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The importance of being experienced
History shows great president made of more than their record
By Alexander Dunn
In place of discourse about who possesses good judgment, the debate has turned to who has the “experience” to potentially make a good decision instead of who will actually make a good decision…
If one has been paying attention to the news the last few months it will be easy to come to the conclusion that good judgment stems from experience. And as far as experience is concerned, the bottom line is Obama doesn’t have it, Biden does. McCain has it; Palin does not.
If anyone watched the Democratic and Republican national conventions they would be equally certain that Washington is broken and needs to be fixed. This seems to undercut the claim that working there for 25 years, as Sen. McCain has, or 35 years, as Sen. Biden has, counts as valuable experience.
Of all the qualities an American president should possess, good judgment is arguably the most important. But in place of discourse about who possesses good judgment, the debate has turned to who has the “experience” to potentially make a good decision instead of who will actually make a good decision. So just how important is experience in making a good judgment?
Fortunately, history can guide us. Abraham Lincoln, perhaps the greatest president, was a man of little political experience. With only a few years in the Illinois State Senate and several more in the U.S. House of Representatives, he was more than capable of managing a most difficult period in our country’s history.
Another great American president, Franklin D. Roosevelt, was a state senator for two years and governor of New York for only three before being elected president. Five years of experience on the state level was enough to produce the man who presided over the end of the Great Depression and much of World War II.
Ronald Reagan, a president that many conservatives deem one of the greatest in history, spent only eight years as governor of California. Bill Clinton, a president hailed by Democrats as one of the greats, had only 12 years as governor of Arkansas.
The recent presidents with the most extensive résumés have led the country to mixed results. Lyndon Johnson, a twenty-two-year congressman oversaw great social progress during his administration, but was also responsible for the escalation of the Vietnam War. His successor, Richard Nixon, was a member of Congress for six years and spent eight years as the vice president. We all know how well that went.
Gerald Ford and George H. W. Bush were the last two presidents who could claim extensive experience in Washington. Ford had 24 years as a representative under his belt, and Bush had eight as a vice president. Both men were rather unremarkable presidents, only serving a term apiece before yielding to Democratic successors.
The “Washington outsider,” has been a common and successful characterization for presidential hopefuls lately, an image best exemplified by Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush. Carter was elected in 1976 after four years each in the Georgia Senate and as its governor. Although progressive, Carter’s presidency was ultimately unsuccessful due to partisan gridlock.
George W. Bush was controversially elected president in 2000 after only six years as governor of Texas. Though his presidency will be judged by history, his approval rating struggles to maintain 30 percent, among the lowest ratings for any president since figures were first recorded.
Barack Obama’s résumé is on par with recent presidents’, while McCain has a more extensive résumé than we have seen in a while. Does this mean Obama doesn’t have the necessary judgment to be an effective President? Roosevelt, Lincoln, Reagan and Clinton all possessed experience similar to or even exceeded by that of Obama. One could even ask whether McCain has too much experience, is too entrenched in Washington, to be a good president. But that would also be the wrong question.
These candidates’ previous experience ultimately can’t be used as a predictor of how effective a president each will be. We simply need to elect one who is honest, intelligent, exercises good judgment and is willing to tackle the serious issues we face.
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