A new ranking of presidents by a group of self-styled experts determined that Abraham Lincoln is America’s greatest president, while Donald Trump ranks last.

Lincoln topped the list of presidents in the 2024 Presidential Greatness Project expert survey for the third time, following his top spot in the rankings in the 2015 and 2018 versions of the survey.

According to a release from the Presidential Greatness Project, which touts itself as the ‘foremost organization of social science experts in presidential politics,’ the 154 respondents to the survey included ‘current and recent members of the Presidents & Executive Politics Section of the American Political Science Association…as well as scholars who have recently published peer-reviewed academic research in key related scholarly journals or academic presses.’

The respondents were asked to rank presidents on a scale of 0-100, with 0 being a failure, 50 being average and 100 being great. Rounding out the top five in the rankings were Franklin Delano Roosevelt at number two, George Washington at three, Theodore Roosevelt at four, and Thomas Jefferson at five.

Trump was ranked in last place in the survey, being ranked worse than James Buchanan at 44, Andrew Johnson at 43, Franklin Peirce at 42, and William Henry Harrison at 41.

Respondents were also tracked by their political affiliation and ideology, which the release argues did not ‘tend to make a major difference overall’ in the rankings, though there were some outliers, mainly with recent presidents. 

Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush and Trump were more likely to be ranked higher by conservatives or Republicans, with Reagan being ranked an average of 5th by Republicans respondents, Bush 19th and Trump 41st. Among Democrat respondents, Reagan was rated an average of 18th, Bush 33rd and Trump 45th.

A similar partisan divide was noticeable for Barack Obama and President Biden, who ranked an average of 6th and 13th, respectively, among Democrat respondents, and 15th and 30th by Republicans. Bill Clinton, a Democrat, was ranked higher by Republican respondents (10th) than he was by Democrats (12th).

The divide resulted in an overall ranking of 7th for Obama, 12th for Clinton, 14th for Biden, 16th for Reagan and 32nd for Bush.

The commander of German Space Command, Maj. Gen. Michael Traut, said a Russian nuclear weapon detonating in orbit could permanently destroy ‘global commons.’ 

Speaking at an event Friday night on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, Traut said he was left with ‘more questions than answers’ regarding U.S. intelligence reportedly indicating that Russia is developing an anti-satellite weapon in space with a nuclear component. Traut spelled out the consequences of a worst-case scenario. 

‘If somebody dares to explode a nuclear weapon in high atmosphere or even space, this would be more or less the end of the usability of that global commons [of orbit],’ Traut said, according to Politico, describing the devastating effects of an indiscriminate nuclear blast in space radiating out a satellite-frying electromagnetic pulse across low earth orbit. 

‘Nobody would survive an action like that – no satellite, either Chinese or Russian and American or European,’ Traut added. ‘If somebody calculates rationally, nobody would employ such a weapon in space.’

Ludwig Möller, the director of the European Space Policy Institute, predicted an economic fallout of trillions of dollars in the banking and energy sectors if Russia were to successfully knock out commercial satellites. While China and India are also fast developing their space technologies, Russia has been conducting military aerospace deals with the sanctioned states of Iran and North Korea while the war continues in Ukraine, according to Politico. 

Germany, France and the United Kingdom opened their prospective space commands over the past several years to build credible defense of government and commercial infrastructure in orbit. In signing the National Defense Authorization Act in law in December 2019, former President Trump created the U.S. Space Force, the first new armed service since 1947.

Despite the new U.S. intelligence about Russia developing some sort of anti-satellite nuclear weapon, White House adviser John Kirby denied there was an imminent threat. 

‘Though Russia’s pursuit of this particular capability is troubling, there is no immediate threat to anyone’s safety,’ Kirby said Thursday.  ‘We are not talking about a weapon that can be used to attack human beings or cause physical destruction here on Earth.’

House Intelligence Committee Chair Rep. Mike Turner, R-Ohio, released a cryptic but alarming statement on Feb. 14, regarding information about the Russians’ activities, which he framed as a ‘serious national security threat,’ and urged President Biden to declassify it. 

Some sources suggested it was a nuclear weapon. Others suspect a weapon that is nuclear-powered but not a nuclear warhead.

The White House confirmed the following day that the Russian system under development is a space-based anti-satellite weapon, and that if it were deployed it would violate the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, which bans weapons of mass destruction in space. The Kremlin responded by dismissing the reports as a ‘malicious fabrication.’

