Scott Walker's college problem

[bobloblaw]

It seems that the liberal media us determined to make this an issue.

And the left navel gazes as to why they cant win the White Working Class vote. Their attitude is "Vote for us, but dont dare run"

They risk essentially undermining the concept of American Democracy and turning the USA into a nation where not only having a college degree is required, but a certain type of degree from certain universities. It turns the USA from a Horatio Alger country into a aristocracy. The every people complaining about inequality are about to make college a requirement for leadership.

[bobloblaw]

In the real world

Two prospective employees are applying for the same position.  One has a university degree, the other does not.

Both of these candidates have the experience and ability to do the job, and the prospective employer considers both candidates equally acceptable for the position.

Who do they hire? 

More likely than not, the one with the college degree.

The same could be said, to some extent, for voters (prospective employers) who are electing or "hiring" a President (prospective employee). 

Depends how old they are and how much experience they have. If they are under 30, Id agree with you. Over 30, no one cares about college or where you went.

[bobloblaw]

Dropping out because the family business needed attention? Dropping out of college to save the family farm or store would be noble. Dropping out to start a business that succeeds? One shows that a degree isn't that necessary. Dropping out and returning? Colleges often suggest that. Dropping out to serve in the Armed Services in wartime? We don't see that very often today.  Dropping out because one can't afford to continue? That could be more commonplace -- among Presidential candidates born around 1980 or later -- and excusable.

Dropped out due to bad grades? That could be a question of qualifications. Expelled for ethical misconduct such as cheating on exams or trying to rig a student election? Moral turpitude.

Character may not matter in a safe seat, but nationwide it matters greatly. Character flaws are enough to solidify the partisan opposition and enough to give many independent voters cold feet about voting for one.

     

Character certainly didnt matter in 1992. In fact I recall the slogan "Character Doesnt Matter"

[bobloblaw]

Dropping out because the family business needed attention? Dropping out of college to save the family farm or store would be noble. Dropping out to start a business that succeeds? One shows that a degree isn't that necessary. Dropping out and returning? Colleges often suggest that. Dropping out to serve in the Armed Services in wartime? We don't see that very often today.  Dropping out because one can't afford to continue? That could be more commonplace -- among Presidential candidates born around 1980 or later -- and excusable.

Dropped out due to bad grades? That could be a question of qualifications. Expelled for ethical misconduct such as cheating on exams or trying to rig a student election? Moral turpitude.

Character may not matter in a safe seat, but nationwide it matters greatly. Character flaws are enough to solidify the partisan opposition and enough to give many independent voters cold feet about voting for one.

     

Character certainly didn't matter in 1992. In fact I recall the slogan "Character Doesnt Matter"

This isn't 1992. Besides, the issue with Bill Clinton was with sex, and not with integrity of elections in which he participated.

Walker lies. He cheats. He gives out-of-state interests the opportunity to  bleed Wisconsin.

No Walker doesnt lie and cheat. He defeats Democrats. Are you suggesting that Walker really didnt win three straight elections versus the Democrats? That Mary Burke really won?

[bobloblaw]

I loathe Scott Walker but it shouldn't be an issue. People not having a college degree doesn't make them stupid, it just means that maybe they didn't have the economic means to get one and Democrats attacking him on this could definitely hurt them. Unfortunately I'm sure that somebody will make hay of it, get caught on tape and it'll backfire, basically be Democrats own version of the 47% tape.

Yup. Dems wonder why they cant win the white working class at the same time they bash someone for not having a college degree

[bobloblaw]

Given that Bill Gates (Founder of Microsoft), Steve Jobs (Founder of Apple) and Mark Zuckerberg (Founder of Facebook) never graduated from college, 99.9999% of the people online typing that Scott Walker never graduated are typing those messages on platforms created by people WHO NEVER GRADUATED FROM COLLEGE!

[bobloblaw]

Scott Walker didn't build a company or have a real profession like Gates or Jobs. I have serious reservations about any politician who doesn't have an actual profession.

Obama? Hillary?

[bobloblaw]

Scott Walker didn't build a company or have a real profession like Gates or Jobs. I have serious reservations about any politician who doesn't have an actual profession.

he worked for IBM and the Red Cross for a few years.

I was talking about in the context comparing him to Gates and Jobs. He's nowhere near being like them.

Scott Walker didn't build a company or have a real profession like Gates or Jobs. I have serious reservations about any politician who doesn't have an actual profession.

Obama? Hillary?

Obama and Hillary worked at law firms, and Hillary has been on faculty.

Scott Walker didn't build a company or have a real profession like Gates or Jobs. I have serious reservations about any politician who doesn't have an actual profession.

What? He pursued a marketing degree while working part time at IBM in a sales position. IBM later offered him a full time marketing job. He then dropped out of college because this was the job he wanted when he graduated college anyway. He then went on to fundraising for the Red Cross on the basis of this experience.

Walker is pretty awful and a bad candidate too, but this "issue" is a complete non-starter.

