Mount Rushmore (IQs)
The Mount Rushmore depiction of American presidents: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln, labeled with 2017 IQ estimates, as tabulated below.
In genius studies, American Presidents by IQ is a ranking of the presidents of the United States by intellectual brilliance, political genius, executive genius, legislative genius (Ѻ), leadership prominence, and honed decision making ability. [N1]

“There has never been a greater concentration of intellectual power here at the White House since Thomas Jefferson dined alone.
— John F. Kennedy (c.1962), speaking at a White House dinner that was attended by every Nobel Laureate in US [17]

“I understand that Thomas Jefferson was our smartest president. Who was our stupidest? Second stupidest?”
— Chris Lamb (2001), “Dear Cecil Query” [6]

In 1950, the US government commissioned a team of scholars from the University of Pennsylvania and the Columbia Historical Society to select 23 great lawgivers (see: Washington 23) to display as on the walls of the US House of Representatives, among whom only two Americans were selected: Thomas Jefferson and George Mason.

Political genius
One of the earliest mentioned “political geniuses” was Greek politician and general Themistocles (c.524-459BC) (Ѻ), characterized by those including Thucydides, as perhaps the “greatest political genius to emerge in democratic Greece”, noted for his ability to “put an end to the civil wars of Greece, compose their differences, and persuading them to lay aside all enmity during the war with the Persians”, as Plutarch put things. (Ѻ) A “political genius”, according to Nietzsche (1862), is one who is “governed by other and higher laws than the ordinary person” and has a “nobility of style”, his examples come to mind being: Caesar, the Machiavellian “prince”, and Napoleon. (Ѻ)(Ѻ) The term “political genius”, according to modern Google Book search, is most-associated with names such as: Abraham Lincoln (Ѻ), George Washington (Ѻ), Henry IV (Ѻ), John Adams, James Madison (Ѻ), Franklin D. Roosevelt (Ѻ), Woodrow Wilson (Ѻ), Winston Churchill (Ѻ), Barack Obama (Ѻ)(Ѻ), Julius Caesar (Ѻ), and Lyndon Johnson (Ѻ), respectively, to name a few.

Rankings
The following is a work-in-progress rankings of American Presidents by IQ, generally being an extrapolation and interpolation of those presidents previously having established IQ scores as found in the top 1000 geniuses rankings (ranking position shown in [#] brackets), each IQ citation is indicated by subscript (see: IQ key), when available: [N1]

US Presidents
IQ
President
IQ Estimates
Description




190

1
[44]
Jefferson 75Thomas Jefferson
(1743-1826)
 IQ_B \,=195
 IQ_{CB} \,=178
 IQ_C \,=160
 IQ_W \,=160
IQ Simonton c=160
IQ simonton M=154
[RGM:29|1,305+] (Cattell 1000:79) [HD:17] Fabled "last persons to know everything" and “walking encyclopedia; library: 6,487 books; thing philosopher; an unlearn expositor; founding father (author of Declaration of Independence); auto-characterized “Epicurean materialist”. A 2015 ranked top 10 Smartest President (#1). [11]







190+




180

2
[150]
James Madison 75James Madison
(1751-1836)
Term: 1809-1817
 IQ_C \,=160
IQ Simonton c=160
IQ simonton M=142
[RGM:177|1,305+] (Cattell 1000:476) [HD:18] The patriarch of the so-called Princeton school of social physics; in 1769, was studying a primitive form of social physics a Princeton; was a student of John Witherspoon (1723-1794), a signatory of the Declaration of Independence, and noted interpreter of the political philosophy of Charles Montesquieu, notable for his “hot climates” / “cold climates” theory of human behavior, who in turn had been deeply influenced by the celestial mechanics work of Isaac Newton; a set of teachings, that went into the so-called Newtonian-based framing of the US Constitution, e.g. separation of powers (see: Newtonian government), as Woodrow Wilson (#28) argued; as John Q. Stewart stated: “in early Princeton, physics cooperated with politics in a sort of analogical double play, Newton to Witherspoon to Madison.” A 2015 top 10 Smartest President (#2). [11]







