The most important day in the month of February since 1971 is the third Monday. That’s when the Uniform Monday Holiday Act moved the celebration of George Washington’s birthday to that day. This year’s Presidents’ Day is the 21st.

Nearly every poll of America’s greatest presidents finds Washington at the top. It’s hard to disagree with historians. There would have been no America, independent of England, without George Washington.

He won the Revolutionary War as the colonists’ commander-in-chief. He was the unanimous choice of the electoral college to be our first president. He could have accepted the title of “king,” but chose to be called simply Mr. President. At the end of his second term, he chose not to accept a third, which set another precedent. The list of his achievements could go on.

America’s 16th president, Abraham Lincoln, is listed as the second greatest, if Washington is first. Some historians place Lincoln first because he saved the United States when the Civil War threatened to break the country in two. Preserving the Union was Lincoln’s first priority; ending slavery was his other great achievement. His tenacity in achieving both goals, as well as his political genius, is chronicled in historian Doris Kearns Goodwin’s book “Team of Rivals.”

The polls of America’s greatest Presidents begin to vary after the top two positions. Franklin Delano Roosevelt is usually in third place for leading the country out of its most severe economic depression with a multi-faceted plan which created many unique programs. Reflecting on Roosevelt’s presidency, FDR biographer Jean Edward Smith wrote, “He lifted himself from a wheelchair to lift the nation from its knees.” FDR obviously led America through World War II, a victory for democratic government which changed the history of countless nations for the better.

In his book “First Principles: What America’s Founders Learned from the Greeks and Romans,” historian Thomas E. Ricks focuses exclusively on the first four presidents, rating James Madison more important than Thomas Jefferson, who is the third greatest in many polls. Madison, our fourth president, is hailed as the “Father of the Constitution” for his pivotal role in drafting and promoting that essential document as well as the Bill of Rights. He also co-wrote The Federalist Papers and co-founded the Democratic-Republication Party. Four very impressive achievements!

In every poll of the greatest presidents, Thomas Jefferson places in the top five. A Founding Father, our third President was the principal author of the Declaration of Independence and an architect of the American Revolution. He urged the colonists to free themselves from English rule and to establish a democratic-republican government based on individual rights.

In his biography of Jefferson, historian Jon Meacham rated our third president as the most influential figure in the first 50 years of the American democratic republic.

Theodore Roosevelt is not only in the top five of most polls of America’s greatest presidents, he is in the Mount Rushmore of that group. Historians credit Roosevelt for changing the nation’s political system by permanently placing the “bully pulpit” of the presidency at center stage and making character as important as the issues.

His accomplishments include trust busting and conservationism. He is a hero to progressives for his proposals that presaged the modern welfare state of the New Deal Era, while conservationists admire Roosevelt for putting the environment and selflessness towards future generations on the national agenda.

One historian wrote that Theodore Roosevelt “is heralded today as the architect of the modern presidency, as a world leader who boldly reshaped the office to meet the needs of the new century and redefined America’s place in the world.”

In polls ranking the presidents, Harry Truman has always appeared in the top 10. According to Truman biographer Rober Dallek, “His contribution to victory in the cold war without a devastating nuclear conflict elevated him to the stature of a great or near-great president.” 

Despite his mistakes in conducting the Vietnam War, Lyndon Johnson made contributions to America which should not be ignored. Soon after taking office, Johnson declared a “War on Poverty.” He actively pushed Congress to pass legislation attacking illiteracy, unemployment and racial discrimination.

After being elected in 1964, LBJ introduced a slate of reforms that he said would build a “Great Society” for all Americans. His ambitious legislative agenda created the Medicare and Medicaid programs to provide federal health insurance for elderly and poor Americans. It also included measures aimed at improving education, preventing crime and reducing air and water pollution.

Johnson also made great strides in attacking racial discrimination by signing the historic Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. His wide-reaching achievements improved the lives of millions of Americans and contributed to economic growth and prosperity.

February is also Black History Month. The first Black president of the United States should be included in any discussion of America’s greatest presidents for at least two reasons.

First, Barack Obama made character as important as the issues during his campaigns and throughout his eight years in office. The fact is that he was elected twice, against worthy opponents, based “not on the color of his skin but on the content of his character,” in Martin Luther King’s words. Obama’s character enabled him to take the high road, despite death threats against his family and himself and despite the purely political opposition to his proposals.

Second, Obama was able to enact one major piece of legislation into law: the Affordable Care Act, which made health insurance obtainable for millions of Americans.

Jim Izzo is a retired teacher living in Mystic.

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