How the Scholars Rate the Presidents

President Franklin D. Roosevelt held his No. 1 position in the latest poll of historians and political scientists on the performance of the nation's chief executives. The poll, conducted periodically by Siena College, was last conducted in 2002. President Theodore Roosevelt moved up a notch to the second spot, edging out President Lincoln. This is the first poll since the end of George W. Bush's presidency, and he landed in 39th place, just making the bottom five list (and helping President Fillmore leave the bottom five).