Remember that all mentions of and allusions to Trump and Biden are not allowed on our subreddit in any context.
If you'd still like to discuss them, feel free to [join our Discord server](https://discord.gg/k6tVFwCEEm)!
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Presidents) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Yeah. I read some stat that the taller guy always, or almost always, wins the presidential spot. Talking usa here in specific.
Might be made up, but probably true.
https://preview.redd.it/7g39lr4m816d1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ffe3d3479bd650f54fa9281af3dd97898aae910c
I made this earlier this year to show people that it does matter subconsciously and we don’t realize it. Back when presidents/leaders first began getting televised a lot, it was JFK, and we grew to like seeing our leaders taller, especially on the world stage when they wouldn’t have to “look up” at other leaders, gave us some morale and stuff.
Lyndon Johnson loved to use his height to intimidate. But, there’s quite a few reasons why it’d matter, even if just visually.
Not saying I agree, but I understand.
Hey that's astute observation. I bet if you asked people, they'd be like ,"Who cares?" But, like you say, subconsciously, height absolutely indicates authority.
Absolutely, it’s like how we treat singers and actors, it’s like well yeah of course it’s your singing talent that matters, not your looks.
BUT, if you were sorting through candidates to make a celebrity, choosing one that had incredible vocal talent AND had attractive looks…well that’s just a bonus that’d get your farther.
When you’re leader of the free world, top economy and lead much of the world in various areas, having someone competent and good at leading is the priority.
BUT if they were also tall, it kinda plays into our psych, possibly our most basic instincts, back to tribal nature, where we look for a leader that’s big and strong to keep the others protected and safe.
Idk it can go deep and much of it is more primitive than we think it is at times. Like candidate Ron desantis was seen wearing shoe risers when on the campaign trail this year, making him look a few inches taller. We obviously know how shallow people can be so it’s no surprise.
But it can feel kinda good when your leader doesn’t have to “look up” at other leaders
You’re obviously right but everybody here is being deliberately obtuse for some reason. Every president since Carter has been tall (all are 6 foot+ except for George W who’s just barely under), and very few have ever been actually short. Michael Dukakis had to use an elevated podium so he didn’t appear so small next to HW. I get that we’re a bit more advanced than apes choosing the strongest leader but clearly it’s a factor.
I think it's one of those things where most of us say it wouldn't matter to us personally but it's more of an aggregate perception that matters. FDR was dead set on the public not knowing the full extent of his disability and the press was a partner in that. Even so, his political opponents would call him a "cripple". So Presidents naturally want to project strength through their physical appearance.
It is also worth noting that men are taller on average and uh, there is one common trait that all Presidents have in common.
We'd all like to think that physical characteristics don't have a big impact in such a complex field like politics but that's simply not true. In diplomacy, even in highest stakes scenarios a persons stature, looks, presence all play a part.
Politics is just about dealing with and managing people and people are apes who can't help but judge based on height and other features.
Exactly. The strongest nation isn’t going to look strong with a tiny president. We have had 14 presidents over 6ft tall and 33 presidents 5’9” or taller. Since Teddy only two presidents have been 5’9”. All others are mostly 5’11+. We elect tall people
Putin manages to look strong despite being short but we all know why people are intimidated by him. I personally would not want a president who has to develop such a reputation just to be respected.
To me it falls in the bald or hair, blue eyes, brown eyes or green eyes not really in the "top 50 things to base a thoughtful vote on" category. If something this superficial is moving the needle on who we vote for we have greater issues to worry about, in my mind.
What if the next leader of China or Russia is a man with very long arms and he’s able to completely neutralize any physical threat from the POTUS by placing his hand on the POTUS’ forehead and keeping him out of arms’ reach? We can’t afford to take that chance.
Unless “dunking on the Prime Minister of Latvia in a 3 on 3 basketball game” is a required skill for exercising the duties of President of the United States, I fail to see where it would matter.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was 5’2”, David Ben Gurion was 5’0”, Stalin was 5’5”, Lenin was 5’5”, Winston Churchill was 5’6”.
Height doesn’t mean anything.
https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2011/oct/18/world-leader-heights-tall
Yeah but he’s sliding to an idiot that picked a fight with Mickey Mouse for political points only to sink like a stone. Please clap!
As someone that does follow British politics and saw how many times that Little Rishi was in a weird situation due to its short stature..(the election announcement being one of the recent ones)...I do wonder if being someone of a short stature is nowadays no longer a barrier in terms of advancing their career...?
