Great Presidential Wit A Collection of Humorous Anecdotes and Quotations

by Bob Dole

The senator and former presidential candidate collects bipartisan presidential humor from famous, and not-so-famous, chief executives, from Washington to Clinton. 125,000 first printing.

Genres: History, Politics, Humor, Nonfiction, Presidents, American History

Hardcover

First published January 20, 2001

About the author

Robert J. Dole was born on the twenty-second day of July 1923, in Russell Kansas. He served as a US military officer during WWII, Kansas House of Representatives member, lawyer, County Attorney of Russell County, United States House of Representatives, US Senator, USA Vice President Candidate in 1976 (ran with Gerald Ford as President), competed for the USA Presidential Canidate slot on the Republican ticket in 1980 (losing out to Reagan), and in 1988 (losing to Bush), and Republican nominee for US President in 1996.

Dole was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal on January 17, 2018. He was married to former U.S. Senator Elizabeth Dole of North Carolina.

In February 2021 he announced he had been diagnosed with stage four lung cancer. He passed away on December 5th, 2021.

Reviews

[Gary Anderson]

Senator Bob Dole was a pretty funny guy in his heyday, and he lends his sense of humor to this collection of (hypothetically) humorous things said by and about Presidents George Washington through Bill Clinton. (At the time of publication, the 2000 election was still undecided, so there is a "Waiting in the Wings" section at the end devoted to George W. Bush and Al Gore.) As it turns out, the comedic stylings of Rutherford B. Hayes and some of the others have lost their luster over time, if they ever had any in the first place. Still, the parts that are funny are enjoyable, and the parts that don't rise to that level provide interesting glimpses into these men and their times.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

It had its moments, but the book dragged on with things that were said that weren't funny. It was difficult to finish.

[Bill Tress · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are times when after reading intense and weighty subjects, a person needs to kick back and just enjoy a whimsical and funny book; “Great Presidential Wit” is such a periodical.
I lived at one time in our nation’s Capital and loved the experience. Among its many pleasures is the opportunity to rub shoulders with the rich and famous.
On a Fourth of July Saturday, my wife and I were at the top of the steps at the Lincoln Memorial. Looking down I saw Bob Dole and his famous wife Elizabeth ascending the steps. No entourage, no secret service, just Mr. and Mrs. Dole coming towards us. You could tell by their facial expression that they were happy to be out and about, and they seemed open to greeting people. So, we approached them, and then I froze up and mumbled some feeble greetings and kept moving while others stopped and talked to these famous people. A beautiful Washington morning and people were friendly and celebrating our nation’s Independence Day, it was so uplifting! This vision has returned to my mind every 4th of July since.
Bob, who had a great sense of humor, wrote this book about all our Presidents and their varying degrees of humor. It is funny and yet it presents a time long gone from our politics. Great and important men laughed at themselves while showing their humanity. Some of these men were gifted storytellers but all of them had the ability to insert the stiletto into an adversary, yet it seemed to be part of the political game and many of these men were friends. These jabs at the other party or a rival seemed far less venomous than the politics of 2023 and that is what makes this book enjoyable.
I related to the Presidential humor of the era in which I live, best because the events came back to me when reading the remarks of these men made in speeches or debates. I put Ronald Reagan right up at the top of the list. I think his acting background gave him a sense of timing that produced the greatest dramatic effect on his remarks. Yet, I must say that even the most stoic of them had their moments.
Added to the pleasure of this book is the fact that I got it at a library sale at a great price, so how could I miss it? If it becomes available, grab it because you will get a chuckle out of it regardless of your party affiliation.

[Chuck Neumann · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Great Presidential Wit" by Bob Dole is a fun and educational book. Bob Dole, a long time senator and 1996 GOP candidate for President, was a very witty man himself. He states that he wishes he was in the book, not just the writer. He gives many examples of Presidential wit for each President, though they are fewer for Presidents he feels are less witty. You can only find so many witty comments from Millard Fillmore, after all. Mr.Dole divides the Presidents into groups; A class by themselves, Yankee Wits, Plain Speakers, Classroom Humorists, Funnier than average, You thought they were Dull, Stick in the mud, The jokes on them, and waiting in the wings. The last chapter was for George W Bush and Al Gore as this came out during the 2000 election. I kind of wish he just listed the Presidents in order, as some In the "lower" chapters I felt were wittier than some rated higher. Of course, Mr. Dole could hardly mention all the humorous things said or done by the Presidents, but he gives the reader a good overview. I mentioned this book was also educational,as he gives some interesting insights into the events occurring during each President's terms. I enjoyed this book and believe most readers will as well.

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book contains bits and stories about all the United States presidents up to the time of George W. Bush running for office against Al Gore. Some of the bits I found funny, others I wish I knew more background about the president and what he was facing in his term of office to make this story funny and worth sharing. This book really pointed out how I know next to nothing about our presidents. I did happen to write some stuff down to look up more about it later.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved all the anecdotes, it is amazing how we are taught that Presidents are so serious and straight-laced, it was great to see they are human too! A quick read and can be read out of order if one cares too. I enjoyed many of the anecdotes many of the presidents who I never knew where funny.

[Jason Pierce · Rating 2 out of 5]

And what does Starscream have to do with this book? Absolutely nothing, just like what war is purportedly good for. Although he does occasionally run for president on the Decepticratic ticket.







Once he was so convinced he won that he took over the POTUS podium on inauguration day.


"I will make Cybertron great again!"



Yes, it's bad comedy, and I'm afraid all of that was more humorous than most of this book. But I stand by the sentiments expressed in the initial picture, and I say it without a trace of Starscream's sarcasm: it does pain me to give this book two stars. I like Bob Dole, and I would've voted for him in 1996 if I hadn't been five days too young to cast a ballot. (12-9-20 update: Apparently if I had been a Democrat in Georgia I could've voted anyway, but alas, I'm a Virginia Republican). I would love to say that this is a great book, but I can't. Part of it is the title and the cover, both of which are quite misleading.



