Josiah “Jed” Bartlet (Martin Sheen)

The West Wing (1999–2007) — Bartlet was the left-leaning antithesis to the real-world POTUS voted in after Clinton, George W. Bush. Sure, the Bartlet administration was rife with scandal and intrigue — not the least of which involved invoking the 25th Amendment to temporarily step down as president — but armed with series creator Aaron Sorkin’s elevated speech and wisdom, Bartlet time and again proved that doing the right thing was the best thing, even in the most difficult of times.