Does The Nominee's Academic Credentials Matter

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the academic credentials and experience of various political candidates, particularly focusing on Barack Obama, Joe Biden, John McCain, and Sarah Palin. Participants explore the implications of these credentials on their suitability for presidency, including comparisons of educational backgrounds and professional experiences.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Exploratory

Main Points Raised

  • One participant lists the academic credentials of Obama, Biden, McCain, and Palin, highlighting differences in their educational backgrounds.
  • Another participant expresses a desire for a president who is more intelligent than the average citizen, referencing past leadership and its consequences.
  • A participant suggests that experience should also be considered alongside academic credentials and requests a professional resume-style list of experiences for the candidates.
  • Discussion includes a note about Obama's tenure as a State Senator for Illinois' 13th district, which has a larger population than Alaska.
  • There is a query regarding the differences between congressional and state legislative districts, with references to voting patterns and potential gerrymandering in Illinois.
  • One participant, unfamiliar with the U.S. political system, seeks clarification on the differences between voting behaviors at local and national levels.
  • A later reply discusses the phenomenon of straight-ticket voting and provides a personal anecdote about a Republican voter supporting Obama, suggesting his appeal across party lines.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants express differing views on the importance of academic credentials versus experience, and there is no consensus on the implications of these factors for presidential suitability. Additionally, there is uncertainty regarding the voting behaviors in different electoral contexts.

Contextual Notes

Some participants reference external sources, such as Wikipedia, to support their claims, but the accuracy and relevance of these sources are not verified within the discussion.

GCT
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Here is something that I pulled off the web ...

Obama: Occidental College ( Los Angeles ) - 2 years studying Politics and Public Policy. Columbia University ( New York ) - B.A. Political Science with a specialization in International Relations. Harvard Law School - Juris Doctor (J.D.) Magna Cum Laude, Editor-in-Chief of the Harvard Law Review.

Biden: University of Delaware - B.A. in History and a B.A. in Political Science. Syracuse University College of Law - Juris Doctor (J.D.)

McCain: United States Naval Academy - Class rank 894 of 899. (#5 from the bottom)

Palin: Hawaii Pacific University - 1 semester - Business Administration. North Idaho College - 2 semesters - General Studies. University of Idaho - 2 semesters - Journalism. Matanuska-Susitna College - 1 semester. University of Idaho - 3 semesters - B.A. in Journalism.
 
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Like Tsu always says: "I want a President who is smarter than I am."

Yes, we have had a C student for President, and we may be lucky if we ever recover: Two wars [one that we didn't need to fight], 4000 dead, tens of thousands of lives forever changed or destroyed, a crippled military, a crippled economy, a divided nation, and we now each owe $40,000. Thanks Mr. C.
 
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I was thinking about starting a similar thread including experience as credentials. I have seen many references to Obama's lack of experience and how Palin is supposedly more experienced than he is. Can anyone come up with an actual list of experience credentials for the candidates? The sort you would perhaps see on a professional resume preferably.
 
One interesting note: Obama was the State Senator for Illinois' 13th district, which has a larger population than the entire State of Alaska.
 
Hmm, are the districts the same for congressmen and state legislators? Because I checked out Wikipedia for the 13th Illinois District and it turns out that the current Rep is a Republican female Judy Biggert and it says here that the district voted for Bush over Kerry by 55-45:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illinois's_13th_congressional_district

On the other hand this article says that "Obama won the heavily Democratic 13th district by a large margin":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illinois_Senate_career_of_Barack_Obama

Or was it gerrymandered heavily since then?
 
Defennder said:
Hmm, are the districts the same for congressmen and state legislators? Because I checked out Wikipedia for the 13th Illinois District and it turns out that the current Rep is a Republican female Judy Biggert and it says here that the district voted for Bush over Kerry by 55-45:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illinois's_13th_congressional_district

On the other hand this article says that "Obama won the heavily Democratic 13th district by a large margin":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illinois_Senate_career_of_Barack_Obama

Or was it gerrymandered heavily since then?

What is the point? That a district that votes one way in the national election can't vote another way locally?
 
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No, it's just that I'm not from the US and can't tell if there is supposed to be any difference.
 
Ah, there is a difference. Some people vote a straight ticket - all Democrat, or all Republican - but I think this is more rare than not now; esp at the local level.

I have a die-hard, redneck, racist, Republican cousin in Illinois who voted for Obama. So it seems that Obama is just that good.