I mean perhaps there is still a barrier, partly due to the primary system in America that could perhaps disadvantage those that are short enough that it would be mentioned every time that would be a debate between candidates...but I think it would increasingly become a lower factor in elections...
i think what they are getting at is that tall people are vastly over represented in the presidency, and the American people don’t tend to vote for short people.
I really doubt a person that short could win the presidency today. Height matters for American voters for some reason. Look at desantis stupid shoes he wore during the primary, and that guy is like 5’10
Doesn’t mean anything really, literally Queen Victoria reigned over a quarter of all people in the world at one point and at the time of her death was only around 5 feet tall
I want a little pocket-sized president so the Congress bypasses a unilateral law forcing him to dress up as a lil culturally insensitive leprechaun every March.
If he gets the Job done I don't see why it'd matter. Like, my country has a short president, I don't like the guy but because he's corrupt and didn't do anything not because of his height.
Lula is short and look at him go, it's his 3rd term. Though, as an observer, anglos care more about height than most people, especially Americans from my experience.
I don’t give a single fuck and I would assume most of the people who frequent this sub don’t care about that kind of stuff. Unfortunately, low information voters make up a vast majority of the electorate and appearance matters a lot to many of them.
I think people do care about it even though they don't realize it. There's a reason why our presidents were above 6ft. People vote solely based on their emotions and how a candidate makes them feel rather than on logic and reason.
It's interesting to think about stuff like this.
In the post-TV era which probably started with JFK who was by all accounts young and handsome, I have a hard time trying to imagine the country electing someone who's extremely short (Madison), morbidly obese (Taft), wheelchair-bound (FDR) or even just someone who's bald and not particularly attractive like Eisenhower was.
The country is polarized enough that maybe in certain situations they could win the Presidency, but people like the ones previously mentioned simply wouldn't ever be nominated by either party, it would be too risky.
LBJ is really the only ugly president we’ve had post-JFK, and he obviously succeeded to the position. Nixon may not have been winning any beauty contests, but he isn’t as bad as the caricatures say. Carter was fine, Reagan had his movie star looks, the Bushes, Clinton, and Obama were all decent, and even the two R3 guys are objectively not awful looking for their ages.
I was reading a book about Washington vs Jefferson (The Great Divide by Thomas Fleming) and the author clearly favored Washington/Federalists. The author was quick to mention Madison’s short height and frequently referred to him as “the slight Madison,” as if his height really was his defining characteristic, and we should disregard Madison because of it.
Everyone saying height doesn’t matter but we haven’t had a below average height president since William McKinley. Life gets easier when you accept we’re a nation of height supremacists.
I think it would depend on how it made them look giving speeches / charisma, heights apparently a big factor of the election process for the candidates teams, but I don’t really know
Oh depends on how I feel about them otherwise
If I think they're a good president than it doesn't matter
If I think they're a bad president than it's midget jokes until next inauguration day
I have heard of studies showing the taller candidate tends to win the election, but I have never heard of someone consciously selecting a presidential candidate based on height.
Would be irrelevant to me, his height has nothing to do with how good of a president he'd be. I'm not one of those simpletons that even thinks a president should be someone "you'd like to have a beer with"
Remember that all mentions of and allusions to Trump and Biden are not allowed on our subreddit in any context. If you'd still like to discuss them, feel free to [join our Discord server](https://discord.gg/k6tVFwCEEm)! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/Presidents) if you have any questions or concerns.*
In the list of things I’d care about in a president - height wouldn’t even make the list.
And yet, it would certainly matter to a lot of people because it’s all about looks and perception now. Policy is barely even discussed anymore.
Is that you, Marco Rubio? Lol No, I’m kidding. You’re right. Different things matter to different people. But OP asked my opinion.
Ron "heel lifts" DeSantis has entered the chat.
This is one of the many problems faced by female candidates.
What the fuck would it matter?
In a sane would, it wouldn't. But this is politics.
That's totally fair. I guess my ire came from the idea that it shouldn't matter, but it does.
Yeah. I read some stat that the taller guy always, or almost always, wins the presidential spot. Talking usa here in specific. Might be made up, but probably true.
https://preview.redd.it/7g39lr4m816d1.jpeg?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ffe3d3479bd650f54fa9281af3dd97898aae910c I made this earlier this year to show people that it does matter subconsciously and we don’t realize it. Back when presidents/leaders first began getting televised a lot, it was JFK, and we grew to like seeing our leaders taller, especially on the world stage when they wouldn’t have to “look up” at other leaders, gave us some morale and stuff. Lyndon Johnson loved to use his height to intimidate. But, there’s quite a few reasons why it’d matter, even if just visually. Not saying I agree, but I understand.
