Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush, Clinton, Bush II, Obama, Trump, Biden, Trump
Johnson escalated Viet Nam. Nixon promised "Peace with Honor" which led to his second (abbreviated term). Reagan won in '80 because Carter was perceived as awful (along with the fuckery Reagan pulled with) Iran. Reagan won in '84 because Gary Hart couldn't keep it in his pants (which led to the disastrous Walter Mondale). Bush won because Dukakis looked silly in a tank...along with a very healthy assist from the Willie Horton ad. Bush II won...well, he didn't. He was installed by a corrupt Supreme Court.
The only time it was "the economy" in all of this was in 1980. Ironically, the economic stats from Reagan's first term were worse than Carter's. That's how bad a candidate Mondale was.
Incidentally, there is good reason to believe that Clinton won both of his terms due to Ross Perot's participation.
As for social issues, we're certainly further left than we used to be. In some cases, though we've moved so far left that we are only "left" in the same sense the USSR was left. We've become authoritarian. Certain words can't be used, regardless of context or intent. Certainly, epithets should always be condemned. But in many cases people are excoriated for using terms or words that, while inelegant or insensitive, are by and large harmless. So, even socially we are a mixed bag. Oh, and that over sensitivity is used against regularly and effectively.
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