President Donald Trump has shared his own ranking of U.S. presidents on Truth Social, placing himself alone in a category labeled "The Greatest" above Abraham Lincoln, George Washington and Franklin D. The chart, posted to Trump's account on Thursday, groups presidents into categories ranging from "Great" and "Near Great" to "Failures." Trump occupies the top tier by himself, while Lincoln, Washington, Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson are placed in the next-highest category. The post offers a glimpse into how Trump views America's past commanders in chief and comes as his standing among Republican voters continues to surpass that of previous GOP presidents.
A recent poll found Republican respondents were significantly more likely to name Trump as the president they most admired than either Ronald Reagan or Lincoln. The chart shared by Trump closely resembles a famous presidential ranking published by LIFE magazine in November 1948. The rankings were compiled by historian Arthur M.
Schlesinger Sr., who surveyed 55 historians and grouped presidents into categories including "Great," "Near Great," "Average," "Below Average" and "Failures." Trump's version appears to retain most of Schlesinger's original rankings while adding himself in a standalone category labeled "The Greatest" and placing former Presidents Joe Biden, Barack Obama and Jimmy Carter among the "Failures." Schlesinger's original survey ranked Lincoln, Washington, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson as America's six "great" presidents. Harry Truman was not included because he was still serving as president when the survey was conducted.
Beyond granting himself the top spot, Trump's list highlights several presidents he has praised throughout his political career. Andrew Jackson, who Trump has frequently cited as one of his presidential inspirations in his first term, was placed in the "Great" category alongside Washington and Lincoln. William McKinley, whose use of tariffs Trump has repeatedly pointed to when discussing trade policy, was ranked "Average." The ranking also elevated Woodrow Wilson, placing him among Trump's "Great" presidents despite Wilson receiving increasingly mixed assessments from modern historians.
In recent years, debates over Wilson's record on racial segregation and civil liberties have prompted some universities and institutions to reconsider how he is commemorated. At the same time, several prominent presidents were omitted entirely. Kennedy, Harry Truman, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, George H.W.
Bush did not appear anywhere on the chart. The absence of Reagan is likely to attract particular attention. For decades, Reagan was viewed by many conservatives as the modern Republican standard-bearer, a status increasingly challenged by Trump's dominance of the party.
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