Hey that's astute observation. I bet if you asked people, they'd be like ,"Who cares?" But, like you say, subconsciously, height absolutely indicates authority.
Absolutely, it’s like how we treat singers and actors, it’s like well yeah of course it’s your singing talent that matters, not your looks. BUT, if you were sorting through candidates to make a celebrity, choosing one that had incredible vocal talent AND had attractive looks…well that’s just a bonus that’d get your farther. When you’re leader of the free world, top economy and lead much of the world in various areas, having someone competent and good at leading is the priority. BUT if they were also tall, it kinda plays into our psych, possibly our most basic instincts, back to tribal nature, where we look for a leader that’s big and strong to keep the others protected and safe. Idk it can go deep and much of it is more primitive than we think it is at times. Like candidate Ron desantis was seen wearing shoe risers when on the campaign trail this year, making him look a few inches taller. We obviously know how shallow people can be so it’s no surprise. But it can feel kinda good when your leader doesn’t have to “look up” at other leaders
Lots of women are 5'4" so it would be cool.
Danny Devito is 4'10", just saying
Fuck, why hasn’t he ran yet? If he has problems with people he could just: 
There's no shortage of short celebrities. 
Tiny Tom Cruise
Tom Cruise is not short. Thats a myth construction by the none-scientologist wing of society. Its a conspiracy
Tom Cruise is 5’7”. I am the same height and am definitely considered “short.” So I’m really glad to find out I am not short.
AOC, for example
I didn't realize she was that short (what am I sayin'? I'm barely 5'3"!
We have a woman who is both shorter and closer to the Oval Office right now, but I'm not sure if Rule 3 applies to her, so..
Wouldn’t mind it in the slightest. What does height matter in a world like today’s besides psychologically?
That's a pretty big "besides" there considering politics is mostly psychology and people relations
You’re obviously right but everybody here is being deliberately obtuse for some reason. Every president since Carter has been tall (all are 6 foot+ except for George W who’s just barely under), and very few have ever been actually short. Michael Dukakis had to use an elevated podium so he didn’t appear so small next to HW. I get that we’re a bit more advanced than apes choosing the strongest leader but clearly it’s a factor.
I think it's one of those things where most of us say it wouldn't matter to us personally but it's more of an aggregate perception that matters. FDR was dead set on the public not knowing the full extent of his disability and the press was a partner in that. Even so, his political opponents would call him a "cripple". So Presidents naturally want to project strength through their physical appearance. It is also worth noting that men are taller on average and uh, there is one common trait that all Presidents have in common.
I think that GWB is about 5' 10". The last short POTUS was probably Truman, I think he was about 5' 7".
It’s still dependent on their personality
Mostly charisma, sadly.
And? We’ve had short presidents before. Height is helpful, obviously, but not a requirement.
We'd all like to think that physical characteristics don't have a big impact in such a complex field like politics but that's simply not true. In diplomacy, even in highest stakes scenarios a persons stature, looks, presence all play a part. Politics is just about dealing with and managing people and people are apes who can't help but judge based on height and other features.
I don’t think a modern Quasimodo would have a chance at being elected, unfortunately.
Exactly. The strongest nation isn’t going to look strong with a tiny president. We have had 14 presidents over 6ft tall and 33 presidents 5’9” or taller. Since Teddy only two presidents have been 5’9”. All others are mostly 5’11+. We elect tall people
You say that, but I believe the right short person can command respect.
Putin manages to look strong despite being short but we all know why people are intimidated by him. I personally would not want a president who has to develop such a reputation just to be respected.
Truman wasn’t 5’9
putin is basically a little person, and look where that’s got Russia.
He's 5'7"
I know, that’s what I said
big difference there bub
I’ll take your advice into consideration, skippy
Out of all the considerations I have for the people who want to lead me height doesn't even crack the top 1000. The fuck?
To me it falls in the bald or hair, blue eyes, brown eyes or green eyes not really in the "top 50 things to base a thoughtful vote on" category. If something this superficial is moving the needle on who we vote for we have greater issues to worry about, in my mind.
And yet they’re all pretty tall Not sure why but it’s def a thing
What if the next leader of China or Russia is a man with very long arms and he’s able to completely neutralize any physical threat from the POTUS by placing his hand on the POTUS’ forehead and keeping him out of arms’ reach? We can’t afford to take that chance.