180+




175

3
[205]
Abraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln
(1809-1865)
 IQ_{CB} \,=160
 IQ_C \,=150
 IQ_B \,=170
 IQ_W \,=147
IQ Simonton c=150
IQ simonton M=140
[RGM:50|1,305+] (Cattell 1000:40) Used Euclidian geometry as a basis to determine right from wrong in making crucial policy decisions, e.g. about slavery.
175

4
[215]
John Adams 75John Adams
(1735-1826)
Term: 1797-1801
 IQ_C \,=155
IQ Simonton c=155
IQ simonton M=143
[RGM:187|1,305+] (Cattell 1000:182) [HD:14] The patriarch of the so-called Adams family (or Adams political family): his son, John Quincy Adams, was 6th president, and his great grandson was Henry Adams, the leading social Newton, behind Goethe; his age 23 "diary notes" on the five types of genius, the 5th of which is "political genius", and his latter correspondence with Jefferson exemplifies his above superior mind. A 2015 top 10 Smartest President (#3). [11]







175+




170

5
[275]
John Quincy Adams 75John Quincy Adams
(1767–1848)
 IQ_C \,=175
IQ Simonton c=175
IQ simonton M=169
[RGM:N/A|1,305+] (Cattell 1000:483) Son of John Adams (2nd president); grandfather of Henry Adams; quote: "John Quincy Adams, the only child prodigy among the presidents, was estimated to have the highest IQ at 170, which is above the 99.99th percentile" (Cox, 1926). [12] Fluent in French, Dutch, German, English, and Latin. He also could read and write Italian, and Ancient Greek. He he chose (Ѻ) to swear in to office on a book of law instead of the Bible, because he wanted to make it clear that he was protecting the US constitution and the laws of the US above all else.







170+




160

6
[380]
Woodrow Wilson 75Woodrow Wilson
(1856–1924)
Term: 1913-1921
IQ Simonton c=155
IQ simonton M=145
[RGM:640|1,305+] Used Darwinian evolution logic as a logic platform in his presidency. Ranked 8rd smartest president according to public opinion (Thims, 2013). [2] A 2015 top 10 Smartest President (#4). [11] Quora (2013) ranked smartest US president nominee. [17]







160+




155

7
[418]
JFK 75John Kennedy
(1917–1963)
Term: 1961-1963
IQ Simonton c=160
IQ simonton M=151
 IQ_O \,=119
[RGM:114|1,305+] Ranked 3rd smartest president according to public opinion (Thims, 2013). [2] As a kid scored 119 on the Otis Intelligence Test. [6]
155

8
[420]
Theodore Roosevelt 75Theodore Roosevelt
(1858–1919)
IQ Simonton c=153
IQ simonton M=142
[RGM:307|1,305+] A 2015 ranked top 10 Smartest President (#5). [11] Downgrade ↓ for referring to founding father Thomas Paine as a “filthy little atheist that apparently esteems a bladder of dirty water as the proper weapon with which to assail Christianity.” (Jacoby, 2004)







155+




150

9
[N/A]
Bill Clinton 75Bill Clinton
(1946-)
Term: 1993-2001
IQ Simonton c=159
IQ simonton M=149
[RGM:568|1,305+] Highest IQ poll (2014): #1 Clinton, #2 Carter, #3 Obama, #4 G.H.W. Bush, #5 G.W. Bush (4,590 votes). [9] Rhodes scholar and Yale graduate.
150

10
[N/A]
Jimmy Carter 75Jimmy Carter
(1924-)
Term: 1977-1981
IQ Simonton c=157
IQ simonton M=145
[RGM:N/A|1,305+] Ranked in top 15 smartest president according to public opinion (Thims, 2013). [2] Highest IQ poll (2014): #1 Clinton, #2 Carter, #3 Obama, #4 G.H.W. Bush, #5 G.W. Bush (4,590 votes). [9] Quora (2013) ranked smartest US president nominee. [17]
150

