When you choose someone to do some electric work, you don’t call someone who has experience screwing in a light bulb, you look for an electrician. In the same way we don’t want someone like Senator Obama who has a total of seven years in the State Senate of Illinois and three years in the US Senate. The only other things he brings to the table in terms of experience is being a Chicago community organizer and he wrote a few books about himself. Governor Palin hit the nail on the head the other day when she said, “This world of threats and dangers is not just a community, and it doesn’t just need an organizer.”
Some of this nation’s greatest presidents have had less experience than Barack Obama. Abraham Lincoln, most arguably one of the country’s greatest presidents, spent only two years as a US Representative for the state of Illinois from 1847-1849. After his two years as a US Representative, he turned away from politics to pursue his law practice until he became re-involved with politics in 1854, not holding an office again until 1861, when he was inaugurated as president. So, to put it quite bluntly, Barack Obama, with his seven years serving as an Illinois State Senator in the 13th District and his 2 1/2 years as a United States Senator seems to be more experienced in politics than one of our nation’s greatest presidents.
Shawn Conway
Senior Staff writer
When you choose someone to do some electric work, you don’t call someone who has experience screwing in a light bulb, you look for an electrician.
In the same way we don’t want someone like Senator Obama who has a total of seven years in the State Senate of Illinois and three years in the US Senate.
The only other things he brings to the table in terms of experience is being a Chicago community organizer and he wrote a few books about himself.
Governor Palin hit the nail on the head the other day when she said, “This world of threats and dangers is not just a community, and it doesn’t just need an organizer.”
Some of this nation’s greatest presidents have had less experience than Barack Obama.
Abraham Lincoln, most arguably one of the country’s greatest presidents, spent only two years as a US Representative for the state of Illinois from 1847-1849.
After his two years as a US Representative, he turned away from politics to pursue his law practice until he became re-involved with politics in 1854, not holding an office again until 1861, when he was inaugurated as president.
So, to put it quite bluntly, Barack Obama, with his seven years serving as an Illinois State Senator in the 13th District and his 2 1/2 years as a United States Senator seems to be more experienced in politics than one of our nation’s greatest presidents.
I’m glad that when crafting your response and trying to come up with someone that we agree was a superb President, I’m glad that you looked toward Lincoln, the father of the Republican party, to make your case.
But sadly, it’s hard to make this comparison.
The political landscape has changed so much since 1861 that would make such a comparison hard to support.
For starters, we spend $7,000 more dollars per person than did President Lincoln’s America at the height of the Civil War.
He didn’t have to contend with world economies, deadlocked congresses, 11 more cabinet departments, a bloodthirsty media, terrorists, rogue nuclear nations, and on and on.
Not to mention that he was working with 27 states less than Senator Obama would be working with.
Experience is important and this election is no different.
A recent Associated Press poll has said that 47% of Americans believe Senator Obama lacks proper experience as opposed to 36% who believe Palin lacks proper experience.
The people have spoken, and they want experience.
Really? People want experience? A recent Rasmussen poll leads me to believe that is not true.
According to the poll, released Tuesday Sept. 16, in a hypothetical VP match up for president.
Senator Biden would lose to Governor Palin 47% to 44%.
For me, and for most Americans, I believe that it is far from a call for experience.
Joe Biden comes to the table with 35 years of experience in the United States Senate, dealing with many, many foreign issues during his tenure there, including being the chairperson of the Senate Committee for Foreign Relations. Palin, on the other hand, comes to the table with slightly under two years as governor of a state with a population a quarter the size of Brooklyn, New York.
Previously, she was a mayor in Wasilla, Alaska, a town about the size of Latrobe, Pa.
She comes to this election with less experience than Senator Obama.
On a recent interview with Charlie Gibson and ABC News, Palin was asked her opinions on the Bush Doctrine.
Mr. Gibson asked Palin what she interpreted it to be, and explained that it is from 2002.
She was not able to explain what the Bush Doctrine is.
For those who don’t know (like Governor Palin,) the Bush Doctrine, is the right of the United States to preemptively attack a country it believes is about to harm us, before their threat reaches our borders.
It is inexcusable that someone running for a national office, mere steps away from the presidency, would lack this type of foreign policy knowledge that high school freshmen are learning in their US History/Government classes.
So really? America wants Palin over Biden? That’s a great call for experience.
Yes, Senator Biden had many, many years of friends and connections on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and many friends in and around Washington.
He can probably deal with any crisis that arises with at least a good chance of having some knowledge of what is best for the situation.
The problem is, he won’t be the President, Senator Obama will.
Do you really want another term of a President allegedly getting the phone call in the middle of the night and then his first call is to his VP to ask his opinion?
That’s what your party says Bush does.
And if we’re going to pick out times when candidates didn’t know important things about government, let’s ask Sen. Obama how many states there are, (he said he was in 57), or how his uncle liberated Auschwitz, (the Russians did, not the USA), or about the hard working people of a small Pennsylvania town like Latrobe, (where we “cling to their guns and religion”).
Just because Obama looks down on people like me who come from towns like Latrobe, doesn’t mean that spending two years as a governor after spending eleven years in local politics means that she understand us, whereas Biden, with thirty-five years of privilege does not.
It’s odd that you basically throw away Biden’s foreign policy experience to the wayside since he’ll only be Vice President.
But, truth be told, the Vice President, in modern times, has acted as an advisor to the President in numerous situations, especially how Cheney has advised Bush on many situations during their tenure, as you referenced in your previous rebuttal.
This also happened during Bill Clinton’s administration when Al Gore advised Clinton on issues about the environment, and on foreign policy.
Remember, this is when America used diplomacy more, and it worked pretty well, and more countries liked us.
Not to mention that Gore balanced out Clinton’s initial lack of foreign policy experience.
I find it appalling that you bring up such minute slip-ups on the campaign trail into this debate.
Just like Senator Obama, McCain has had his own, as has Palin, (remember McCain being corrected about Iran and Al-Qaeda by Senator Lieberman dare I say twice?) and I would rather not bring those into the debate.
They are honest mistakes by members of both tickets.
In closing, and to put it quite bluntly, and to answer the original question, no, I don’t believe that experience needs to take center stage this November.
There have been numerous great presidents in American history that have lacked experience in changing times, and have led the country in the right direction. Wilson, Truman, Lincoln and FDR to name a few.
And I believe that Barack Obama and Joe Biden will be no different in this respect.
I also believe that no person, out of respect and love for their country, would ever accept any nomination if they did not believe they were ready to tackle the great responsibilities of the Presidency.