In a new hard time, FDR's aura endures

The Siena Research Institute's 2010 Presidential Expert Poll ranked FDR number one. His cousin and fellow New Yorker, Theodore Roosevelt, came in second, ahead of Abraham Lincoln for the first time.

President Barack Obama came in 15th, within the range of where the country's sitting chief executives show up in the poll.

"The respondents have been very cautious so new presidents are between 15th and 20th. They don't want to anoint someone who's been in office less than a year," said Tom Kelly, Siena College emeritus professor of history and American studies, and co-director of the study.

Rounding out the top five are Lincoln in third, George Washington in fourth and Thomas Jefferson in fifth. The same five presidents have held the top positions with FDR always in first and Washington always in fourth. The others have moved up and down.

While the 238 presidential experts have remained consistent in each of the five polls held in 1982, 1990, 1994, 2002 and 2010, the rankings can reflect what's happening today.

TR's move past Lincoln itself may show what concerns people today.

"Teddy was a trust buster, the opponent of the malefactors of great wealth. There's a resonance" with current-day issues, Kelly said.

John F. Kennedy moved up to 11th, Kelly said, most likely helped by the death of his youngest brother, Massachusetts Sen. Ted Kennedy.

Ranked last at 43rd is Andrew Johnson. Filling out the rest of the bottom five are James Buchanan, 42nd; Warren Harding, 41; Franklin Pierce, 40th; and George W. Bush, 39th.

Martin Van Buren, the Capital Region's hometown president from Kinderhook, ranks 23rd.

Richard M. Nixon has the lowest ranking for integrity at 43rd. Harding was 42nd and Bill Clinton was 41st.

The experts ranked the presidents in 20 categories.

The luckiest president was Washington, while Herbert Hoover had no luck at all. Hoover also ranked last for handling the economy.

The rankings for every president can be seen at the SRI website at http://www.siena.edu/sri/research.

Top 5 presidents?

1. Franklin D. Roosevelt

2. Theodore Roosevelt

3. Abraham Lincoln

4. George Washington

5. Thomas Jefferson