"Picking three next Presidents"

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Let's the record shows how tricky this is:


1896: William McKinley

Next: NYC Police Commissioner. Too young, too abrasive.

Next-to-next: A federal judge with no political temperament whatsoever.

Next-to-next-to-next: Some stiff egghead. Lulz.

1901: Theodore Roosevelt

Next: A nice lawyer freshly appointed as Governor-General of the Philippines. Sure he's from an important political family, but certainly not an electoral type.

Next-to-next: A political science Professor at Princeton who doesn't even hold an office.

Next-to-next-to-next: Some random Ohio state Senator.

1909: William Howard Taft

Next: Princeton University President, known in the political circles but would need some public office first.

Next-to-next: Former Lieutenant Governor of Ohio. Meh.

Next-to-next-to-next: A small town mayor from rural Massachusetts.

1912: Woodrow Wilson

Next: Former Lieutenant Governor of Ohio who just score a big publicity by delivering the keynote speech at the RNC. Still, needs higher office.

Next-to-next: Some state Senator from Massachusetts.

Next-to-next-to-next: A wealthy Quaker mining engineer with no interest in politics.

1920: Warren G. Harding

Next: His Veep, an obscure dude who, unlike good ole Warren drop dead (and who'd even think that), will be another forget Vice President.

Next-to-next: A famous humanitarian already considered a potential presidential candidate for both parties in 1920 and was just appointed Commerce Secretary. Why not?

Next-to-next-to-next: Failed Vice Presidential nominee on a ticket that just lost by the greatest landslide ever. There are some scandals too.

1923: Calvin Coolidge

Next: His Commerce Secretary and one of the most beloved men in America. Likely.

Next-to-next: Most recent failed Vice Presidential nominee struggling with polio. We don't talk about scandals anymore, but he's certainly not in condition to resume his career.

Next-to-next-to-next: An obscure failed haberdasher-turned-Missouri County Judge. Really?

1928: Herbert Hoover

Next: Freshman Governor of the largest state in the Union. Obvious candidate.

Next-to-next: The same obscure County Judge on a political machine payroll. Haha.

Next-to-next-to-next: A random Army Major.

1932: Franklin D. Roosevelt:

Next: Former Missouri County Judge as the next President? Hahahaha.

Next-to-next: Some Army Major.

Next-to-next-to-next: A rich kid from Massachusetts.

1945: Harry S. Truman:

Next: A celebrated Army General who led the allies to victory in Europe. If he wants the job it's his.

Next-to-next: A rich kid from Massachusetts-turned-war hero.

Next-to-next-to-next: A young but already quite powerful Representative from Texas.

1952: Dwight D. Eisenhower

Next: Freshman Senator from Massachusetts. Charismatic and photogenic, but way too young and inexperienced. Plus, he's a Papist!

Next-to-next: Freshman Senate Minority Leader. What a rapid rise! Certainly a dude to watch.

Next-to-next-to-next: His Vice President. Didn't expect to see him on the last place?

1960: John F. Kennedy

Next: His Vice President. Sure, Jack won't drop dead (he's too damn young and healthy), but LBJ is a powerful politician on his own and set his eyes on the White House.

Next-to-next: Outgoing Vice President who just lost the closest election in history. Will be back.

Next-to-next-to-next: An universally liked Michigan Representative. He's cool, but come on...

1963: Lyndon B. Johnson

Next: Former Vice President who just lost gubernatorial election in landslide. He's done.

Next-to-next: Michigan Representative. He doesn't even want a damn job.

Next-to-next: An obscure peanut farmer-turned-state Senator from Backwater, Georgia. Just STFU.

1968: Richard M. Nixon

Next: House Minority Leader. Great fellow but not a presidential material.

Next-to-next: Former Georgia state Senator who lost a gubernatorial bid two years ago. Not serious.

Next-to-next-to-next: Governor of California and leader of the New Right. Likely candidate in future.

1974: Gerald Ford

Next: Lame duck Governor of freaking Georgia nobody heard about. Lol.

Next-to-next: Outgoing two-term Governor of California. Very likely candidate.

Next-to-next-to-next: RNC Chairman. Well-positioned within the establishment, yet kind of sucks in getting elected for anything higher than Congressman. Maybe.