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

The 66th Daytona 500, one of the biggest NASCAR races of the year, has been rescheduled for Monday, Feb. 19. For anyone watching, it will look like a rerun of the Joe Biden presidency. The cars will drive around in circles, always turn left and many who watch will be waiting for a crash.

Americans got a terrifying reminder of just how true this is following the release of Special Counsel Robert Hur’s report on how Biden mishandled classified documents. The report skewered the president as ‘a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory.’ Soon after, Biden called a hasty press conference to rebut those charges.

It wasn’t an ordinary press event. It was a sneak peek at the great race for the 2024 election. And the president crashed at high speed. Viewers tuned in to see Biden first recite prepared remarks. He faced the press to dispel criticisms of his mental ability. Biden promptly described Egyptian President Abdel Fatah El-Sisi as the ‘president of Mexico.’

A mistake of about 7,600 miles. As Maxwell Smart used to say in the spy comedy ‘Get Smart,’ ‘Missed it by that much.’ 

Team Biden responded to the PR disaster by taking their whole media strategy in for a pit stop to work on it. That meant Biden avoided the friendly Super Bowl interview Democrat presidents get prior to the big game. He stayed on that track by avoiding press inquiries during a Feb. 13 event, but vowed to ‘come back and answer questions later.’

The campaign went full speed on that avoiding-crashes strategy by embracing the Chinese social media app TikTok. The president appeared on the app with a short, pre-planned interview under the comment, ‘Hey by the way, we just joined TikTok.’ Ahh, yes, TikTok, the app the president barred federal employees from having on their phones this time last year. 

No one asks you tough questions on TikTok, either. So, it’s an easy ride.

Journalists raced around in circles, reporting on the president’s memory lapses. As CNN put it, ‘Biden’s allies can’t agree on how to combat questions about his age and memory.’ 

But they sure tried. At least three different ways.

The first attempt followed the incident with some honesty. The New York Times explained how, ‘Eight Words and a Verbal Slip Put Biden’s Age Back at the Center of 2024.’ The Washington Post had a similar, crash-and-burn look at the memory lapses, ‘Special counsel report paints scathing picture of Biden’s memory.’ And ABC News went with, ‘Special counsel blows open debate over Biden age and memory: ANALYSIS.’

The Times editorial board slammed Biden, saying, ‘His assurances, in other words, didn’t work,’ adding, ‘He must do better.’ 

The media then raced to defend the president with medical professionals. ABC News cited doctors declaring, ‘Forgetting dates doesn’t mean President Biden’s decision-making or cognitive fitness is failing: Doctors.’ NBC drove home that point, ‘As Biden’s memory issues draw attention, neurologists weigh in.’

Finally, the media cautioned that there was a similarity between the two likely nominees. AP stayed in that lane. ‘Verbal gaffe or sign of trouble? Mixing up names like Biden and Trump have done is pretty common.’ NPR followed right behind with, ‘Is there a double standard on age between Trump and Biden?’ Or, as Forbes put it, ‘Jon Stewart Mocks ‘Similarly Challenged’ Biden And Trump In Daily Show Return.’

Meanwhile, Team Biden kept focused on turning ever left to make up for lost ground.

During the president’s failed presser, he openly criticized Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu, claiming that Israel’s response to the worst act of barbarism attacking Jewish people since the Holocaust as ‘over the top.’ Subsequent reporting had Biden referring to Netanyahu as an ‘a–hole’ at least three separate times.

That left turn is designed to placate the liberals who want Biden to abandon the longtime ally and leave Gaza to terrorist Hamas.

Then there’s the president’s liquid natural gas export ban. It’s aimed at keeping the climate extremists happy even if it aids America’s adversaries in Russia. Another left turn.

And, of course, Biden had to defend his failed border strategy and its architect Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who was impeached by the House of Representatives. ‘History will not look kindly on House Republicans for their blatant act of unconstitutional partisanship,’ he argued as thousands more illegals crossed the border.

Add in Biden’s failed Houthi campaign because he fears confronting Iran and the president is turning left so often, he would have made NASCAR great Jeff Gordon dizzy. 

All of that has Democrats worried that Biden might not even complete the 2024 race. Politico, the voice of the Democrat establishment, warned, ‘Democrats Might Need a Plan B. Here’s What It Looks Like.’ And wannabe President Kamala Harris is eager to shed her Veep title. The Hill wrote, ‘Harris says she’s ready to serve amid questions about Biden’s age.’

If the race continues like this and Democrats want a better chance to win in November, they might need someone else in the driver’s seat. Maybe they’ll open the Democratic convention with Carrie Underwood singing, ‘Jesus, Take the Wheel.’