11
James Garfield 75James Garfield
(1831–1881)
Term: 1881
IQ Simonton c=152
IQ simonton M=142
A 2015 ranked top 10 Smartest President (#6). [11] Quora (2013) ranked smartest US president nominee. [17] Could write Latin and Ancient Greek simultaneously (he was ambidextrous). Came up with a proof (of more than 300 in existence now) of the Pythagorean theorem.
150

12
[483]
Franklin D. Roosevelt 75Franklin D. Roosevelt
(1882–1945)
Term: 1933-1945
IQ Simonton c=151
IQ simonton M=140
[RGM:359|1,305+] Ranked 6th smartest president according to public opinion (Thims, 2013). [2] Married to Eleanor Roosevelt, ranked 5th smartest female of all time according to public opinion (Thims, 2011). [8] A four-term president who pulled America out of the great depression and aligned the US with the Allied Powers during WWII.







150+




145

13
Chester Arthur 75Chester Arthur
(1829–1886)
Term: 1881-1885
IQ Simonton c=152
IQ simonton M=142

145

14
John Tyler 75John Tyler
(1790–1862)
Term: 1841-1845
IQ Simonton c=148
IQ simonton M=136

145

15
Rutherford Hayes 75Rutherford Hayes
(1822–1893)
Term: 1877-1881
IQ Simonton c=146
IQ simonton M=134

145

16
Barack Obama 75Barack Obama
(1961-)
Term: 2009-2015
 IQ_O \,=110-160[RGM:496|1,305+] Ranked 1st in YouGov.com poll (2016), of 3,000 British people, of the “perceived intelligence” of the 30 most talked about public figures. [7] Internet IQ estimates: 110-160 (Ѻ), 120-130 (Ѻ), 130 (Ѻ), 145 (Ѻ). High intelligence in respect to the relation of government policy and the Bible. Highest IQ poll (2014): #1 Clinton, #2 Carter, #3 Obama, #4 G.H.W. Bush, #5 G.W. Bush (4,590 votes). [9]
145

17
Dwight Eisenhower 75Dwight Eisenhower
(1890–1969)
Term: 1953-1961
IQ Simonton c=145
IQ simonton M=132

145

18
Martin van Buren 75Martin van Buren
(1782–1862)
Term: 1837-1841
IQ Simonton c=146
IQ simonton M=133

145

19
Andrew Jackson 75Andrew Jackson
(1767–1845)
Term: 1829-1837
 IQ_C \,=145
IQ Simonton c=145
IQ simonton M=126

145

20
Benjamin Harrison 75Benjamin Harrison
(1833–1901)
Term: 1889-1893
IQ Simonton c=145
IQ simonton M=132

145

21
Grover Cleveland 75Grover Cleveland
(1837–1908)
Term: 1885-1889
IQ Simonton c=144
IQ simonton M=131

145

22
George H. W. Bush 75George H. W. Bush
(1924-)
Term: 1989-1993
IQ Simonton c=143
IQ simonton M=130

145

23
William McKinley 75William McKinley
(1843–1901)
Term: 1897-1901
IQ Simonton c=143
IQ simonton M=130

145

24
James Polk 75James Polk
(1795–1849)
Term: 1845-1849
IQ Simonton c=143
IQ simonton M=130












145+




140

25
Lyndon Johnson 75Lyndon Johnson
(1908–1973)
Term: 1963-1969
IQ Simonton c=141
IQ simonton M=128
A 2013 voted top 15 smartest US President. [2]
140

26
Harry Truman 75Harry Truman
(1884–1972)
Term: 1945-1953
IQ Simonton c=141
IQ simonton M=128
A 2013 voted top 15 smartest US President. [2]
140

