Wanted: President of the United States: Educational Background, Not a Factor

Wanted: President of the United States: Educational Background, Not a Factor.

Everyone claims to be for better teachers and schools. Both Democrats and Republicans, to say nothing of independents, fervently believe that American children should receive a first-rate education. After all, democracy is great but not a democracy of dunces. It is, however, ironical that for all the nods to the paramount importance of sound schooling, many Americans don't give a hoot about the educational credentials of candidates for our highest office. While scholastic success would be an important consideration for someone seeking an executive position in a company or organization, it is, for many voters, a matter of indifference when it comes to selecting the person who will take the helm of the American ship of state.

The primary task of the President is to defend the Constitution. Anyone intent on performing this task would seem to benefit from an expert knowledge of that foundational document. Barack Obama was arguably the best student in his class at Harvard Law School. He has also taught constitutional law and was offered a tenured position at one of the nation's premier law schools, the University of Chicago. Joe Biden earned his JD at Syracuse University and while a senator, has been teaching constitutional law at Widener University. On the basis of the job description, one would think that the academic background of Senators Obama and Biden would stand on the plus side of the ledger. Not necessarily so.

You don't need a Harvard degree to know that global politics are becoming increasingly interrelated and complex. Given this complexity, an outside observer would assume that Americans would seek leaders who, among other things, had a proven capacity for assimilating and analyzing facts. If nothing else, demonstrated academic excellence attests to this power and training of mind. And yet, whether you were the president of the Law Review at Harvard (Obama) or struggled to attain a bachelor's degree (Palin) is something to yawn about for much of the electorate.

As though it were an argument for the irrelevancy of one's educational background, Senator McCain literally chuckles over the fact he was fifth from the bottom of the class at the Naval Academy. The Associated Press reports that Sarah Palin attended at least four different colleges before finally grasping her sheepskin from the University of Idaho. These are not the kinds of accomplishments that would make for a strong resume- unless perhaps you aspired to become president or vice president.

Gumption, grit, and common sense are all that many voters want to hear about. Many of these same folks have the strange sense that success in school undercuts these virtues of the gut as well as the ability to make judicious political decisions. Still, like everyone else, the gumption and grit brigade is willing to carry placards "Support Education." But if they really believe that education is so important, then why shouldn't the education of our candidates count for something?

Comments

[Jessegirl]

P alin reminds me of another right wing outspoken personality that should sit as
another host on a show like the V I E W. She creates a buzz and is interesting to watch
but that's where it stops.
Now if the Dems want to counter her effect....all bets are now off...
Send out O*prah along with any other well-known female personalit­y/mentors/­heros.

P_alin is a ploy, a gimmick used to sell a poor pathetic old old man...How degrading.

[Jessegirl]

Palin reminds me of another opinionated right -wing woman who should sit
as another host on the View., that's it...She creates a buzz and it's interesting to watch.
But that's where it stops....
Now if the Dems want to counter a woman like Palin....all bets are off..

Send out Opra*h...and any other well-known female personalities.
Because that is all that Palin is...a personality, a ploy, a gimmick to sell a poor old man.
How degrading this election has become.

[necer65]

The Republicans say "Anyone can be President".... that is why they picked Sarah Palin. I don't want just "ANYONE" being my President. Obviously the Republicans don't give a crap about our country if they would pick a VP with zero experience. Obama has 110% more experience. Sarah Palin has confined herself to Alaska...she has no clue about world issues. I feel way more comfortable with Obama...he has foreign policy experience, has a relationship with other world leaders. He also has a relationship with both Democrat and Republican politians.

[charon]

I bet Palin is getting a quick "education" now. She is probably playing a Galatea to McCain or Rove's Pygmalion, learning to mouth such mealy phrases as "tax-and-spend liberals" and "liberals are traitors," etc. Instead of praying to Venus to make her real, McCain would pray to--who? Reagan? Rove? Anyway, just sounds like a fascist version of Shaw's play in my head.

[1will]

How knowledgable is Obama on law and The Constitution if it took a Presidental Election to teach him that gun ownership is a Constitutional right? He picks out the laws he likes and dislikes. He's a lawyer. While it's no doubt that Obama is very intelligent his being a lawyer doesn't necessarily make him Presidental material. The amusing thing is lawyers are often compared to parasites or child molesters in usefulness. Of course this is an election year so we obviously need someone that can (and will) use 40 words in place of a simple yes or no.

[shedances]

I couldn't disagree more.

You obviously have disdain for anyone who thinks that guns are weapons ~ and dangerous at that ~ & ought to be closely regulated by government. Moreover, as far as professonal & personal integrity goes, you couldn't be more wrong about Barack Obama. He came from a poor, single parent minority background to become a highly educated professional and public office holder ~ on his own merits ~ and yes, he knows & respects 'the law.'

Thankfully, Sen. Obama isn't living 300 or so years in the past, choosing not to deal with the very real social & public health problems related to firearms in contemporary America. I don't understand why you see that as a fault. I see that as a huge asset in a future leader of the only remaining Superpower nation on the face of the planet.

