Admiring Power
I heard that Obama won the poll for "most admired man in America", for the 11th year in a row. Actually, that's not quite right. "None/no opinion" won, followed by "Other", followed by Obama. Here is the full list of options, and the percent of votes that they got, arranged from most to least votes (* = less than 0.5%) (source: https://news.gallup.com/poll/1678/Most-Admired-Man-Woman.aspx):
Most admired man:
None/No opinion 26
Other 25
Barack Obama 19
Donald Trump 13
Friend/Relative 10
George W. Bush 2
Pope Francis 2
Bill Gates 1
Bernie Sanders 1
Bill Clinton 1
The Dalai Lama 1
Joe Biden 1
Elon Musk 1
Mike Pence 1
Jimmy Carter 1
Robert Mueller 1
Beto O'Rourke 1
Warren Buffett *
Benjamin Netanyahu *
Jeff Bezos *
Justin Trudeau *
Prince William *
Mitt Romney *
Colin Powell *
Newt Gingrich *
Vladimir Putin *
Clint Eastwood *
Brad Pitt *
Tim Tebow *
Ben Carson --
Michael Jordan --
Ron Paul --
Ted Cruz --
Joel Osteen --
Pope Benedict XVI --
Mark Zuckerberg --
Rush Limbaugh --
Francois Hollande --
Bill O'Reilly --
Rev. Billy Graham --
John McCain --
Stephen Hawking --
George H.W. Bush --
Thomas Monson --
Nelson Mandela --
Most admired woman:
None/No opinion 26
Other 21
Michelle Obama 15
Friend/Relative 14
Oprah Winfrey 5
Hillary Clinton 4
Melania Trump 4
Queen Elizabeth 2
Angela Merkel 2
Ruth Bader Ginsburg 2
Ellen DeGeneres 2
Nikki Haley 1
Malala Yousafzai 1
Nancy Pelosi 1
Theresa May 1
Kamala Harris 1
Elizabeth Warren 1
Laura Bush 1
Condoleezza Rice 1
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez 1
Sarah Palin 1
Jennifer Lopez 1
Sarah Huckabee Sanders *
Princess Kate *
Beyonce' Knowles *
Angelina Jolie *
Dolly Parton *
Carly Fiorina *
Barbara Walters *
Jane Goodall --
J.K. Rowling --
Aung San Suu Kyi --
Scarlett Johansson --
Gabrielle Giffords --
Michele Bachmann --
Diane Sawyer --
Barbara Bush --
Maya Angelou --
Margaret Thatcher --
The other thing I notice is that the "most admired man" is almost always the current U.S. President (up until the last two years, I guess because even political partisans have a hard time claiming to admire Donald Trump). I find that pathetic. What do we admire about the current President? He is currently in power. So admirable.
Year / Most Admired Man / Most Admired Woman
2018 / Barack Obama / Michelle Obama
2017 / Barack Obama / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2016 / Barack Obama / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2015 / Barack Obama / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2014 / Barack Obama / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2013 / Barack Obama / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2012 / Barack Obama / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2011 / Barack Obama / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2010 / Barack Obama / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2009 / Barack Obama / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2008 / Barack Obama / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2007 / George W. Bush / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2006 / George W. Bush / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2005 / George W. Bush / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2004 / George W. Bush / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2003 / George W. Bush / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2002 / George W. Bush / Hillary Rodham Clinton
2001 / George W. Bush / Laura Bush
2000 / Bill Clinton / Hillary Rodham Clinton
1999 / Bill Clinton / Hillary Rodham Clinton
1998 / Bill Clinton / Hillary Rodham Clinton
1997 / Bill Clinton / Hillary Rodham Clinton
1996 / Bill Clinton / Mother Teresa
1995 / Bill Clinton / Mother Teresa
1994 / Bill Clinton / Hillary Rodham Clinton
1993 / Bill Clinton / Hillary Rodham Clinton
1992 / George H. W. Bush / Barbara Bush
1991 / George H. W. Bush / Barbara Bush
1990 / George H. W. Bush / Margaret Thatcher
1989 / George H. W. Bush / Margaret Thatcher
1988 / Ronald Reagan / Margaret Thatcher
1987 / Ronald Reagan / Nancy Reagan
1986 / Ronald Reagan / Mother Teresa
1985 / Ronald Reagan / Nancy Reagan
1984 / Ronald Reagan / Margaret Thatcher
1983 / Ronald Reagan / Margaret Thatcher
1982 / Ronald Reagan / Margaret Thatcher
1981 / Ronald Reagan / Nancy Reagan
1980 / Pope John Paul II / Mother Teresa / Rosalynn Carter
1979 / Jimmy Carter / Rosalynn Carter
1978 / Jimmy Carter / Betty Ford
1977 / Jimmy Carter / Rosalynn Carter
1976 / NOT ASKED / NOT ASKED
1975 / Henry Kissinger / Betty Ford
1974 / Henry Kissinger / Golda Meir
1973 / Henry Kissinger / Golda Meir
1972 / Richard Nixon / Pat Nixon
1971 / Richard Nixon / Golda Meir
1970 / Richard Nixon / Mamie Eisenhower
1969 / Richard Nixon / Mamie Eisenhower
1968 / Dwight Eisenhower / Ethel Kennedy
1967 / Dwight Eisenhower / NOT ASKED
1966 / Lyndon Johnson / Jacqueline Kennedy
1965 / Lyndon Johnson / Jacqueline Kennedy
1964 / Lyndon Johnson / Jacqueline Kennedy
1963 / Lyndon Johnson / Jacqueline Kennedy
1962 / John F. Kennedy / Jacqueline Kennedy
1961 / John F. Kennedy / Eleanor Roosevelt
1960 / Dwight Eisenhower / Eleanor Roosevelt
1959 / Dwight Eisenhower / Eleanor Roosevelt
1958 / Dwight Eisenhower / Eleanor Roosevelt
1957 / Dwight Eisenhower / Eleanor Roosevelt
1956 / Dwight Eisenhower / Eleanor Roosevelt
1955 / Dwight Eisenhower / Eleanor Roosevelt
1954 / Dwight Eisenhower / Eleanor Roosevelt
1953 / Dwight Eisenhower / Eleanor Roosevelt
1952 / Dwight Eisenhower / Eleanor Roosevelt
1951 / Douglas MacArthur / Sister Elizabeth Kenny
1950 / Dwight Eisenhower / Eleanor Roosevelt
1949 / Harry Truman / Eleanor Roosevelt
1948 / Harry Truman / Eleanor Roosevelt
1947 / Douglas MacArthur / NOT ASKED
1946 / Douglas MacArthur / NOT ASKED