Phladelphia Inquirer – October 4, 2012
“Mothers all want their sons to grow up to be president, but they don’t want them to become politicians in the process.” The second part of John F. Kennedy’s observation probably still holds true. But does anyone talk to kids these days about growing up to be president?
David Goldman/AP – Stand-ins for Mitt Romney and President Obama shake hands during a rehearsal for the debate at the University of Denver.
I am too young to remember JFK but old enough to remember his younger brother Bobby as well as Neil Armstrong’s walk on the moon. I also remember grown-ups occasionally telling me that if I worked hard, I could be president someday.
The point was not to single me out, but to include me in part of the American dream: that any (native-born) citizen with enough talent, ambition, and luck could potentially become the chief executive of the republic. (Of course, being white and male would help, too.)
Some of the shift away from that ideal must be attributable to Watergate. The break-in at Democratic headquarters 40 years ago, followed by a steady stream of leaks, denials, and hearings, culminated with the first resignation of a U.S. president. Richard Nixon’s eventual pardon was defended as allowing the country to move on: Serious damage had already been done to the prestige of the presidency, some said, and to the public’s faith in elected officials.
They were right about that. In late 1973, in the midst of the uproar, the New York Times quoted a “white-haired algebra teacher from Auburn, Maine” as saying, “We used to tell these kids that you may grow up to be president of the United States, that it was something to which they should aspire. Now we can’t tell them that anymore because they just laugh in our faces.” Those kids, now mothers and fathers themselves, have understandably been lukewarm at best about encouraging their own children to aim for the White House.
In their perceptions of the presidency, today’s students seem less influenced by their parents’ experiences than by the fact that the nation has been at war in Iraq and Afghanistan for almost as long as they can remember, and by years of recession and fitful recovery.
Though they have watched President Obama’s hair turn gray over the past few years, they can also recall the excitement of the last election. It showed that the possibility of becoming president now realistically applies to the students of color and to the girls in my class.
This dramatic expansion in the pool of potential candidates is a good thing. The complexities of the 21st century have only made the job more daunting, and we need all the talent we can find. It might not be a bad idea to start reminding kids again that they can grow up to be president.
I was delighted to read your commentary in this morning’s Inquirer. I agree that Obama has demonstrated that there are opportunities for all people. As a partner in a large law firm, I had many doors open to me thanks in large measure to the women who had come before me and worked hard to open those doors and the men who were wonderful mentors.
Although the scales are not yet equal in every way, it is important for our children to know that opportunities for their successful careers are there if they are willing to work hard to achieve them.
Anyone who carries water for the 1% can become president. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of corporate Amerika and the greedy 1%.
It is tempting to see it that way. At least part of the problem is that there are only two parties in a position to elect a president. And neither wants to take any steps, such as getting rid of the electoral system, that would legitimately open things up to third parties. If the Libertarian candidate, former New Mexico governor Gary Johnson had participated in last night’s debate, it would certainly have been more exciting.
I’m a Dem but I feel strongly that today’s GOP is misled by a group of far right-wing theo-radical zealots instead of good, old-fashioned conservatives like Huntsman and Paul. In fact, today’s GOP won’t give those two real Republicans the time of day because they’re too busy pandering to the religious right and every other radical right special interest group that wants to ram it’s ideas of morals and values down our throats. The GOP needs to get back to its roots or just go away altogether. If you vote R today you sign up to be a sherpa for the 1% and their greedy corporations.
Seems as though a significant chunk of the independent block (now representing more of the population than either those identifying as Demos or Republicans) is socially more liberal and fiscally more conservative. Hard for them to find a home.