27
[491]
George Washington 75George Washington
(1789-1797)
 IQ_{CB} \,=140
 IQ_C \,=140
 IQ_B \,=140
IQ Simonton c=140
IQ simonton M=133
 IQ_W \,=135
[RGM:54|1,305+] (Cattell 1000:19)
140

28
William Taft 75William Taft
(1857–1930)
Term: 1909-1913
IQ Simonton c=140
IQ simonton M=127

140

29
James Monroe 75James Monroe
(1758–1831)
Term: 1817-1825
IQ Simonton c=139
IQ simonton M=124

140

30
Franklin Pierce 75Franklin Pierce
(1804–1869)
Term: 1853-1857
IQ Simonton c=147
IQ simonton M=135
A top 10 worst presidents (#4), according to US News and Report (2014). [14] Existence-long friends with writer Nathaniel Hawthorn (IQ:155|#439).







140+




135

31
Herbert Hoover 75Herbert Hoover
(1874–1964)
Term: 1929-1933
IQ Simonton c=142
IQ simonton M=130
A top 10 worst president (#9), according to US News and Report (2014), characterized: "poor communicator who fueled trade wars and exacerbated the depression. " [14] He, supposedly, was a “brilliant man”, but his administration was a disaster. [5] Quora (2013) ranked smartest US president nominee. [17] Graduated from Stanford. In his spare time at college, he translated a Middle Ages book about mining from Latin into English. The translation contains extensive footnotes and is known for being very clearly translated. He also spoke Mandarin Chinese.
135

32
Richard Nixon 75Richard Nixon
(1913–1994)
Term: 1969-1974
IQ Simonton c=143
 IQ_O \,=143
 IQ_O \,=132
IQ simonton M=131
A top 10 worst presidents (#10), according to US News and Report (2014); summary: known for Watergate scandal (resigned). [14] Scored 143 on an IQ test taken at school. [9] "Nixon was widely reported to have an IQ of 132" [12]
135

33
Millard Fillmore 75Millard Fillmore
(1800–1874)
Term: 1850-1853
IQ Simonton c=149
IQ simonton M=136
A top 10 worst presidents (#5), according to US News and Report (2014). [14] Characterized: a “blundering, pompous, ultimately shallow failure”. (Ѻ)
135

34
Zachary Taylor 75Zachary Taylor
(1784–1850)
Term: 1849-1850
IQ Simonton c=140
IQ simonton M=126
A top 10 worst presidents (#6), according to US News and Report (2014); characterized: a “stalwart defender of slavery”. [14]
135

35
James Buchanan 75James Buchanan
(1791–1868)
Term: 1857-1861
IQ Simonton c=140
IQ simonton M=126
A top 10 worst presidents (#1), according to US News and Report (2014). [14]







135+




130

36
Gerald Ford 75Gerald Ford
(1913–2006)
Term: 1974-1977
IQ Simonton c=140
IQ simonton M=127
A 2015 top 10 Dumbest President (#4). [11] Graduated graduated in the top third of his law school. [12]
130

37
Donald TrumpDonald Trump
(1946-) ↑↓↓
Term: 2017-
 IQ_O \,=146
 IQ_O \,=145
IQ self=132
 IQ_O \,=125
A Quora (2017) ranked dumbest American president. [15] Categorized: as “possibly the dimmest president ever” by Jennifer Rubin (May 2017) (Ѻ) High "business IQ" and "entertainment IQ", but low "political IQ", according to consensus. Many believe he is autistic, smart in some areas, abysmal in others. [16] Quora discussion (Ѻ) on “What is Trump’s IQ” endlessly variate between 90s to 150s; ConservativePush.com ranked at 145 (Ѻ)
130

38
William Harrison 75William Harrison
(1773–1841)
Term: 1841
IQ Simonton c=146
IQ simonton M=134
A top 10 worst presidents (#8), according to US News and Report (2014); summary: a former war hero (recaptured Detroit), only in office for 30 days (before dying from cold), in bed the entire time. [14] A Quora ranked (2012) dumbest American president. [15]