[charon]

Shedances, you are responding to someone who no doubt has no regard for truth and is probably living in a closed universe of right-wing spin. He cites no specific examples, gives us nothing but tired cliches and vague generalities. I do appreciate, however, hearing another voice speaking out against Republican lies.

[Snowman007]

That's why the world is laughing at us. isn't our leaders supposed to be people with better thinking minds than us? Yet, we are bent on electing stupid people to office because they remind us of ourselves...WTF??? are u serious? I can't believe we are that stupid as people. Sad, aint it?

[Poyda]

This hostility (or, at least, ambivalence) among some in the electorate toward educational achievement in political leaders might be explained by the fact that large numbers of people in the US (relative to other developed nations) believe:

1. creationism should be taught in science classes;
2. global warming is not the result of human activity;
3. abortion should be banned, even in cases of incest or rape;
4. children should use M-16s; and
5. only conservatism is 'patriotic'.

Since holding these views is negatively correlated with educational achievement, it is not too surprising that educated 'elites' become the enemy. Some of these people will even ask a pastor to heal them rather than see someone with an elitist medical degree.

Fortunately, these flat-earthers are becoming a smaller proportion of the voting population. Even if they turn up in the numbers they did in 2000 and 2004, I don't think they can win the election - and things are only going to get harder for them with each election cycle. The cynical rich white oligarchs such as Rove, Cheney, Bush, McCain, Rumsfeld etc are going to have to find another segment of the population to dupe into voting for the interests of oil companies and defense contractors. The next segment, however, may not be so easy to fool.

[standard]

Exactly right!

To become an effective President, a candidate today needs a strong liberal arts education and, preferably, training in law. The former exposes a student to a wide range of ideas and requires him or her to think critically--and spot and value others who can. Studying law--or work at the highest level in related fields--provides context for the complex job of running the U.S. government.

The most effective recent Presidents have had that background. Kennedy and both Roosevelts were Harvard men. Wilson went to Princeton and held a doctorate in political science. Truman and both Roosevelts studied law; Ford, Bush 41 and Clinton all held law degrees from Yale.

Without that grounding, especially in law, a President can merely shrink the government and give speeches (Reagan) or run it poorly and rely on good intentions (Carter).

Bush 43 is a Yalie, but intensely anti-intellectual and never studied law. His contempt for the Fourth through Sixth Amendments, the separation of powers and separation of church and state demonstrate a complete ignorance of the fragility of a free society and the role of the President. The economic and diplomatic damage he's caused is staggering.

Obama and Biden are quaified to be President by their proven intellectual abiliity. Neither McCain nor Palin are remotely qualified to run the country.

[BAVirago]

I agree with everything you've written, but you leave out the little fact that perhaps one of the reasons that we don't trust education is because our current president is a graduate of an Ivy League institution and he can barely speak English and lacks the critical thinking skills that we attribute to lesser primates.

Also, in this race, Obama's fighting many demons: Educated blacks are "uppity" and the traditional racist values of our society want to take down uppity blacks to the extent that even a mental lightweight like Palin with her BA from Podunk U. can stand against him, so long as she is white and middle class.

White, dumb and middle/upper class (read: rich) will always trump black, intelligent, middle/lower class.

Always.

Welcome to America. Let's change it.

[klondiker]

Exactly. Since when is having such a mediocre educational background a good thing?? A solid educational background is an indication that the person can process complex ideas and analyze them. Palin has given no indication of this.

[huffthemagicdragon]

Thank you for writing this - I find it incredible that there is even a comparison between the two sets of candidates. How can this be turned around?

[jollyelle]

She obviously doesn't encourage and promote education in her own family. College is never spoken of with regard to her two eldest children. Just because her daughter is pregnant, doesn't mean she can't continue her education. Usually rising seniors are preoccupied with the whole college appiication process, this was never referred to in Palin's intro of her family to the American People. What better way to showcase your priorities. She's definitely made us aware of her son's decision to join the army and we all had to know the date of enlistment and deployment, as if that has anything to do with the war. I still am curious if she believes the Iraq War and 9/11 are connected???

We must demand our Leaders have the best educational qualifications and be willing and curious to continue to LEARN. McCAin/Palin do NOT fit the bill.

[tellusthetruth]

I meant for my comment above to be under your comment...I could not agree more.

[aofh]

Great post. We really don't believe in education as much as we say. It amazes me that we blame the failures of our education system on teachers (I'm not a teacher) as though education was a physical substance you pour into students. Students are responsible for their learning; no one else can do it for them. The best learn that they are learning their whole life and foster an environment where learning happens.

[ToonMoene]

Ah, but:

"Pigmentation must not be unseemly"

[ Orson Welles, The Begatting of a President ]

[Herrington]

Now that is entirely too sensible. I'm sure that someone with a highly developed "gut" will be able to guess what is intended by all those words in the Constitution. Have some pitbull with lipstick faith baby!