Historians rank Obama 12th best president in new survey

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C-SPAN released a survey Friday that asked historians to rank past presidents and former-President Obama was voted the country's 12th best, right behind Woodrow Wilson and in front of James Monroe.

Historians were asked to essentially grade the presidents on items like “public persuasion” and “moral authority.”  Politico reported that Obama rated high in the category of “equal justice for all,” but received low marks for his relationship with Congress.

Of course, it is difficult to determine the effectiveness of a presidency so soon after the president left office.

"Although 12th is a respectable overall ranking, one would have thought that former President Obama’s favorable rating when he left office would have translated into a higher ranking in this presidential survey," Edna Greene Medford, a Howard University professor and member of C-SPAN's historical advisory board, told Politico.

Abraham Lincoln retained the top position, and George Washington came in a close second.