The statue of the 16th President of the US Abraham Lincoln is seen inside the Lincoln Memorial in 2009 in Washington, DC.

Days after celebrations honoring his bicentennial, Abraham Lincoln kept his rank as best US president, according to a survey of 65 historians that landed George W. Bush 36th out of 42 overall.

Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865), the first US president George Washington (1789-1797) and New Deal architect Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933-1945) were ranked the top three out of the 42 men who have been the country's former chiefs, according to a survey by cable channel C-SPAN.

John F. Kennedy came in sixth, ahead of Ronald Reagan (10th) and Bill Clinton, who jumped to 15th from 21st during the last survey in 2000, when Lincoln also ranked first.

Of all modern presidents, Bush, who left office last month after an eight-year tenure¹, fared worst at 36th, nearly 10 spots behind Richard Nixon (27th), who was forced to resign in disgrace in the aftermath of the Watergate scandal.

Bush scored lowest in international relations, where he ranked 41st, and in economic management, where he placed 40th. His best ranking was 24th, in having "pursued equal justice for all." He placed 25th in crisis leadership, and for his vision and agenda setting.

Reagan fared well in public persuasion², where he was propelled to third spot, from his 10th place overall.

Bill Clinton also received accolades³ for his public persuasion, landing a 10th spot in that category, up from 15th overall.

But presidential historians were critical of the last Democratic president's moral authority, placing him 37th, ahead of Richard Nixon (41st), but behind Bush (35th).

Jimmy Carter fell from 22nd to 25th overall, and many other presidents moved positions. The fluidity of perceptions of past presidents reflects contemporary concerns, according to Edna Medford, a survey leader and participant.

"Today's concerns shape our views of the past, be it in the area of foreign policy, managing the economy or human rights," she said in a statement.

Presidents James Buchanan, Andrew Johnson, Franklin Pierce and William Henry Harrison ranked worst overall.

在美国纪念已故前总统亚伯拉罕•林肯诞辰两百周年之际，一项对65位历史学家开展的调查显示，在美国历任42位总统中，林肯被认为是最出色的总统，而小布什则仅排在第36位。

这项由美国有线频道C-SPAN开展的“历届总统排名”调查显示，亚伯拉罕•林肯（1861-1865）、美国第一任总统乔治•华盛顿（1789-1797）和“新政”总统富兰克林•D•罗斯福名列总统榜前三位。

约翰·F·肯尼迪名列第六，唐纳德·里根位列第十，比尔·克林顿从2000年上一次排名的第21位跃居今年的第15位。在2000年的调查中，林肯也名列榜首。

在现代的历任总统中，刚于上月结束八年任期并离任的布什总统得分最低，仅排在第36位，落后因水门事件而被迫辞职的尼克松总统（第26位）近10位。

布什在“国际关系”和“经济管理”两项的得分最低，分别排在第41位和第40位。布什得分最高的一项是“实现公平正义”，排在第24位。他在“危机处理”和“远见和议程设定”两项中均排在第25名。

综合排名第十位的里根总统在“公众劝导”一项得分较高，排名第三。

综合排名第15位的克林顿在这一项的得分也较高，名列第十。

但这位上届民主党总统在“道德权威”方面得到的评价可不太好，仅排在第37位，高于尼克松（41名），落后于小布什（35名）。

吉米•卡特从上一次排名的第22位跌至第25位，而其他很多总统较之上次的排名都有所上升。调查负责人及参与者埃德娜•梅德福说，排名的变动受到如今人们关注点的影响。

她在一份声明中说：“无论是外交政策、经济管理还是人权领域，人们现在的关注点会影响我们对过去的看法。”

排在最后几位的总统是詹姆斯•布坎南、安德鲁•约翰逊、富兰克林•皮尔斯以及威廉•亨利•哈里森。