Quote:
Originally posted by Dostoevsky
You know what guys, I don't want to start any name calling or other nastiness here but....
I would just like to point out how different my opinion of FDR is from yours. I see FDR as being the root of many of our problems today. Without having any textbooks or notes in front of me let me explain why.
First of all Roosevelt's fiscal actions did not pull us out of the depression, they actually made it worse. The War pulled us out.
2-Roosevelt's New Deal programs paved the way for many of the publicly funded programs that bleed tax payers dry today. Tax rates skyrocketed with him in office and have been high ever since. I once saw a graph of the rates and couldn't believe how low the federal rate was before FDR.
3-Before FDR, the states had lots of political power. FDR changed this by making the states dependant on the federal government through the power of the purse. This transition paved the way for the federal government to become more intrusive in our lives.
I could go on but I'm tired and I know that no one in here will read this objectively anyway so what's the use?
My choice for president would be any one of the Framers of our Constitution. Those guys really understood what it took to protect private citizens and allow them to live their lives without interference from government and politicians. 200+ years later that document is still holding up against the slow but persistent erosion of freedom that we allow our elected leaders to facilitate. All politicians today are pretty much the same to me. I suppose I'm a reactionary but I wish government would play a minimalist role and leave people the hell alone. This is of course, why I don't like FDR. I'm not trying to start a battle with the FDR camp, I just want to voice my opinion.
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I agree, I had to do a paper on the man and his achievements a few years back this was the same conclusion I came to. Although I am a huge suporter of a minamilist government, so I supose that I am biased. Despite that bias; however, I don't think there is much question that it was the war and not FDR that pulled us out. Again like Dostoevsky I understand this is all subjective I could very well be wrong.
I would pick Washington, one of the greatest men of his or any other century.