Herbert Hoover's Greatest Leader

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Pertinently, substandard world leaders are often defined by a few, particular events that are initiated by them. Through these means, a case can be made establishing Herbert Hoover as the worst U.S. president since 1900. His single term from 1929 to 1933, superimposed by the Great Depression, is characterized as a vain attempt to pacify the domestic woes experienced by the downturn in the economies of several nations. Oppositely, Chairman of China Mao Zedong’s main programs brought myriad destruction and death to a nation in dire need of growth; thus, Zedong is the worst world leader since 1900. Overall, Hoover’s support of Voluntarism and the business-oriented RFC cement him as the worst U.S. leader; Mao Zedong’s Great Leap Forward and Cultural Revolution give proof to the designation of the “Honorable Chairman” as the worst world leader. Herbert Hoover’s single term can patently be described as one of the most onerous. The Great Depression struck the country barely seven months into Hoover’s presidency. According to America: Past and Present, Vol. 2 …show more content…

According to Thayer Watkins of SJSU, the Great Leap Forward, with the goal of self-industrialization, included a collectivizing agriculture initiative coupled with compulsory tool-making that backfired, causing a famine (1-4). According to Arifa Akbar of The Independent, at least forty-five million were killed during the Great Leap Forward, just ten million less than the death toll of WWII (1). However, Zedong only dismissed reports, minding not the extremely exorbitant death toll but his control over the populace. In fact, the Chairman remained reticent and refused to accept that his initiative failed and left the rebuilding to an alternative leader (Watkins 4-5). Furthermore, the turmoil only continued to wither away the very foundation of China following Zedong’s Cultural

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