I'm not a pollster. I'm not a politician. I'm a filmmaker.

I grew up in Illinois, went to film school in LA, and spent most of my career telling stories for a living. Then came a season of reinvention — and it led somewhere I never saw coming: building software with AI, one idea at a time.

Then I heard the news. In February of 2026, Gallup ended the presidential approval poll it had run for 88 years — since the days of FDR. The most trusted scorecard on the most powerful person in the country just went dark. No replacement. No outrage. And it hit me: everyday Americans had lost their one honest way to say "here's how you're doing" — and have it count.

So I built the replacement.

1600 Penn is what happens when a storyteller picks up new tools and points them at something that matters. Every day, citizens grade the President — Democrat, Republican, and Independent, all on the same scale — and those grades go straight to @POTUS and @WhiteHouse on X. No corporate filter. No sampling. No spin. Just the people.

My hope is simple: I want every American — no matter who they voted for — to wake up knowing their honest grade landed on the desk of the most powerful person in the world. That's accountability you can feel. And it will always be free.

— Paul J., Founder