ABSTRACT
Partisan bias in the evaluation of presidents is even more pronounced among political elites and partisan pundits. The presidential ratings game began in earnest in 1948, when Arthur Schlesinger asked 55 prominent historians to grade the presidents: signified great; near great; average; below average; and failure. According to Skowronek, a president's place in political time is structured by two crucial factors: whether a president is affiliated with or opposed to the dominant party regime, and whether that regime is resilient or vulnerable. Citizens today make exacting demands of a president. The notion that great presidents are distinguished by the daring with which they played the political game is largely a myth. No president is more shrouded in myth-making than the nation's first president, but it is striking how little the real Washington resembles the ideal of presidential greatness we carry around with us in our heads.