130+




125

39
Ronald Reagan 75Ronald Reagan
(1911–2004)
Term: 1981-1989
IQ Simonton c=142
IQ simonton M=130
A 2015 top 10 Dumbest President (#5). [11] Gerald Ford: “Regan is probably the least well-informed on the details of running the government of any president I knew.” [15]
125

40
Calvin Coolidge 75Calvin Coolidge
(1872–1933)
Term: 1923-1929
IQ Simonton c=142
IQ simonton M=127
A Quora (2012) ranked “dumbest American president”; noted for: Teapot Dome Scandal, and supposedly, for bringing on the Wall Street Crash and Great Depression. [15] Noted, in evolutionary psychology, for "Coolidge effect". [12]
125

41
George W. Bush 75George W. Bush
(1946-)
Term: 2001-2009
IQ Simonton c=139
IQ simonton M=125
 IQ_O \,=125
A 2015 top 10 Dumbest President (#2). [11] A Quora (2012) ranked “dumbest American president”. [15] A top 10 worst presidents (#10), according to US News and Report (2014). [14] His SAT score (1206) was converted, by Linda Gottfredson (Ѻ), into an IQ of 125. He banned stem cells research, per reason that stem cells have a soul; hence it is immoral to use them for research purposes. [10]
125

42
Ulysses Grant 75Ulysses Grant
(1822–1885)
Term: 1869-1877
 IQ_C \,=130
IQ Simonton c=130
IQ simonton M=120
 IQ_O \,=115
A top 10 worst presidents (#7), according to US News and Report (2014). [14] Quote: "Grant was lowest, with an IQ estimate of 115, about the 84th percentile" (Cox, 1926). [12]
125

43
Andrew Johnson 75Andrew Johnson
(1808–1875)
Term: 1865-1869
IQ Simonton c=140
IQ simonton M=126
A 2015 top 10 Dumbest President (#3). [11] A top 10 worst presidents (#3), according to US News and Report (2014). [14] A Quora ranked (2012) dumbest American president. [15]
125

44
Warren Harding 75Warren Harding
(1865–1923)
Term: 1921-1923
IQ Simonton c=140
IQ simonton M=124
A 2015 top 10 Dumbest President (#1). [11] A top 10 worst presidents (#2), according to US News and Report (2014), characterized: "an ineffectual and indecisive leader who played poker while his friends plunder the US treasury" [14]







125+

(add)
Rex and Donald IQ
In summer 2017, Rex Tillerson reportedly called Trump a “moron”. Trump responded by saying that his IQ test scores are higher than Tillerson.

Trump | IQ?
In 2013, Trump began to attract media attention by tweeting about his purported high IQ:

“Someone asked me if I thought I was a genius. I decided to say yes. Why not? Try it out. Tell yourself that you are a genius. Right away you will probably wonder why and in what way you are a genius. And right away, you will have opened your mind up to wonder—and to asking questions. That’s a big first step to thinking like a genius.”
— Donald Trump (2010), Think Like a Champion (pg. 132) (Ѻ)

“Sorry losers and haters, my IQ is one of the highest, and you all know it!”
— Donald Trump (2013), Tweet, May 8 (Ѻ)

“I know some of you may think I’m tough and harsh but actually I’m a very compassionate person (with a very high IQ) and with strong common sense.”
— Donald Trump (2013), Tweet, Apr 21

“As far as that low-info voter base goes, I have an IQ of 132. So much for that theory.”
— Donald Trump (2015), Twitter (Ѻ), Dec 13

In Oct 2017, Chris Cillizza, of CNN Politics, collected 22 Tweets related to Trump’s so-called IQ obsession. [13]

In 2015, Trump’s IQ was reported, in an article (Ѻ) by BeforeItsNews.com, as being 156 based on the fact that he graduated from Wharton School, that the average student needs an SAT score of 1500 to get in, and that this translates to an IQ of 145 to 149 or 156 as reported. This was reported (Ѻ) by Snopes.com to be a hoax article. In 2016, based on the previous “hoax IQ”, a presidential IQ chart began making the rounds, in social media, stating something to the affect that Dean Simonton was the one who calculated Trump’s IQ at 156 (Ѻ)(Ѻ) and that his IQ was second highest presidential IQ, below John Q. Adams and above Thomas Jefferson.

