Thursday, July 05, 2012

Entry: Why I would never want to be president of the United States.

I'll skip the introductory diatribe and jump right into the many reasons why I would never want to be the US president.  (And, if you're going to comment, please keep your liberal/conservative rhetoric to yourself.)



  1. They get blamed for everything.  Seriously, they do.  They will get blamed for doing a thing and blamed if they don't do that thing.  And, just like being able to take credit for things that have nothing to do with them (ie, capturing Hussein/BinLaden), they get blamed for things that are completely out of their control (ie, gas prices).  
  2. They can only win an election by making promises and having no idea if they will be able to keep them.  Granted, I think that most politicians are happy to throw campaign promises out the window at the first convenient moment, but at the same time, an honest man could never get the necessary votes because anything short of promising absolutely everything to everyone will make them seem non-committal, weak, and an invariably poor provider for their constituents.
  3. They are given only four years (eight, if lucky) to affect change in a system that has a zillion pounds of inertia behind it.  And, on top of that, legislation introduced under one's presidency really doesn't mean much because it can be repealed by the next president (after due process, of course).  That's why so many presidents rest on the laurels of "having introduced legislation" for this or that.  
  4. They get the "credit" for all of the bad things that have trickled down from previous presidencies.  Not only that, but inability to affect radical change on current "hot" issues in as little as a single month in office is seen as an incapability to do so.  I'm not kidding.  I paid attention this last go-round.    
  5. They have the privilege of surviving the presidential candidate rat-race only to spend the next 4-8 years haggling and fighting with congress who, in the end, affects the most change under the influence of corporate campaign finance and polytheism (which basically means that you can never tell just who is who's master in the house and senate).
  6. They are expected to know everything about everything regarding how this country is run at all times.  Although this country (as any other) ultimately runs by delegation, they will be blamed for every mistake made by everyone in their chain of command.  Granted, assuming blame for the actions of one's subordinates is a good trait, but the hierarchy of the federal government is something I would wish on nobody.
  7. They are expected to be a public figure, on the TV, at natural disasters, during holidays and celebrations, at international conferences, etc, and yet are still expected to get all the real work done behind the scenes. If they spend too much time on TV, then they're not spending the time where it needs to be.  If they make a point to spend less time on TV, they're pinged for not being an adequate figurehead for the country.  (This goes well with #1.)
  8. They work 24/7.  They're bedroom is literally in the same building in which they orchestrate global affairs.  There is no concept of a weekend.  And yet, every picture of them on vacation playing golf or chopping wood is seen as slackery.
I'm sure I'll be adding more as it comes to me.  This is just something that is continually on my mind.