1976: Jimmy Carter

Next: Former Governor of California who just almost unseated incumbent President in primaries. You bet he'll run.

Next-to-next: Outgoing CIA Director. Mr. Establishment, but still sucking at electing himself.

Next-to-next-to-next: The new Attorney General of Arkansas. Rising star, but there are many rising stars.

1980: Ronald Reagan:

Next: His Vice President. Everybody and their grandma knows he'll run.

Next-to-next: The youngest former Governor in America, defeated after just two years in office. Come on.

Next-to-next-to-next: The Veep's oldest, drunk son. Lol.

1988: George H. W. Bush[/b]

Next: Young yet experienced Governor of Arkansas. Almost ran this year.

Next-to-next: The President's son. He needs to do something with his life first, but if there's any young Bush with political future, it's that brilliant Jebby.

Next-to-next: Some Black Chicago community organizer with a funny name. You've got to be kidding.

1992: Bill Clinton

Next: His predecessor's son. Just shut up.

Next-to-next: Black Harvard law lecturer. Seriously?

2000: George W. Bush:

Next: A state Senator that just lost a congressional primary in landslide? He's Black? What's his name again? B-Rock? Borat? Baruq? YOU ARE INSANE!

[Bacon King]

A+ EffortPost would read again

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

A+ EffortPost would read again

Truly.

[Antonio the Sixth]

This is really excellent. Great job!

[Consciously Unconscious]

Wow.  This was really cool.  Good job.  Maybe you can continue it in four years. 

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Thanks, guys


1856: James Buchanan

Next: a former onetime Representative from (then-)interior few people really heard about.

Next-to-next: Tennessee Senator with some Andrew Jackson's populist magic, but utterly lacking "serious" backing.

Next-to-next-to-next: a former Army Captain who resigned his commission in order to avoid being court-martialed for drunkenness. Can't make a life as a civilian. Can you think of somebody less successfull?

1860: Abraham Lincoln

Next: The only Senator from now Confederated States that remained loyal to the Union. Very nice of him but come on, he doesn't even have a home state now.

Next-to-next: Some Army officer.

Next-to-next-to-next: Another Army officer. There are many officers, just fyi,

1865: Andrew Johnson

Next: Celebrated General who led the Union forced to victory. America like Generals.

Next-to-next: Lesser Army General, just elected to the House.

Next-to-next-to-next: Another lesser General in the Congress (are there any civilians in D.C.?)

1868: Ulysses S. Grant

Next: Freshman Governor of Ohio. Definitively on watch list.

Next-to-next: Rising star in the House. But we never elected a sitting Congressman, right?

Next-to-next-to-next: An amiable lawyer from New York. He's active in state politics, but as a machine man, not an office seeker.

1876: Rutherford B. Hayes

Next: Leader of the GOP in House. But he's not interested.

Next-to-next: NYC Port Collector and Don Conkling's caporegime. I guess not.

Next-to-next-to-next: A county sheriff who avoided service in the war. Stop!

1880: James A. Garfield

Next: His Vice President. But, as one pundit wrote: "a likehood of General Garfield dying in office is so remote we shouldn't even consider".

Next-to-next: A county sheriff again. President in four years? Hahaha.

Next-to-next-to-next: Freshman Senator from Indiana. Has presidential name but he doesn't seem very... presidential.

1881: Chester A. Arthur

Next: That county sheriff again. JUST STOP!

Next-to-next: That Indiana dude.

Next-to-next-to-next: ...wut?

1884: Grover Cleveland

Next: Former Indiana Senator who lost reelection. Any other funny ideas?

Next-to-next: YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING!

Next-to-next-to-next: Some Ohio Representative.

1888: Benjamin Harrison

Next: Former Presidents doesn't get second chances!!!

Next-to-next: Ohio Representative who became Chairman of the Ways and Means. Why would be want to risk this precious seat?

Next-to-next-to-next: A newly-appointed Civil Service Commission. Way too young t be considered in near future.

1892: Grover Cleveland's back, bitches

Next: A man kicked from the House. He's finished.

Next-to-next: Civil Service Commission dude. Yawn.

Next-to-next-to-next: Federal Judge from a political family but no political ambitions. Let him be.