In Mar 2017, a poll conducted of 3,000 UK residents ranked Trump second lowest in intelligence, above George W. Bush, and ranked Obama first in intelligence, among 30 most talked about public figures on YouGov.com. (Ѻ)

In 2017, Jordan Peterson (who thinks his own IQ is in “excess of 150”), stated, in interview (Ѻ), that “a 160 IQ estimate” for Donald Trump is “too high”, but crouched his statement by noting that being a business mogul, a successful reality show producer, and president does take some level of multifaceted intelligence.

Trump’s guestimated IQ, according to opinion, is low. 50 percent of people, according to public polls, think that Trump’s IQ, is below 100 (mean: IQ=31), whereas 50 percent think his IQ is above 100 (mean: IQ: 105), with numbers ranging from zero to 160. [16] The dumbest things he’s done in Oct (alone), according to public opinion, is to (a) state that he “met with the president of Virgin Islands”, not knowing that he is the president of the Virgin Islands, (b) throw paper towels (Ѻ) at hurricane ravaged Puerto Ricans, and (c) give “skittles” (one of his favorite cereals) (Ѻ) as food supplies to hurricane victims. [16]

Trump’s claim to fame, in short, was his going from a 1990 negative $1 billion net worth, in the form of a bankrupt Atlantic City casino, to a 2001 $1.7 billion net worth (Ѻ), thereby which he name-branded himself, to being a 2004 TV celebrity, via The Apprentice (Ѻ), to successfully winning the US presidency on an anti-PC platform ticket.

Highest IQ (2014 poll results)
Poll results from IQ blogger Pumpkin Person's 2014 article: “IQs of U.S. Presidents”, showing Clinton having the highest IQ, compared to Carter, Obama, Reagan, G.H.W. Bush, and G.W. Bush. [9]
Historical background
In 1926, Catherine Cox, in coordination with Lewis Terman and Maud Merrill, in her Cox 300 (see: Cox IQs), ranked the IQs of eight US presidents, including:

62. Adams, J. Q. (IQ=175)
194. Madison (IQ=160)
206. Adams, J. (IQ=155)
#. Lincoln (IQ=150)
#. Washington (IQ=140)

In 1983, Herbert Walberg, et al., estimated the IQs of a number of presidents, e.g. Jefferson (IQ=160), as are shown above by the W-subscript IQs. [4]

In 1996, Tony Buzan, in coordination with Raymond Keene, in his Buzan 100 (see: Buzan IQs) ranked the IQs of the following three US presidents:

7. Jefferson (IQ=195)
61. Lincoln (IQ=170)
95. Washington (IQ=140)

In 2004, Steven Rubenzer and Thomas Faschingbauer, in their Personality, Character, and Leadership in the White House: Psychologists Assess the Presidents, had the following to say about the IQs and intelligence of the various presidents: [12]

“Every president to date has been a white male of Western European ancestry. Most were successful, professional politicians. Many of the rest were military men or lawyers. How well do they reflect the range of people whom they represent? Are they made of special stuff not found in the rest of us? Presidents do differ among themselves. Some came from wealthy families; others were very poor. The most startling contrast is level of education. Some (e.g., Jackson and Lincoln) had virtually no formal schooling. Others, such as Jefferson and J. Q. Adams, were among the most learned men of their time; Wilson held a PhD.

Despite their range of education, it is almost certain that, as a group, presidents were brighter than the average Americans of their time. Leaders, almost by definition, must be able to comprehend problems and articulate or resolve them better than their followers. Research confirms that they typically score at the 9oth percentile of the group they lead in intelligence? Most modern presidents, such as Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, and Clinton, have been very smart men. Even those with more modest intellectual reputations (e.g., Reagan and Ford), were college graduates, and Ford graduated in the top third of his law school. A president doesn't have to be the smartest person in the land, but he ought to be above average. When there is a question about this, as with Harding, the results are unhappy.

