I base my assessment of him on well-documented stories of his inability to interact with people w/o a script. Apparently it was the damnest thing, he could not even greet a foreign dignatary w/o prepared remarks. This and the first-hand reports from other world leaders who spent time with him. Yep, he was at best an intellectual feather-weight, and at worst a prima facia imbecile. I'd just go with "empty suit".
I was in college and just could not believe my eyes that someone so insubstantial could be elected POTUS. It was shocking; but then a failure like Carter's presidency coupled with a headline-grabbing international crisis and a weak economy can make people just say, "WTF, let's put this guy in as QB...."
Iran-contra also exposed him to be either completely incompetent or an amoral, lying POS. He was not strong, not great in any way, just a figure-head that made people feel good about some illusion they had of America and the cold war. It's nice that he chatted with his pilots, but kind of disappointing that military members seem to rate world leaders on their small-talk or baby-kissing ability. It's always nice to meet friendly folks, but personally that would be the bottom of my list of qualifications for the most powerful person in the world. YMMV.