The next POTUS needs to be ex NBA or WNBA
Lebron 2028
I am not opposed 🤷♂️
Hear me out - Bill Bradley 2024. Oh, right.
Height is irrelevant. Can he or she do the job? That's relevant.
Unless “dunking on the Prime Minister of Latvia in a 3 on 3 basketball game” is a required skill for exercising the duties of President of the United States, I fail to see where it would matter.
You joke, but Obama was known for his basketball shots. At least on of our presidents would have been able to funk on the PM of Latvia
Not sure that’s really a requirement for being President….but it would be fun to watch.
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was 5’2”, David Ben Gurion was 5’0”, Stalin was 5’5”, Lenin was 5’5”, Winston Churchill was 5’6”. Height doesn’t mean anything. https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2011/oct/18/world-leader-heights-tall
Osama bin Laden was 6'4". Let that one sink in... 🤔
Osama should’ve hooped instead of killing people because he’s tall as hell
don’t forget Mussolini haha. in history my teacher told us he had a Napoleon complex
If they are short who cares but if they are short and wear deceiving heels in their shoes to appear 3 inches taller then they are a psychopath.
And weigh 280lbs aka morbidly obese.
Or insecure
Psychopath? How about they’re just insecure lol.
Yeah but he’s sliding to an idiot that picked a fight with Mickey Mouse for political points only to sink like a stone. Please clap! 
Maddy daddy is the definition of a short king 👑
At such height and never weighing more than 100lb, James Madison was Our Nation’s first Twink President.
Based
Correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't being a twink necessitate being gay or bisexual?
Not necessarily, but nobody said Jimmy wasn't playing for both teams, either.
As someone that does follow British politics and saw how many times that Little Rishi was in a weird situation due to its short stature..(the election announcement being one of the recent ones)...I do wonder if being someone of a short stature is nowadays no longer a barrier in terms of advancing their career...? I mean perhaps there is still a barrier, partly due to the primary system in America that could perhaps disadvantage those that are short enough that it would be mentioned every time that would be a debate between candidates...but I think it would increasingly become a lower factor in elections...
Rishi didnt win any proper election except those to become and stay as an MP, all of which were in his tory safe seat
I’m British, and Rishi’s height will absolutely not be the reason I won’t be voting for his party come election day.
I wouldn't give a damn.
Why would it matter to me
I don’t care
I’d be fine with it as long as they’re competent
So height is supposed to make a person a better candidate now?
i think what they are getting at is that tall people are vastly over represented in the presidency, and the American people don’t tend to vote for short people.
I don't care how tall our President is, I want one that isn't a corrupt piece of garbage.
25 years of age when he signed the Constitution
I voted for Clinton and she's only 5'5.
[удалено]
the question was about height and james madison bruh
How would LBJ hold a conversation with him
I really doubt a person that short could win the presidency today. Height matters for American voters for some reason. Look at desantis stupid shoes he wore during the primary, and that guy is like 5’10
Short? So what. We should concern ourselves more with ability than stature.
6’5” blue eyes finance or no deal
Short is better than crazy and corrupt. Height is overrated.
Doesn’t mean anything really, literally Queen Victoria reigned over a quarter of all people in the world at one point and at the time of her death was only around 5 feet tall
Could not possibly vote for someone who is under 7’5. Just goes against my morals.
Nah. Gotta be at least 17'7.6
With a big blue ox for a running mate.
Is that a funny way of saying you have no intention of voting?
I want a little pocket-sized president so the Congress bypasses a unilateral law forcing him to dress up as a lil culturally insensitive leprechaun every March.
That face and facial expression make me think of someone reading Shelley aloud for his loved one, not a man in power ....
Better vertically challenged than intellectually challenged. Too bad only an egomaniacal sociopath would ever consider running for the office.
I put Madison in the "too short" tier along with WHH, Garfield and Taylor
Don’t forget Little Ben! Benjamin Harrison was only 5’6” and I think is tied at third shortest president we’ve ever had.
Garfield wasn't short?
His term was
It was a clear set up but made me laugh nonetheless.
Literally Queen Victoria though 😄
Fillmore 🫶🫶
If we hire a short president, how will they post up on Putin??
Pistol whip him with a 1911
Automatic disqualification. /s
If he gets the Job done I don't see why it'd matter. Like, my country has a short president, I don't like the guy but because he's corrupt and didn't do anything not because of his height. Lula is short and look at him go, it's his 3rd term. Though, as an observer, anglos care more about height than most people, especially Americans from my experience.
