Gallup: Reagan and Clinton are favorite presidents

Americans say Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton will be judged the best presidents of the past four decades, the Gallup Poll reports.

At least six in 10 respondents say Reagan and Clinton will be considered an above average or outstanding president, Gallup said.

"Three years into Barack Obama's presidency," Gallup said. "Americans are divided in their views of how he will be regarded, with 38% guessing he will be remembered as above average or outstanding and 35% as below average or poor."

The poll said, "Aside from Clinton and Reagan, only George H.W. Bush gets significantly more positive than negative ratings. (Richard) Nixon and George W. Bush are rated as the worst, with roughly half of Americans believing each will be judged negatively."

The key to the popularity of Reagan and Clinton: They governed during good economies and got credit for improving them.

It's worth nothing that Reagan and Clinton also survived scandals during their tenures: Reagan, the Iran-Contra imbroglio; Clinton, impeachment over the Monica Lewinsky matter.

Presidential ratings change over time, the pollsters noted.

George W. Bush's ratings remain among the lowest, but he has also seen the biggest improvement since Gallup last did this survey in early 2009. "Specifically, positive ratings of Bush increased from 17% to 25% since 2009, while negative ratings of him declined from 59% to 47% in the three years since he left office," the poll said.

Though Democrats obviously prefer Democratic presidents, and Republicans favor Republicans, party labels don't always guide historic judgements.

"For example," Gallup pointed out, "36% of Republicans believe Clinton's presidency will be viewed as outstanding or above average, a higher percentage of GOP supporters than believes that about Republican presidents (Gerald) Ford (25%) and Nixon (18%). Meanwhile, Democrats are more likely to believe Reagan will get favorable historical judgments (47%) than that (Jimmy) Carter will (31%)."

Gallup's bottom line:

Americans generally regard Reagan and Clinton as the best presidents in recent memory, back through the Nixon administration. Their positive ratings could be tied to the fact that both were in office during strong economic times. Of the remaining presidents, only George H.W. Bush is rated much more positively than negatively, perhaps because of his strong record on foreign policy.

Americans still rate George W. Bush among the worst presidents, though their views have become more positive in the three years since he left office. Views of Bush have improved about equally among Democrats, Republicans, and independents, suggesting that the passage of time may be helping Americans see him in a slightly less negative light.