Fact check: Donald Trump updated a 1948 presidential ranking in August 2026.

Verdict: verified — Trust Score 90/100

The Instagram post accurately reports that Donald Trump updated a 1948 presidential ranking in August 2026, placing himself in the "Greatest" tier and relegating Ulysses S. Grant and Jimmy Carter to the "Failures" category. The post correctly states that the original list was based on a LIFE magazine survey of 55 experts and that Trump's updated list omits Ronald Reagan and Harry S. Truman. Additionally, the claim that Trump previously called Ronald Reagan "high quality" is confirmed. These details are confirmed by 3 sources.

verified verification card — Trust Score 90/100
Platform
instagram
Source author
thebraintickle — see all fact-checks of this account
Original post
https://www.instagram.com/p/DckaEkEnY2_/?igsi=aWk1cDByczhxb2Z1
Verified on
August 28, 2026
Verification ID
n0yFvjgt1CuU1T4d99DXeg

Original content reviewed

Platform: INSTAGRAM Author: @thebraintickle --- Caption/Description --- Donald Trump updated a 1948 presidential ranking this August 2026, placing himself in the "Greatest" tier while relegating Ulysses S. Grant and Jimmy Carter to the "Failures" category. The list, which originated from a LIFE magazine survey of 55 experts, omits Ronald Reagan and Harry S. Truman despite Trump previously calling Reagan "high quality." It seems Abraham Lincoln and George Washington will have to settle for being merely "Great" for now. --- Carousel/Slides (2 items) --- Slide 1 (image): Text: TRUMP REVEALS PRESIDENTIAL TIER LIST AND RANKS HIMSELF #1 Slide 2 (image): Text: THE GREATEST TRUMP GREAT LINCOLN WASHINGTON F.D. ROOSEVELT WILSON JEFFERSON JACKSON NEAR GREAT T. ROOSEVELT CLEVELAND J. ADAMS POLK AVERAGE CLINTON J.Q. ADAMS MONROE HAYES MADISON VAN BUREN TAFT ARTHUR McKINLEY JOHNSON HOOVER B. HARRISON BELOW AVERAGE TYLER COOLIDGE FILLMORE TAYLOR BUCHANAN PIERCE FAILURES BIDEN OBAMA GRANT HARDING CARTER Published: 2026-08-28T03:34:46.000Z ---VERIFICATION_SUMMARY--- Platform: INSTAGRAM Author: @thebraintickle --- Caption/Description --- Donald Trump updated a 1948 presidential ranking this August 2026, placing himself in the "Greatest" tier while relegating Ulysses S. Grant and Jimmy Carter to the "Failures" category. The list, which originated from a LIFE magazine survey of 55 experts, omits Ronald Reagan and Harry S. Truman despite Trump previously calling Reagan "high quality." It seems Abraham Lincoln and George Washington will have to settle for being merely "Great" for now. --- Visible Text/Media --- Two slides showing a presidential ranking list. The first slide announces Trump's list, ranking himself #1. The second slide details the full list across multiple tiers, from 'The Greatest' to 'Failur --- Claims to Verify --- 1. Donald Trump updated a 1948 presidential ranking in August 2026. 2. Trump placed himself in the "Greatest" tier of his updated presidential ra

Claims analyzed (13)

  1. verified: Donald Trump updated a 1948 presidential ranking in August 2026.
    Multiple news sources confirm that Donald Trump posted a presidential ranking graphic to Truth Social on August 27 or 28, 2026, which was an altered version of a 1948 LIFE magazine survey.
  2. verified: Trump placed himself in the "Greatest" tier of his updated presidential ranking.
    News reports confirm that Donald Trump's presidential ranking graphic places him alone in "The Greatest" tier.
  3. verified: Trump relegated Ulysses S. Grant and Jimmy Carter to the "Failures" category in his ranking.
    Multiple news outlets confirm that Trump's ranking graphic places Ulysses S. Grant and Jimmy Carter in the "Failures" tier, alongside Joe Biden, Barack Obama, and Warren Harding.
  4. verified: The original 1948 list was based on a LIFE magazine survey of 55 experts.
    Historical accounts and news articles confirm that a 1948 LIFE magazine survey, conducted by Arthur M. Schlesinger Sr., asked 55 historians and political scientists to rank U.S. presidents.
  5. verified: Trump's updated list omits Ronald Reagan and Harry S. Truman.
    News reports explicitly state that Ronald Reagan and Harry S. Truman are among the presidents notably absent from Trump's updated ranking.
  6. verified: Trump previously called Ronald Reagan "high quality."
    News reports from August 2026 confirm that Trump, in a July appearance on Second Lady Usha Vance's podcast, referred to Reagan as "high quality."
  7. verified: Abraham Lincoln and George Washington are ranked in the "Great" tier on Trump's list.
    News articles detailing Trump's presidential ranking confirm that Abraham Lincoln and George Washington are included in the "Great" tier.
  8. verified: The "Greatest" tier includes Trump.
    The image slide clearly shows "TRUMP" as the sole entry under "THE GREATEST" tier. This is consistent with news reports.
  9. verified: The "Great" tier includes Lincoln, Washington, F.D. Roosevelt, Wilson, Jefferson, and Jackson.
    The image slide lists Lincoln, Washington, F.D. Roosevelt, Wilson, Jefferson, and Jackson under the "GREAT" tier. This is corroborated by news reports.
  10. verified: The "Near Great" tier includes T. Roosevelt, Cleveland, J. Adams, and Polk.
    The image slide shows T. Roosevelt, Cleveland, J. Adams, and Polk listed under the "NEAR GREAT" tier. This is consistent with news reports.
  11. verified: The "Average" tier includes Clinton, J.Q. Adams, Monroe, Hayes, Madison, Van Buren, Taft, Arthur, McKinley, Johnson, Hoover, and B. Harrison.
    The image slide displays Clinton, J.Q. Adams, Monroe, Hayes, Madison, Van Buren, Taft, Arthur, McKinley, Johnson, Hoover, and B. Harrison under the "AVERAGE" tier. This is confirmed by news reports.
  12. verified: The "Below Average" tier includes Tyler, Coolidge, Fillmore, Taylor, Buchanan, and Pierce.
    The image slide clearly lists Tyler, Coolidge, Fillmore, Taylor, Buchanan, and Pierce under the "BELOW AVERAGE" tier. This is consistent with news reports.
  13. verified: The "Failures" tier includes Biden, Obama, Grant, Harding, and Carter.
    The image slide clearly shows Biden, Obama, Grant, Harding, and Carter under the "FAILURES" tier. This is consistent with news reports.

Sources consulted (17)

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