Krugman: Clinton vs. Obama--Substance Over Image

[BurtWorm]

Subscription required (if you have a link to the full article for free, please post it here):

http://select.nytimes.com/2007/02/26/opinion/26krugman.html?hp=&pagewanted=print

February 26, 2007
Op-Ed Columnist
Substance Over Image
By PAUL KRUGMAN

Six years ago a man unsuited both by intellect and by temperament for high office somehow ended up running the country.

How did that happen? First, he got the Republican nomination by locking up the big money early.

Then, he got within chad-and-butterfly range of the White House because the public, enthusiastically encouraged by many in the news media, treated the presidential election like a high school popularity contest. The successful candidate received kid-gloves treatment — and a free pass on the fuzzy math of his policy proposals — because he seemed like a fun guy to hang out with, while the unsuccessful candidate was subjected to sniggering mockery over his clothing and his mannerisms.

Today, with thousands of Americans and tens of thousands of Iraqis dead thanks to presidential folly, with Al Qaeda resurgent and Afghanistan on the brink, you’d think we would have learned a lesson. But the early signs aren’t encouraging.

“Presidential elections are high school writ large, of course,” declared Newsweek’s Howard Fineman last month. Oh, my goodness. But in fairness to Mr. Fineman, he was talking about the almost content-free rivalry between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama — a rivalry that, at this point, is mainly a struggle over who’s the bigger celebrity and gets to lock up the big donors.

Enough already. Let’s make this election about the issues. Let’s demand that presidential candidates explain what they propose doing about the real problems facing the nation, and judge them by how they respond...

[Name removed]

1. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[bklyncowgirl]

2. Good luck, Paul. Maybe you could start by talking to people at your highly respected newspaper. nt

[BurtWorm]

3. "The point of these questions isn’t to pose an ideological litmus test."

Krugman cont'd:

The point of these questions isn’t to pose an ideological litmus test. The point is, instead, to gauge candidates’ judgment, seriousness and courage. How they answer is as important as what they answer.

I should also say that although today’s column focuses on the Democrats, Republican candidates shouldn’t be let off the hook. In particular, someone needs to make Rudy Giuliani, who seems to have become the Republican front-runner, stop running exclusively on what he did on 9/11.

Over the last six years we’ve witnessed the damage done by a president nominated because he had the big bucks behind him, and elected (sort of) because he came across well on camera. We need to pick the next president on the basis of substance, not image.

[BurtWorm]

4. kick

[muriel_volestrangler]

5. Full article at wealthyfrenchman.blogspot.com

http://wealthyfrenchman.blogspot.com/2007/02/substance-over-image.html

[BurtWorm]

6. Thanks!

:toast:

[hedgehog]

7. Obama is a victim of his popularity. Too many people discuss

the level of his popularity without asking why he is popular. Just because he is popular doesn't mean he's not serious! When I hear him speak, I hear someone who has given deep thought to determining the most important issues facing the nation. I know that I am listening to someone who has worked in the trenches as a community organizer, so he knows the difference between theory and reality!

As for specific plans, I think it is more important to elect someone with specific goals who is willing to try whatever works to achieve those goals. FDR went into the Presidency with a pledge to eliminate deficit spending. Thank heavens he had enough sense to ditch that plan and work on doing everything possible to put people back on their feet!

[Javaman]

8. We still have 20 months to go.

and a lot of things will happen during that time.

I refuse to place my vote with anyone right now.

It's all bluster right now.