Favorite and Least Favorite Political Leader

Political leaders are vital to a country as they have the greatest responsibility. They ensure that the welfare of people they lead are taken care of by being responsible and accountable at all times. They assess the distribution of resources and power, make decisions that impact positively on the people and building relations with other countries and the stakeholders of the country to propel the nation towards development. There are very few leaders with these qualities. One of these impactful leaders is Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Franklin D. Roosevelt was the 32^nd president of the United States and was in office since 1933 to 1945. President Roosevelt saw America through its most difficult time which was the great economic depression that took place between October 29^th, 1929 and 1939 (Leuchtenburg). At the start of his administration, thousands of citizens were jobless due to the collapse of the stock market. Most people in both farms and city had lost their homes due to foreclosure as they were unable to pay their mortgage anymore. However, amidst all this, Roosevelt was able to tell the citizens during his inauguration that the only thing they had to fear was fear itself due to its ability to cripple them and steal their capacity to advance moving past their shortcomings at the moment (Leuchtenburg). The fact that he could afford to inspire people at the time when they had lost hope only shows how much of a terrific leader he was.

At the date of assuming office, the banks were in a crisis as most people were rushing to withdraw their money causing some of them to crash. His first action in office was to announce the closure of banks for a while until the department of treasury could inspect the ledgers of every bank (Leuchtenburg). Those in good condition would be given grants by the treasury to continue operating, the ones on worst conditions would remain closed until they could restore. The ones that were in poor condition remained closed forever ("Franklin Roosevelt As A Leader"). The decision not only restored people’s faith in the banks but also gave the banks an opportunity to recess and evaluated where they went wrong, see what they could do to prevent it from ever happening again. The ability to make decisions that impact positively on citizens and the stakeholders of a country is an exceptional trait that not many leaders possess.

Roosevelt’s administration was characterized by critical and timely decisions that played a significant part in reviving the American economy at the time. They are the kinds of decisions that the country needed to get back on its feet. Roosevelt’s administration also saw the inclusion of the first ever lady in the Cabinet (Leuchtenburg). The administration also saw the introduction of the Social Security Act 1935 which provided pension to the retired. Roosevelt’s administration also saw the introduction The New Deal. The program saw the launch of Civil Works Administration (CWA) which provided funds to authorities like mayors and governors for construction projects like schools, park restoration bridge and several others. Other projects within the CWC like the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) lasted longer than CWC providing jobs to thousands of citizens ("Franklin Roosevelt As A Leader"). Within a year, the program had employed over two million people. Roosevelt was able to introduce and apply protective measures to prevent a depression like the one they were experiencing from ever happening again. The measures include introduction and enactment of the Social Security Act of 1935, which is there up to date, and the National Labor Relations Act of 1935 (Leuchtenburg).

His administration saw the country through the depression and help the country emerge stronger than ever before. The victory can only be said to have been achieved by the relentless dedication of a leader like Roosevelt. With no doubt, Franklin D. Roosevelt was an effective leader as he was able to revive the American economy amidst the worse economic depression the world has ever experienced.

Other than great leaders like Roosevelt in the world, we are unfortunate to have leaders who fail the country. One of the leaders is 43^rd president of the United States, George Walker Bush son of the 41st president, George Herbert Bush. Other than the war in Iraq, Bush’s administration brought the country to its feet with the recession that came as he was exiting the presidency (Gregg II). A recession is the worst thing that can happen to the economy as it affects both citizens and the case for the United States has an impact on the rest of the world. Several of the decisions made during his administration proved to be detrimental to citizens hence making him the worse president. It is in his administration that the US experienced the worse terrorist attack in history, the 9/11 attack (Yglesias).

The greatest achievement that could be attributed to Bush’s administration was The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). The Act passed into law on 8th of January 2002, was due to the concerns that the American education system was increasingly declining on its competitive ability internationally (Klein). The law increased the federal role in holding schools responsible for the success or failure academically. The law put particular focus on making sure that states and schools invigorate performance in areas such as English language learner, poor and minority children and special education. Education is an important aspect of the society hence making this the most important thing George W. Bush did to the American people.