7 important PRESIDENTS explained in 33 minutes

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Depicting Carter without his grin in the thumbnail is almost startling because he is always depicted with a too-big of a grin in political cartoons.

Kennedy was really the last bipartisan president, not in the sense that he was actually admired by people on both sides while he was president (he wasn't), but in the sense that he's the last president both parties remember favourably, mostly because his presidency was cut so tragically short, which has allowed everyone to project their own beliefs onto him. It's gotten to the point that if you listen to conservatives and liberals talking about JFK you could get the impression they were talking about completely different presidents.

One thing I find interesting about this political era was how every single state switched party support at least once. The US has had such strong regional political loyalties since 2000 that the elections are somewhat predictable now, and are mainly fought in states that straddle those regional boundaries.

It’s not something I’ve considered much until your video but it’s amazing how relatively rare it was for a President to serve a full 8 years in that period

What’s interesting is presidents that people don’t talk about as much. Calvin Coolidge had a different mentality where he believed that killing a bad bill was more important than passing a good one. I think because of that mentality, he was uneventful and not discussed enough.

As a Brit, I've always been slightly ashamed of my lackluster knowledge on U.S presidents. This video is just what I needed; another award-winner I'd say.

Gerald Ford would be considered by most to be a difficult figure to draw in caricature, but I think you nailed him perfectly---bravo!

Hi JJ, I am an older Gen Z (born early 2000s) and I think it is interesting to look at which of these seven presidents Gen Z has chosen to idolize. When I was in high school and early college it really was not uncommon to see young conservatives (usually young conservative men) with shirts, bumper stickers, and posters that were replicas of Reagan/Bush campaign signs. When I was in elementary school, I even had a friend named Reagan who was apparently named after the president. On the left, young people have really taken to idolizing Jimmy Carter (though I have never seen anyone sport his campaign materials). I think Jimmy Carter really resonates with young liberals due to how much they care about the morality of public figures, and also because of his commitment to federally protecting wilderness. When I was in high school I had a friend who wrote to him and was literally in tears when he wrote back. The main thing she wrote to him about was his efforts to protect land in Alaska, and when he wrote back to her he said that one thing he would've wanted to accomplish was to protect even more land in northern AK. In this same vein, I think the president that young liberals hate the most is Reagan. There are so many memes about meeting Reagan in hell. I haven't heard any similar anti-Carter hatred from the young right, but my conservative grandparents usually talk about Carter as the worst president of the 20th century. I will be interested to see how these idolized presidents influence Gen Z voters as they come of age and also start to run for office.

18:45 for anyone wondering if JJ got that political cartoon he asked for

for me, at least, H.W. Bush represents the last flowering of a certain kind of moderate, orthodox conservatism untainted by things like the Iraq War or the 2016/2020 US elections. The idea of a staunchly "normal" figure has a lot of appeal these days.

As an older American who has lived through all of these president's tenures, I have to compliment you on your extremely accurate depiction of these presidents. Among your many talents, you have a well-informed view of history. Keep up the good work.

Thanks for the shoutout JJ! I had a lot of misconceptions about Carter before I learned more about him. His Presidency is so unique and there’s a lot we can learn from it. Great video btw!!!

The graphic description of Kennedys assassination really caught me off guard.

I think one point that should have been mentioned is that, in the 1970s, both major parties phased out conventions in favor of Presidential primaries, which promoted candidates with populist and/or maverick tendencies candidates like Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton. No previous era of American politics to that point was nearly so accommodating of "outsider" candidates.

JJ you’re too good to us feeding us all this presidential trivia, it’s all I’ve been watching all week

The Simpsons episode "Two Bad Neighbors" delved into the perceived personalities of both Ford and Bush, depicting Ford as a down-to-earth football and nacho-loving everyman (who got along well with, and looked like, Homer), while George Bush was depicted as the Mr. Wilson to Bart's Dennis The Menace (complete with Barbara as a kindly Mrs. Wilson stand-in) while also being seen as out-of-touch (such as trying to order stew at the Krusty Burger drive-through).

I always enjoy how you start a video with "Hello friends". It is a very good thing to say. Based on your onscreen presence, you seem like a kind person.

17:13 Ford was appointed as Agnew's (VP) successor, not Nixon's. When Nixon resigned, Ford, as VP, took his place.

You should have mentioned that - as of the time of recording - Jimmy Carter is the only one of this bunch still alive!