John F. Kennedy

[Antilogic]

Largely agree. But a personal question - are you old enough to remember JFK, on TV perhaps? After elderly old Ike, Kennedy was a breath of fresh air - young, handsome, vigorous, with a hotty wife. A little like Clinton after Grampas Reagan/Bush. But recent research proves he was none of these things. He was sick, and cheating on his wife. I suppose that kind of thing doesn't bother the youngsters here.

He's a little before my time--only seen him on Youtube, old videos, etc.

The candidate's physical attractiveness, for the lack of a better term, has been more important in the TV era, which coincides closely enough to the Nuclear era I won't object too much to it. I think cheating used to bother people when it first entered the popular discourse (before, affairs were generally ignored or covered up, wasn't a problem), but now people are just jaded by all the sex scandals. So apathetic might be a better descriptor.

 

[Formaldehyde]

The 50s and 60s were also the beginning of the sexual revolution. I don't think JFK was "cheating on his wife" any more than Clinton was.

 

[kochman]

In the end... who cares if he was cheating on his wife... other than her?
The question is whether he was an astronomical president or not... and sure, character plays into it, but he just simply wasn't president long enough to have some amazing legacy.