Herbert Hoover

"By contrast, only two American presidents worked as engineers: Herbert Hoover, who built a fortune in mining, and Jimmy Carter, who served as an engineering officer on a nuclear submarine. Hoover and Carter are remembered for many things, especially for their dismal political instincts that produced thumping electoral defeats."

"Herbert Hoover had created the RFC in the 1930s as a federal agency to invest government funds in banks in difficulty—provided the banks’ managers were willing to create viable plans for restructuring their lending and investment portfolios. It was Franklin Roosevelt, however, who transformed the RFC into a much more powerful and active development agency. In the midst of the Depression, the RFC not only refinanced banks but also reached out to the nation’s beleaguered cities and industries. With great success, the RFC was used to support bold and visionary federal initiatives that helped to create better lives for many Americans. For example, the TVA and the Rural Electrification Agency brought public power and electricity to corners of the country that, even in the twentieth century, did not enjoy these basic modern necessities."