[MaxQue]

Grover Cleveland seems to have a very unexpected career.

[Mechaman]

ENCORE!  ENCORE!  ENCORE!

[FEMA Camp Administrator]

I wanna point out that in 1892 McKinley wasn't entirely unanticipated as a contender. He'd been elected Governor the year before and his name had actually gained votes at the 1892 RNC, though he of course wasn't going to be opposing the incumbent President. As well in 1888 he deferred to his state's favorite son, John Sherman rather than run himself.

Nevertheless, a very pointed piece of work. Mr. Cleveland especially had a very unexpected rise in politics from 1881 to 1884.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Grover Cleveland seems to have a very unexpected career.

No kidding.

Mayor of Buffalo (1882)
Governor of New York (1883-1884)
President (1885-)

I wanna point out that in 1892 McKinley wasn't entirely unanticipated as a contender. He'd been elected Governor the year before and his name had actually gained votes at the 1892 RNC, though he of course wasn't going to be opposing the incumbent President. As well in 1888 he deferred to his state's favorite son, John Sherman rather than run himself.

Nevertheless, a very pointed piece of work. Mr. Cleveland especially had a very unexpected rise in politics from 1881 to 1884.

I mixed up McKinley's dates.

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

1789: George Washington

Next: Ladies and gentlemen, His Majesty the Dauphin! If Washington wants to rule for life, he'll simply ascend the throne. If not, you know he's the most likely candidate.

Next-to-next: Another celebrated Founding Father. Sure, he's talking about returning to simple country life, but aren't they all like that?

Next-to-next-to-next: Dude who wrote the Constitution. Why wouldn't he get his turn?

1796: John Adams

Next: His Vice President and leader of the opposition. Rematch guaranteed.

Next-to-next: Tom's right hand man. Who's better to carry on?

Next-to-next-to-next: Oh, another notable Founding Freaking Father.

1800: Thomas Jefferson

Next: His Secretary of State. Very likely.

Next-to-next: Another Virginia aristocrat.

Next-to-next-to-next: Defeated President's son. He's very talented, but another Adams at the White House?

1808: James Madison

Next: His Secretary of State. It seems to be a natural stepping stone.

Next-to-next: Young Adams is doing fine. Maybe he's better politician than his daddy?

Next-to-next-to-next: Tennessee dude. But he's not a gentleman!

1816: James Monroe:

Next: His Secretary of State. Do I sound like a broken record?

Next-to-next: Tennessee badass. But his grammar sucks worse than Kalwejt's! Presidency is for educated gentlemen

Next-to-next-to-next: New York Attorney General. Huh?

1824: John Quincy Adams

Next: A very pissed Tennessee dude. You bet he'll be back.

Next-to-next: New York Senator. A Backroom dealer.

Next-to-next-to-next: Ohio Senator and Army General. More of a politician than a real soldier.

1828: Andrew Jackson

Next: His lieutenant. But there are other more plausible possibilities, right?

Next-to-next: Dude about to be dismissed from his diplomatic post.

Next-to-net-to-next: Senator from Virginia. He's nice but not a material for a higher office.

1836: Martin van Buren

Next: That dude again. He just lost an election, ya know?

Next-to-next: Party switched who resigned his seat knowing he'll be voted out. Haha.

Next-to-next-to-next: Speaker of the House. They don't get elected President.

1840: William H. Harrison

Next: Random Southern dude picked as VP. Vice Presidents tend to die in office.

Next-to-next: Former Speaker who lost his seat and found refugee as Governor. Heh.

Next-to-next-to-next: Army General you can't even talk politics with. What? He never voted? OK...

OH SH1T!

1841: John Tyler

Next: Van Buren will be nominated again!!!11

Next-to-next: How come he never voted?

Next-to-next-to-next: A nice Representative who seems to enjoy himself very much.

1844: James Knox Polk

Next: YOU REALLY NEVER VOTED?!

Next-to-next: Former Representative.

Next-to-next-to-next: His wife doesn't want him to play with us -_-

1848: Zachary Taylor

Next: His Vice President. But Taylor is far younger and healthier than that bore Harrison.

Next-to-next: Have you meet his wife?