One would think that this is loaded with zingers, but that's not the case, so the maxim "never judge a book by its cover" applies here. The only two presidents I consider funny would be Lincoln and Reagan (both Republicans, I might add), and since the book is ranked from funniest to dullest, they took the top spots. That's not to say that the others were all dullards, and there were other amusing stories, but Lincoln and Reagan were in a "class by themselves," though Dole includes both Roosevelts in that section, and while they were the wittiest of the Dems, they can't touch the other two.

What we really have here is a collection of anecdotes, and I'd give this more stars if it were advertised as such. Since it's called Great Presidential Wit, and the picture shows a lot of presidents laughing (most of whom I can identify, I'm ashamed to say), I was left really disappointed. 80% of what's in here is stuff that only friends and family of the person involved would find amusing; for everyone else, you had to be there. For most of the presidents in the bottom half, there were more quotes/stories about them, normally insulting ones, than there were from them, and that doesn't fall under the category of "presidential wit" at all.

One amusing thing about this book is the date it went to the printer, which was sometime between November 7, 2000 and December 12, 2000, and I'm sure many of you remember that month-long Punch and Judy show. (12-9-20 update: looks like history is going to repeat itself this year and then some). Dole had material put together for both W. Bush and Gore, but since the recount was taking forever, he couldn't include the most recent president, so he gave us what he had for both candidates. Bush was definitely the funnier of the two, and he probably would've ended up in the top ten; love him or hate him, he was rather witty. He definitely got his mother's genes in that department, and if Barbara Bush had been eligible for a place in this book, she could've been up next to Lincoln and Reagan.

Barbara Bush (and by extension, Dubya) is actually supposed to be a very distant relative since she was a Pierce. Franklin Pierce is supposed to be an uncle of mine, and he and Barbara were fourth cousins four times removed. But the two couldn't be more different in the humor department since uncle Frank was third to last in Dole's list, and he really does deserve to be there.

One other thing I didn't like about the book was there were no sources cited. Truman had a lot to say about several of the presidents, including uncle Frank, and I would love to know where Dole got that information. There are a few books of his writings out there, and I guess it came from one of those, maybe Where the Buck Stops: The Personal and Private Writings of Harry S. Truman. I don't know that I'm interested enough to actually pick up that book, but it would've been nice to see a bibliography.

If you like presidential anecdotes, then this is a good book to read, but that's not what I showed up for; I wanted the promoted humor and wit. Alas.

[Dayla · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good, but more funny bone and physical comedy.

[Fadri Mokolintad · Rating 5 out of 5]

More than enough to make you smile and laugh and laugh out loud..

Bagus dibaca saat waktu sela yang singkat.

[David Nichols · Rating 1 out of 5]

As the title implies, this is a thin book, and the compiler, former Senator Robert Dole, could have profitably cut it to one-third of its length. With a few noteworthy exceptions, namely Lincoln, Reagan, and Kennedy, American presidents have been remarkably unfunny men, alternating instead between dourness and dyspepsia. Most of the "jokes" in this volume were either insults that one or another president hurled at bystanders, or genuinely funny remarks made by someone associated with a particular president. Dole, whose own sense of humor was notably absent during his run for the presidency, makes a sincere but unsuccessful effort to stretch out a handful of bons mots to 240 pages. In sum: Not Recommended.

[Nathan Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

I highly recommend this book because the presidents of the United States have said some pretty funny things over the years. Bob compiled a list of funny and witty quips, and then organized the quotes based on who he thought was the funniest of all time, all the way down to Millard Fillmore. Whodda thunk we could laugh with these guys, and not just at them?

[Sue · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love books of presidential anecdotes and trivia. But this one was misleading. As Bob Dole talked about presidential wit in his foreward, which presidents could come up with a good quip and so on, most of the book was "funny" things said by other people about a president. I was familiar with virtually all the quotes, so it brought nothing new to the table.

[Jody · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bob Dole really was an old fart. The book was pretty funny but in a corny "old man" sort of way. Lots of bi-partisan humor and a nice break from the Barak and Hilary drama on television. A bathroom read with quick quips from former presidents, congressional representatives and British officials. My favorite quotes were from Ronald Reagan...of course.

[Nate · Rating 2 out of 5]

Upon reflecting on three years of having this book in the bathroom: Bob Dole helpfully excludes the worst chapters to the back of the book, but after three years, you've read each quotation so many times that you have to dip into those lesser presidents sometimes. Bob Dole wishes he were in the book.

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book had some funny moments. Al Gore, Bill Clinton, and Jimmy Carter are a lot funnier when they aren't in office causing trouble. The qutoes were just as often people making cracks at the president.

The book was okay, but not dazzling (like it's subject matter?).

[Margret Melissa (ladybug) · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was ok. I had some problems in seeing the "humor" in some of them, but I really enjoyed the ones on Lincoln, Cleveland, Coolidge, and Reagan. I thought he could have put more humorous quotes in there. Over-all a good read, but not a great one.

[Marlene · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am currently reading this book. It has many funny witticisms by former presidents. I have heard some of them, but not all. The author, Bob Dole, categorizes presidents with his opinion about who was the funniest.

[Keith · Rating 2 out of 5]

Really could have done better.

[David Seglin · Rating 3 out of 5]

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[Sheena Gossett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of our presidents had great sense of humor.
Some of our presidents had no sense.
Either way, our leaders have been good for a laugh.

[BarbaraW · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun book. Figures with great intellect comes great sense of humor.