the length of his inauguration speech and how quickly he died perfectly sums up his poor performance (or lack thereof).

4. John Tyler

America’s 10th President who took up office in the wake of William Henry Harrison’s death, John Tyler was the first President to not be voted into office. Unpopular with both the public and his own party, many believed that had Harrison not died, Tyler would never have become President.

Known for his ardent pro-slavery views which alienated him from abolitionist movements, Tyler was also seen as an inept leader and undeserving of the Presidency by his own party. So unpopular was Tyler that most of his cabinet resigned and attempts were made to impeach him.

Regarded as America’s first “Accidental President”, Tyler’s most memorable legacy would be establishing the precedent of having the Vice President automatically succeed a President who has died in office or resigned. This paved the way for leaders such as Lyndon Johnson and Gerald Ford.

3. Andrew Johnson

America’s 17th President, Andrew Johnson was the second Vice-President to automatically ascend to the Presidency, taking office in the wake of Abraham Lincoln’s assassination. A Southern member of the Union, Johnson was on the side that opposed slavery but was far from an abolitionist himself.

Becoming the second post-Civil War President, Johnson had the responsibility of protecting the rights of the now emancipated African Americans and also easing relations between the North and South.

Despite the abolition of slavery and the desire of many in the government to introduce Civil Rights for Black people, Johnson remained strongly against this. Johnson’s main focus was repairing relations with the white South at the expense of Black people and vetoed efforts to legislate equal rights for white people and Black people.

Johnson became the first President to be impeached and was narrowly acquitted by just one vote. With his image tarnished, Johnson completed his term and left Washington. He attempted a comeback a few years later and was elected to the Senate but died shortly after, unable to restore his reputation.

2. Warren G. Harding

America’s 29th President, Warren G. Harding himself did not think he was well suited to the role. A newspaper publisher who was able to win various political seats thanks to his charm and affability, Harding was the ideal image of a statesman. Unfortunately, his performance was anything but ideal.

Taking over from Woodrow Wilson, Harding promised to restore normalcy to America following the First World War. However, he had little idea of the direction in which he wanted to go. Harding preferred to avoid problems by any means necessary and was more determined to keep up appearances than do anything substantial.

Rather than work to bring back America to the normalcy he promised, Harding dedicated much of his time to golf, poker, and womanizing. News of his extra-marital affairs reflected poorly on him and tarnished the institution of the Presidency. Harding’s desire to avoid problems and pacify adversity also led to the Teapot Dome bribery scandal, the biggest stain of his time in office.

Warren G. Harding is a unique case of being able to separate the leader from the man. By most accounts, he was charismatic and open-minded but had little substance behind his demeanor. Unlike other Presidents, Harding remained popular as most of his scandals came out after his death.

1. James Buchanan

James Buchanan is often hailed as the worst President in US history. Unlike other Presidents, Buchanan was not seen as incompetent, undeserving, unfit, or in any way under-qualified. An accomplished lawyer with considerable political experience, it was Buchanan’s ideologies and willful inaction that have earned him this dubious distinction.

From very early on in his political career, Buchanan was very strongly in favour of slavery. At times, Buchanan actively worked to preserve the interests of slave-owning states and refused to consider the views of anti-slavery members of government.

Buchanan made no effort whatsoever to address the growing divisions in America and was very open in his support for the South. Tensions continued to brew throughout Buchanan’s time in office and he continued to stick firmly to his beliefs regardless of the ramifications.

By the time he left office, Civil War was brewing and true enough, the Union and the Confederacy would soon battle. Many blame the Civil War directly on Buchanan’s actions. If you think Trump’s ability to divide a nation was strong, it paled in comparison with James Buchanan.

A 5-hour long siege on the Capitol was nowhere near a 4-year war.

No other leader has willfully sowed as much division and disharmony in the US as James Buchanan and for that reason, he often tops the list of America’s worst presidents by a fairly significant margin.

It goes to show that for every criticism Donald Trump has received, another President seems to have done it worse. Be it through their incompetence, inaction, or their own beliefs and ideologies, these five men did more harm than good during their time in office.

Thankfully, none of them ever had access to any nuclear launch codes!