He doesn't have an actually profession like other candidates, that's all I'm pointing out. His private sector experience is far less than his service in public office.

Law Firms???  Anyone can be a lawyer and any lawyer can create their own business. Youre suggesting being governor of a mid sized state is less qualifying than being a lawyer in some two bit law firm.

[bobloblaw]

Scott Walker didn't build a company or have a real profession like Gates or Jobs. I have serious reservations about any politician who doesn't have an actual profession.

he worked for IBM and the Red Cross for a few years.

I was talking about in the context comparing him to Gates and Jobs. He's nowhere near being like them.

Scott Walker didn't build a company or have a real profession like Gates or Jobs. I have serious reservations about any politician who doesn't have an actual profession.

Obama? Hillary?

Obama and Hillary worked at law firms, and Hillary has been on faculty.

Scott Walker didn't build a company or have a real profession like Gates or Jobs. I have serious reservations about any politician who doesn't have an actual profession.

What? He pursued a marketing degree while working part time at IBM in a sales position. IBM later offered him a full time marketing job. He then dropped out of college because this was the job he wanted when he graduated college anyway. He then went on to fundraising for the Red Cross on the basis of this experience.

Walker is pretty awful and a bad candidate too, but this "issue" is a complete non-starter.

He doesn't have an actually profession like other candidates, that's all I'm pointing out. His private sector experience is far less than his service in public office.

Law Firms???  Anyone can be a lawyer and any lawyer can create their own business. Youre suggesting being governor of a mid sized state is less qualifying than being a lawyer in some two bit law firm.

I think you are getting confused here. Someone compared Walker to Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, which is inaccurate, since Walker didn't do what they did. Clinton and Obama had a profession they worked at besides political service. It's two separate things, but the point is, Walker's career has mainly been political.

the point is you dont need college to excel in life

[bobloblaw]

You should never just only look at the highlights of someone's resume.  It should be about their ability to do the job, in terms of skills and talent.

That said, I'm personally not super impressed by someone having a political career.  Success in politics is mostly connections, hard work and sales-skill.  But, when you're talking about the Presidency, you don't just want a good salesman who has great rolodex  a swing state.  That's a type of skill I guess, but it doesn't speak to your character or your brain.

The President should be an exceptional person.  With someone like Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton, that's not a question.  Hillary or Barack could be one of the top corporate lawyers in America.  They could be CEO of a Fortune 500 company.  They have that kind of resume and intellect.  Love them or hate them, that's true.

Is Scott Walker that type of person?  I don't think so, but to be fair, I just kind of write him off because he's a squinty-eyed Republican dork.  But, it doesn't matter what I think.  I just think Scott Walker needs to prove himself qualified intellectually, more so than say, Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton.  We'll see if he can do that.

Obama could never be a Fortune 500 CEO, at least not a successful one.

[bobloblaw]

You should never just only look at the highlights of someone's resume.  It should be about their ability to do the job, in terms of skills and talent.

That said, I'm personally not super impressed by someone having a political career.  Success in politics is mostly connections, hard work and sales-skill.  But, when you're talking about the Presidency, you don't just want a good salesman who has great rolodex  a swing state.  That's a type of skill I guess, but it doesn't speak to your character or your brain.

The President should be an exceptional person.  With someone like Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton, that's not a question.  Hillary or Barack could be one of the top corporate lawyers in America.  They could be CEO of a Fortune 500 company.  They have that kind of resume and intellect.  Love them or hate them, that's true.

Is Scott Walker that type of person?  I don't think so, but to be fair, I just kind of write him off because he's a squinty-eyed Republican dork.  But, it doesn't matter what I think.  I just think Scott Walker needs to prove himself qualified intellectually, more so than say, Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton.  We'll see if he can do that.

Governors do have skills that are transferrable to being President. It's going from being in charge of a large bureaucracy to being in charge of an even larger bureaucracy (Walker's also made a similar leap before from County Executive to Governor.)

And before anyone suggests that George W Bush proves Governors make ineffective Presidents, he came from a state where Governors had to stick around for a long time to have an impact. Say what you will about Walker, he has been a consequential Governor.

Someone with the intellect to be a great corporate lawyer could still struggle in an unfamiliar environment, as Obama did. Hillary is obviously very familiar with Washington and how the White House operates, although this would be her first time in an executive position, where she's the one calling all the shots.

OK.  I don't totally see how that's in response to what I said. 

Also, FYI Scott Walker has been a horrible governor and Barack Obama has been a great President.  So, there's that.

Walker has been an excellent governor and Obama has been a pretty poor president. Obama has presided over the weakest economic recovery on record and his foreign policy is a total mess. After Bush, we needed someone to clean up, instead he made it worse in Libya and Russia. Obama first and foremost doesnt believe in the US as a source of good in the world.

Walker on the other hand has brought public sector unions under control. Something badly needed and he did it in a way that was far far less ham handed than Kaisch did.