Who was the most intelligent President?
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Author Topic: Who was the most intelligent President?  (Read 19047 times)
Lincoln Republican
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« on: January 03, 2014, 11:19:11 PM »
Who was the most intelligent President?

Please discuss.
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Paul Kemp
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« Reply #1 on: January 04, 2014, 12:03:59 AM »
Are you looking for an IQ number or...?

Maybe not the "most intelligent" but I was thinking to myself earlier how smart JFK was. I doubt there were many times in his life when he wasn't the smartest man in the room and if by some rare chance he was not, he always seemed to be willing to listen to the person that was (which in itself may be a great sign of intelligence). I'm sure some will just deride this statement as lame "hero worship" or some other garbage though...
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Del Tachi
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« Reply #2 on: January 04, 2014, 12:05:57 AM »
Wilson was the only one to hold a terminal degree in something other than law if I remember correctly.  

Of course, it depends on what you mean by "intelligent".  While not the most learned, Lyndon Johnson had an incredible knack for using people to get what he wanted which says a lot about his cleverness and people skills.

So, I nominate Wilson and Johnson with preference going to Johnson.
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Lincoln Republican
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« Reply #3 on: January 04, 2014, 11:51:58 AM »
Quote from: Paul Kemp on January 04, 2014, 12:03:59 AM
Are you looking for an IQ number or...?

Not necessarily in terms of their IQ, although that is clearly one measure of their intelligence level, but I was thinking rather in terms of their capacity to apply the knowledge they have acquired during their life. 
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All Along The Watchtower
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« Reply #4 on: January 04, 2014, 01:28:55 PM »
Woodrow Wilson
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Lief 🗽
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« Reply #5 on: January 04, 2014, 02:28:26 PM »
Madison, Wilson, Obama
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Snowstalker Mk. II
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« Reply #6 on: January 04, 2014, 02:40:06 PM »
The ones that have been mentioned along with Jefferson, Lincoln, and Nixon (note: I feel terrible mentioning the latter two together in the same sentence).
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True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)
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« Reply #7 on: January 04, 2014, 02:53:58 PM »

Possibly, but if so it shows that intelligence is overrated as a Presidential attribute.
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Oswald Acted Alone, You Kook
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« Reply #8 on: January 04, 2014, 03:27:20 PM »
Hoover was a certified genius last time I checked.
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Mordecai
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« Reply #9 on: January 04, 2014, 03:30:47 PM »
Quote from: Lincoln Republican on January 04, 2014, 11:51:58 AM
Quote from: Paul Kemp on January 04, 2014, 12:03:59 AM
Are you looking for an IQ number or...?

Not necessarily in terms of their IQ, although that is clearly one measure of their intelligence level, but I was thinking rather in terms of their capacity to apply the knowledge they have acquired during their life.  

Going by this definition I think FDR would be right up there.
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All Along The Watchtower
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« Reply #10 on: January 04, 2014, 07:08:02 PM »
Quote from: True Federalist on January 04, 2014, 02:53:58 PM

Possibly, but if so it shows that intelligence is overrated as a Presidential attribute.

Exactly.
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H. Ross Peron
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« Reply #11 on: January 04, 2014, 08:10:30 PM »
Jefferson, Lincoln, Garfield, Wilson, Nixon
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Mordecai
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« Reply #12 on: January 30, 2014, 05:14:29 AM »
Also special mention to Clinton.
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The Dowager Mod
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« Reply #13 on: January 30, 2014, 12:33:02 PM »
Lincoln and Carter.
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SWE
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« Reply #14 on: January 30, 2014, 10:27:42 PM »
Depending on how you define intelligence, it could be Lincoln, Hoover, Wilson, FDR, LBJ, Jefferson, Carter, or Obama.
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DINGO Joe
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« Reply #15 on: January 31, 2014, 12:27:28 AM »
As far as being able to discuss every minutiae of public policy, Clinton probably has no equal.  Also, I believe he's the only Rhodes Scholar to become President.
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Starpaul20
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« Reply #16 on: January 31, 2014, 07:42:49 PM »
I'd say either Jefferson, Lincoln or Clinton.
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Lincoln Republican
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« Reply #17 on: January 31, 2014, 09:29:50 PM »
In a discussion about the most intelligent Presidents, I believe that William Howard Taft should not be overlooked. 
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RogueBeaver
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« Reply #18 on: February 01, 2014, 01:50:34 PM »
Jefferson and Wilson in raw IQ, most likely.
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Miles
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« Reply #19 on: February 01, 2014, 07:01:13 PM »
Quote from: RogueBeaver on February 01, 2014, 01:50:34 PM
Jefferson and Wilson in raw IQ, most likely.

This. I was gonna say Wilson, but Jefferson is up there too.
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MATTROSE94
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« Reply #20 on: February 03, 2014, 01:15:08 PM »
Wilson, Clinton and Obama are probably the most intelligent Presidents of the modern era.
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MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!
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« Reply #21 on: February 09, 2014, 05:13:55 PM »
"Intelligence" is not a term that can be so easily definied.

Academically-wise, it was either Wilson or Jefferson, though James Garfield may compete here.

When we're talking intelligent, but not in a scholary way, things gets a bit tricky.
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Bureaucat
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« Reply #22 on: February 14, 2014, 10:22:08 AM »
There was a state dinner at the White House in 1961 or 1962 that honored some of the best and brightest of that day. President Kennedy remarked that this was the greatest collection of intellectual prowess ever dining there, "with the possible exception of when Thomas Jefferson dined alone".
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Mordecai
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« Reply #23 on: February 16, 2014, 01:41:10 AM »
I just noticed that nobody mentioned, Bush Sr. I think he's worth mentioning.

Really I think no President of the modern era could be said to be unintelligent, except for maybe Reagan.
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Cranberry
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« Reply #24 on: February 17, 2014, 11:20:10 AM »
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Exactly. I don't know much about earlier presidents, but I think from Reagan on, all were quite intelligent, even Reagan in his own ways, contacting to people.
Of those 5 however, I think maybe Clinton and Bush Sr, were most clever, not to forget Obama either.
Oh, and Bush Jr. , well, he wasn't the smartest man, honestly. That one you could have added up there.
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