Next-to-next-to-next: Finally, a serious candidate! Why he didn't run?

1850: Millard Fillmore

Next: OK, we just can't get him to run for anything. Too bad, he's so handsome and charismatic.

Next-to-next: Why such an experienced man is not running?

Next-to-next-to-next: Already former one-term Representative from Middle of Nowhere.

1852: Franklin Pierce

Next: Unless Frankie doesn't run (and why shouldn't he? He's young and so energetic!), he missed his chance. Too bad, what a resume!

Next-to-next: Abram who?

Next-to-next-to-next: Lol@some tallor.

[politicus]

This would work better if you just copy pasted the older Presidents into your first post so they would all be in chronological order in one post.

Otherwise: Nice job and very interesting.

[Mr. Morden]

I think you undersell GHW Bush and Bill Clinton a little.  Bush, sure, OK, he hadn't been elected to anything besides Congress yet, but he was still relatively young in the 1970s, and yet was racking up an incredible resume.  I think he was even talked about as a longshot possibility to be Ford's running mate in 1976.  He would have been mentioned as a possibility for president one day, at least as far back as 1976.

Clinton, OK, obviously no one would have taken him seriously in 1980.  But by the end of the 80s?  Sure.  He was definitely being talked about as a potential future presidential candidate as early as 1988.  Though few would have predicted that he'd be the nominee in 1992, since people weren't expecting that Cuomo, Gephardt, Bradley et al. would all decline to run.  Clinton certainly would have been thought of as a strong possibility for 1996, if Bush was reelected in 1992.  So yeah, some might have predicted him as the next president after Bush, figuring that Bush might serve two terms.

Really, if you're going to try to pick future presidents from as much as a decade or more in advance, a smart strategy is just to pick someone young who's already got some experience.  I mean, you'll still probably end up being wrong, and it'll end up being some random state senator, but at least going with someone young who already has experience gives you a fighting chance of being right, since relatively few presidents are first elected over age 60.

In general though, I think a feature of the modern era is that politicians are now frequently leaking their ambitions for higher office from a very early stage.  John Edwards, for example, was already being talked about as a potential future presidential candidate from the moment he was first elected to the Senate in 1998.  Same with Hillary Clinton, same with Obama, same with Rubio, etc.  Many future presidential candidates drop hints for many many years before they finally have a good opportunity to run, and that's something which isn't quite captured if you just list their resume like this.

[Antonio the Sixth]

Really awesome!


(though Jefferson wrote the Declaration, not the Constitution )

[hurricanehink]

I'd love to see your assessment on some potential 2016ers. Your writing is too good to wait four years!

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

Really awesome!


(though Jefferson wrote the Declaration, not the Constitution )

Um, the next-to-next-to-next for Washington was Madison

[barfbag]

Christie
Cuomo
Rubio

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

1992: Bill Clinton

Next: A son of a President American people just voted out? Heh, George's nice, but doesn't have too much of an impressive track record, does he? Now, Jeb is the one to watch.

Next-to-next: A Black community organized from Chicago? LOL, why won't we discuss a Latino gas station operator from Phoenix, AZ?

Next-to-next: Um, what's Donald's party affiliation nowdays? Need to check.


2000: George W. Bush

Next: An obscure Illinois State Senator who just lost a congressional primary? Heh, if this country is even ready for a Black president we have more plausible candidates: Harold Ford, Jesse Jackson Jr. Also, how can you run a serious campaign with name like Obama Baraka?

Next-to-next: He's a Democrat now, lol. Beside, he'd get bored just like he got bored with running for Reform Party nomination.


2008: Barack Obama

Next: Okay, people, this "Trump for President" meme should really die. The guy is a celebrity, not a politician. Do you know when was the last time Americans elected someone with no political or military experience? Never. Plus, there's no way he's elected with his behavior. We have serious possibilities to discuss here, like accomplished former Governor Jeb Bush (Latino vote!) or former Governor Mitt Romney.

[Kingpoleon]

So, for Eisenhower, you're saying: John F. Kennedy -> Lyndon Johnson -> Richard Nixon -> Gerald Ford. That seems pretty realistic to me. That's like saying right now: Trump->Pence->Kaine->Sinema sounds really unrealistic.