The Personal is Political. The Political is Personal.

 
Every cook can govern?


Body of empirical evidence, serving as basis for inductive reasoning:

I think Clinton made it look too easy. Here he was a successful president with one hand tied behind his back, always under assault by a hostile Congress and the nutcase right. Americans just assumed it wasn't that hard to be president so they took a flyer on Bush.

(similar sentiment expressed by Franken here, Oct. 2000)



Flawed major premise/fallacious conclusion:

In a president, character is everything. A president doesn't have to be brilliant; Harry Truman wasn't brilliant, and he helped save Western Europe from Stalin. He doesn't have to be clever; you can hire clever. White Houses are always full of quick-witted people with ready advice on how to flip a senator or implement a strategy. You can hire pragmatic, and you can buy and bring in policy wonks.

(Peggy Noonan's Character Above All was published in March 1999)




Result:

"Bush is an incompetent leader. In fact, he's not a leader. . . . In order to lead, you have to have judgment. In order to have judgment, you have to have knowledge and experience. He has none."

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, yesterday


(title taken from C.L.R. James, who might have disqualified from governing those who, far from being a "cook," had never had to cook a meal for themselves, much less for others in exchange for low wages, in their entire lives)







posted by TiR at 7:12 PM