sour cream to the top

[jonathankaplan]

I don't talk much about politics or elections. I am too cynical, now. I don't think there will be too much difference in future presidential action regardless which Dem/Rep wins. They are too much of the same mold, working within the established system. If Hillary wins, we may have 28 consecutive years in which either a Bush or Clinton ruled, and

Comments

[libertarianhawk]

I figure running for office is a full time job, so anyone who needs to work for a living can't do it.

[pb9617]

Rich people are the only ones that can afford to run for major offices. The only non-wealthy path to higher-level office is for appointees to run.

[talldean]

I want someone administering the government who's good at the job of administering government, no matter how much they're worth.

Problem is that no one runs primarily on their own money; they run on donations and sponsorship, and if they were honest to start with, they still owe folks favors in return for putting them into office.

Carter was worth about $1.5 mil.

Eisenhower was born into relative poverty and was career military, so he's probably the best bet. Anyone who's a career politician has loot, it seems.

[pb9617]

Oh yeah - Military leaders can run for high office too. Appointees and military are the only non-wealthy paths to high office.

[gunga_galunga]

Carter was above average. This article says he had a net worth of $600k when he ran for president, which in '76 was nothing to sneeze at.

Nixon raised money for his first congressional campaign by playing poker.

One the one hand if the chief executive is really rich perhaps he is less likely to be swayed by money. On the other, do the really rich ever have enough money?

[pfrimshot]

does it make sense that there are NO presidential candidates of below average wealth, ever?
Ideally, I want the smartest person possible to run my country. I'd like to continue believing that smart people can get rich, even if they don't start out that way. By the time anyone has accumulated enough credibility to actually run, they're old enough to have also accumulated money (if they're smart). So I'm pretty comfortable with the idea that my only choices[1] for president are rich people.
[1] ignoring for the moment that I'm a Canadian and can't vote for a "president"

[kvom01]

Carter may have had the highest IQ of any president since Jefferson, but that didn't make him a success.

I want someone who is "wise", although that's hard to define. The best we can hope for, IMO, is "pragmatic."