There were no IQ tests in Washington's time, but there were other ways that intelligence could be estimated. Nearly a hundred years ago [1926], a team of researchers [Catherine Cox, Maud Merrill, Lewis Terman, et al] attempted to gauge the intelligence of 301 eminent people by systematic analysis of their writings, both as children and adults? They studied a variety of professions, including scientists, artists, and political figures. Included in their group were a number of early presidents. John Quincy Adams, the only child prodigy among the presidents, was estimated to have the highest IQ at 170, which is above the 99.99th percentile. Grant was lowest, with an IQ estimate of 115—about the 84th percentile. It should be noted that these estimates, based on written works, might underestimate ability in areas such as spatial relations. This would put generals, such as Washington and Grant, at a disadvantage relative to scholars. Incidentally, Washington's estimated IQ was 130; John Adams' 140; Jefferson's 145.

Since intelligence tests are now widely used in schools, businesses, and medical settings, it's increasingly possible to get actual IQ scores on presidents and candidates. Nixon was widely reported to have an IQ of 132, which is approximately at the 98th percentile of Americans. As part of his evaluation for Alzheimer's disease, Reagan almost certainly took an IQ test, though his score could be significantly lower than it would have been before the disease. As we will see in the next chapter, intelligence is one of the best predictors of performance for all jobs, particularly complex ones.”

In 2006, Dean Simonton ranked the IQs of 42 US presidents. [1]

In 2013, Libb Thims had polled about 25-35 Chicagoans with the in-person queried with: "Who are the Three Smartest American Presidents", of which 18 were able to give answers, the results of which are shown below (Ѻ), as compared to the top 16 Simonton 2006 rankings. [2]

Rank
Smartest Presidents
(2013 colloquial opinion)
Votes
IQG
Smartest Presidents
(2006 Simonton ranking)
IQs








1.Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) 11180
John Adams (1735-1826) 173
2.Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)8160
Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) 160
3.John F. Kennedy (1917–1963)6

John F. Kennedy (1917–1963)158
4.Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945)6

Bill Clinton (1946-)156
5.Bill Clinton (1946-)5

James Madison (1751-1836) 155
6.Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919)5

Jimmy Carter (1924-)153
7.John Adams (1735-1826) 2




8.Woodrow Wilson (1856–1924)2

Woodrow Wilson (1856–1924)152
9.George Washington (1732-1799) 2

Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919)149
10.James Madison (1751-1836) 1

James Garfield (1831–1881)148
11Jimmy Carter (1924-)1

Chester Arthur (1829–1886)148
12.Ronald Reagan (1911–2004)1

Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)148
13.Barack Obama (1961-)1134
Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945)146
14.Lyndon Johnson (1908–1973)1

Millard Fillmore (1800–1874)143
15.Harry Truman (1884–1972)1

John Tyler (1790–1862)142
16.James Monroe (1758–1831)1

Franklin Pierce (1804–1869)141

In 2014, Andrew Soergel and Jah Tolson, of US News and World Reports, averaged the results of five major presidential polls, to rank the 10 worst presidents, as follows: [14]

1. James Buchanan
2. Warren Harding | An ineffectual and indecisive leader who played poker while his friends plunder the US treasury.
3. Andrew Johnson
4. Franklin Pierce
5. Millard Fillmore
6. John Tylor | Stalwart defender of slavery.
7. Ulysses Grant
8. William Harrison | Only 30 days in office.
9. Herbert Hoover | Poor communicator who fueled trade wars and exacerbated the depression.
10. Richard Nixon | Watergate scandal
10. George. W. Bush

In May 2015, Simonton-based, Thims compiled results became a feature Business Insider article penned by Natasha Bertrand. [3]

In May 2015, Lindsey Cook, a data editor at US News and World Report, took the "mean" of the four IQ estimates (IQ at age 1-17, and 18-26; corrected and uncorrected), for each president, from the Simonton (2006) study, as are shown by the IQ simonton M= #s, as shown above. [5]

In 2017, a reprint of the above began to circulate, in the Internet, showing Donald Trump, with an IQ of 156, second from the top.

