My personal opinion; If Jack had not turned out to be a complete A-Hole, Statesman would have never been written off, he would have grown mentally and eventually been a much more likeable personality. For me, it was not his personality, but for what he stood for.
Example, Batman is a complete ass, both in and out of costume. However, what he stands for is what makes him great...yet nobody but Superman fans hate on Batman...so why hate on Statesman? To each their own, just my opinion.