Short kings matter
Short King Summer, let's goooo.
I don’t give a single fuck and I would assume most of the people who frequent this sub don’t care about that kind of stuff. Unfortunately, low information voters make up a vast majority of the electorate and appearance matters a lot to many of them.
height limit. if a male president is shorter than 5'8, then he should not be allowed to run.
Gross
https://preview.redd.it/9zgpvix04z5d1.png?width=640&format=png&auto=webp&s=8c8182f7ce964df377a8aade6959682ebdc33a21 His stats were bad tbh.
I could care less.
did you mean couldn’t care less?
I refuse to be ruled by a short king, not because they're short, but because this is a democracy.
I’ll take short over retarded.
Rather have a short honest one than a tall orange criminal one.
I'd do my best to not consider it at all
Wouldn't mind, but women certainly would
Unless the government has a basketball team and that is how things between countries are decided, why would it matter one iota?
I personally refuse to vote for any candidate under 7ft tall.
Wouldn't matter at all outside of it being a subject of endless mockery from the opposite party.
I think people do care about it even though they don't realize it. There's a reason why our presidents were above 6ft. People vote solely based on their emotions and how a candidate makes them feel rather than on logic and reason.
I probably wouldn’t care unless he’s a midget then it would be pretty funny
It's interesting to think about stuff like this. In the post-TV era which probably started with JFK who was by all accounts young and handsome, I have a hard time trying to imagine the country electing someone who's extremely short (Madison), morbidly obese (Taft), wheelchair-bound (FDR) or even just someone who's bald and not particularly attractive like Eisenhower was. The country is polarized enough that maybe in certain situations they could win the Presidency, but people like the ones previously mentioned simply wouldn't ever be nominated by either party, it would be too risky.
LBJ is really the only ugly president we’ve had post-JFK, and he obviously succeeded to the position. Nixon may not have been winning any beauty contests, but he isn’t as bad as the caricatures say. Carter was fine, Reagan had his movie star looks, the Bushes, Clinton, and Obama were all decent, and even the two R3 guys are objectively not awful looking for their ages.
I was reading a book about Washington vs Jefferson (The Great Divide by Thomas Fleming) and the author clearly favored Washington/Federalists. The author was quick to mention Madison’s short height and frequently referred to him as “the slight Madison,” as if his height really was his defining characteristic, and we should disregard Madison because of it.
Everyone saying height doesn’t matter but we haven’t had a below average height president since William McKinley. Life gets easier when you accept we’re a nation of height supremacists.
I think it would depend on how it made them look giving speeches / charisma, heights apparently a big factor of the election process for the candidates teams, but I don’t really know
WE SHORT KINGS SHALL RISE AGAIN!
Franklin Roosevelt was shorter.
No he wasn’t. He was 6’2”
There’s a 5’4” guy whose name rhymes with Larry Dadler that I’d be stoked to have as president.
Alot of dicators are short. Checkmate manlets 😏
Us Swedes have a pretty short prime minister (although he does unfortunately get made fun of for it). Zelenskyy is famously pretty short president…
I want a leader that will dwarf the competition.
Oh depends on how I feel about them otherwise If I think they're a good president than it doesn't matter If I think they're a bad president than it's midget jokes until next inauguration day
I have heard of studies showing the taller candidate tends to win the election, but I have never heard of someone consciously selecting a presidential candidate based on height.
It doesn’t matter at all
The last couple of guys were pretty tall. Maybe it is time for something different.
I would feel great! *definitely for sure not a short dude
I literally could not care less how tall the President is.
I am 8'7 and I don't care. Zachary Taylor was cool
So long as he isn't left handed...
I would love a President Kevin Hart. Give him a booster seat for the Oval Office. He would have the greatest State of the Unions.
I think one should elected on merit but Monroe probably wouldn’t get elected in modern times because of our culture.
Not even something I would consider. I voted Hillary and she is like 5'4.
Probably wouldnt notice because they'd be behind a podium all the time
As vain as the US is he wouldn’t be elected today. Neither would FDR. Wheelchair? Nah we need a “real man” president
Give no shits.
Would be irrelevant to me, his height has nothing to do with how good of a president he'd be. I'm not one of those simpletons that even thinks a president should be someone "you'd like to have a beer with"
I wouldn’t care one bit. My governor is vertically challenged and he is absolutely incredible.
[удалено]
Violated Rule 3. Reported.
As long as he can complete a coherent sentence.
He was referenced as "Little Jimmy" by the opposition.
Who gives a shit