Quotes
The following are related quotes:

“He who has a faculty of combining these laws of human nature into rules, for the government of society, to procure peace, plenty, liberty, has a great political genius.”
John Adams (1758), “On the Characteristics of Genius” [1]

“Now we are in a position to admire the political genius of Barack Obama. Actually ‘genius’ is probably too strong a word. I don't think that Obama is a genius. He is, however, a highly intelligent man, and he is possessed of a certain kind of low cunning that makes him politically formidable.”
— Dinesh D’Souza (2014), Obama’s America: Unmaking the American Dream (pg. 109)

Notes
N1. This page resulted as a 10 Oct 2017 request of Matthew Rocheleau of the Boston Globe.

References
1. Simonton, Dean K. (2006). “Presidential IQ, Openness, Intellectual Brilliance, and Leadership: Estimates and Correlations for 42 U.S. Chief Executives” (pdf), Political Psychology, 27(4):511-26.
2. Thims, Libb. (2013). "Poll: 3 Smartest American Presidents?" (N=25-35/18), Nov 11.
3. Bertrand Natasha. (2015). “The 15 Smartest US Presidents of All Time” (Ѻ), Business Insider, Mar 30.
4. Walberg, Herbert J. Tsai, Shiow-Ling, Weinstein, Thomas, Gabriel, Cynthia L., Rasher, Sue, P. Roesecrans, Teresa, Rovai, Evangelina, Ide, Judith, Trujillo, Miguel, and Vukosavich, Peter. (1981). “Childhood Traits and Environmental Conditions of Highly Eminent Adults”, Gifted Child Quarterly, 25(3):103-07.
5. Cook, Lindsey. (2015). “Presidential IQs and Success in the Oval Office” (Ѻ), US News and World Report, May 27.
6. Cecil. (2001). “Who Was the Stupidest U.S. President?” (Ѻ), StraightDope.com, Jun 22.
7. Dahlgreen, Will. (2016). “Perceived Intelligence of top 30 Public Figures” (Ѻ), YouGov UK, May 23.
8. Thims, Libb. (2011). "Poll: Who are the Three Smartest Women of All Time?", Street Poll (N=30), Chicago: IoHT Publications.
9. Pumpkin Person. (2014). “IQs of U.S. Presidents” (Ѻ), Brain Size, WordPress, May 03.
10. (a) Bush, George W. (2001). “President Discusses Stem Cell Research”, Aug 09.
(b) Stem cell controversy – Wikipedia.
11. Schwartz, Larry. (2015). “The 10 Smartest (and the Dumbest) Presidents in America’s History: Some Presidents Weren’t Firing on All Cylinders” (Ѻ), AlterNet.org, Feb 28.
12. Coolidge effect – Wikipedia.
13. Cillizza, Chris. (2017). “Donald Trump’s IQ obsession, in 22 quotes” (Ѻ), CNN Politics, Oct 10.
14. Soergel, Andrew and Tolson, Jay. (2014). “The 10 Worst Presidents: Not all U.S. Presidents are missed once they leave the White House” (Ѻ), US News and World Reports, Dec 31. 15. Who was the dumbest American president? (2012) (Ѻ) – Quora.
16. Thims, Libb. (2017). “Poll of Random Chicagoans” [N=20], Oct 15.
17. Who was the smartest US President (2013) (Ѻ) – Quora.

Further reading
Goodwin, Doris. (2009). Team of Rivals: the Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln. Publisher.

External links
IQ estimates [of US Presidents] by academics (section) – Wikipedia.
U.S. Presidential IQ hoax – Wikipedia.

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