Rate The Presidents, Part I: Compare Biden and Trump on 10 Dimensions

By Tom Truth

 Are you well-informed about the two candidates for President in 2024?

How do we prepare to vote in 2024? At the beginning of 2024, there is no "go to" standard for fairly measuring the effectiveness of our presidents, and I hope that this book will get the ball rolling on that. Reading the Kindle or paperback edition of "

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ratethem21, LLC
• Release date: Jun 17, 2024
• ISBN: 9781964913230

Book preview

Rate the Presidents, Part I: Compare Biden and Trump on 10 Dimensions

Tom Truth

Copyright ©2024 Ratethem21, LLC.  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written consent from the publisher, except for brief quotations embodied in critical reviews, and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Introduction

Against stupidity, the gods themselves struggle in vain.  Friedrich Schiller, German philosopher and poet

The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good.        Samuel Johnson

The measure of a man’s real character is what he would do if he knew he would never be found.    Thomas Babington Macaulay

How Do We Take the Measure of a President?

According to John Dickerson, the presidency is the Hardest Job in the World, the title of his 2020 book. Each presidency is unique, shaped by different times and different issues. Each president plays a wide variety of roles, responding dynamically to the events of the time. They serve as managers, leaders, facilitators, listeners, empathizers, public speakers, persuaders, and negotiators. There are myriad problems, decisions, issues, crises and disasters, epidemics and sometimes pandemics that strike almost everywhere in the world. Effectively navigating diplomatic relations with our neighbors, and the global community demands a combination of intellect and tact to consistently represent the best interests of our country. 

Communication methods and channels are different in the 21st century. In a true democracy, every citizen bears the responsibility to be well-informed when exercising their voting rights. It is possible that we will have the same presidential matchup in 2024 that we had in 2020. Americans have to be protected from foreign adversaries, and their attempts to corrupt our elections. In the upcoming 2024 election, we will also need protection from potential threats posed by internal terrorists and extremists.

In Part I of this book, you will have a chance to conduct a fair comparison of the respective competencies of our two most recent presidents. You will have an opportunity to rate both presidents on 10 dimensions, using the common 5-star rating system. Part II of this book is anticipated to be released in the spring of 2024, introducing 11 additional dimensions, and their related competencies. 

Have we ever had two presidents and their administrations who are polar opposites in nearly every respect before Biden and Trump? Not in my lifetime. Our former president, Donald J. Trump faced impeachment twice, indictment and arrest four times, in 4 different jurisdictions, with a total of 91 Felony counts—a historical first for any president. No other president has ever been indicted. 

Trump’s legacy is set to be a lasting example of presidential misdeeds. In 2024, we will see how his various court appearances play out. On the other hand, the current president Joe Biden, represents a more typical president, who has never been impeached or indicted for any crime.

Over nearly 250 years, our nation has improved and refined our election practices and procedures. We’re very good at it. Our elections have never been so secure. Patriotic Republicans, Independents and Democrats have worked together to run elections, protect elections, and count votes. Regrettably, the increasing numbers of threats against the lives and families of honest election workers have led many fair-minded people to resign from their roles in 2024! Choosing and replacing people for these crucial positions will undoubtedly pose a significant challenge. 

Franklin Roosevelt kept our nation’s spirits up during the Great Depression, with his uplifting fireside chats. He provided his vision, gave ongoing status reports, and encouragement to the country. Like other presidents, he had strengths and weaknesses. Most of our presidents demonstrated intelligence, foresight, and a commitment to prioritizing the needs of the country before their own political parties, ideologies or personal needs. Without these presidents’ efforts, our country would not be the leader of the free world today. While none were perfect, they each assessed needs, often collaborated, and took appropriate action, or led others to do so.

There have never been so many sources of information and misinformation available to anyone, since the internet came into prominence in the 1990s. Unfortunately, many of them cannot be verified, nor should they be trusted. We need a variety of honest, truthful news sources, the ones that quickly correct any mistake.  

Verifying facts and opinions becomes more robust when using multiple sources. From viewer-and listener-funded outlets like Public Service Television (PBS), and National Public Radio (NPR), to various corporate TV stations, radio stations and print media, there is a diverse array of news sources available. A comprehensive list of sources that can be used for verification of facts is provided at the end of each chapter. 

Most Americans pay attention to all kinds of measurements. We count votes, and measure inches of snow in most of the USA. Some of us count the number of miles we walk. We measure the distance of home runs, how long a golf ball is driven, sales, births, deaths, and retirement savings. If you work for someone else, your performance will be evaluated. Did you increase sales? By how much? If you wait on tables in a restaurant, your tips are a type of evaluation by the customers you served. 

Before now, no straightforward or simple way to compare presidents existed. Evaluating the performance of a US president is a complex task. That is why we need a more objective yardstick to compare them. This book provides that by offering a structured rating system at the end of every chapter. At the beginning of 2024, there is no go to standard for fairly measuring the effectiveness of our presidents, and I hope that this book will get the ball rolling on that.  

There will always be measures that a president would like us to use, and measures that they do not want us to use. The yearly number of gun deaths in the U.S.A. continues to remain alarmingly high as it continues to number in the tens of thousands every year. Our country has more gun deaths than the rest of the world combined—by a large measure—creating a massive challenge. However, the donations and investments made by the NRA, to many Representatives and Senators remove any possibility of passing major legislation that we desperately need to significantly reduce mass shootings, murders and suicides.

We sometimes talk to family and friends about our leaders and misleaders. Sadly, too many people say they refuse to talk about politics", or the attempted overthrow of our government on January 6th, 2021. Families and friends, including my own, have separated from us because they have been misinformed and indoctrinated with falsehoods, repeated over, and over, and over, 24/7. 

We witnessed fellow Americans who were influenced and indoctrinated to believe baseless claims of corruption in our voting processes, without any evidence!  They went to the U.S. Capitol on January 6th to overturn the will of the American people, and to overthrow the US Government, while chanting: USA, USA. Shockingly, the same crowd also chanted: Hang Mike Pence, Hang Mike Pence, after building gallows outside the U.S. Capitol on that day. Over a thousand of these insurrectionists have been arrested so far. Hundreds of these people have been convicted, and sit in prison. 

Why did I write this book? My professional career as a CEO, President, Director, and Corporate Trainer, and Consultant, provided me with extensive experience in evaluating executives, trainers, consultants, students, and participants—for over 40 years. Throughout my career, I, too, have been subject to evaluation by clients, participants and students. I learned much from almost all of them. 

After many decades on this planet, I recognized the urgency of helping people comprehend the distinctions between a professional president and one with dictator-like aspirations. This is particularly important in the context of the upcoming 2024 election. The book serves as