President Bush recently praised Barack Obama by saying: “I know his girls are on his mind and he wants to make sure that first and foremost, he is a good dad.'' But how important it is for the rest of the country that Obama is a good dad? Do we really want his girls to be the first thing on his mind?
It is common in American politics that politicians parade around with their families and stress the central place these hold in their lives. When American politicians have experienced family troubles, such as extra-marital affairs, it has distracted from – and in some cases, destroyed – their political careers. But, this is not necessarily the case in other parts of the world. It would seem a great presidential family is not always directly related to – and much less a precondition of -- a great presidency.
3 comments:
I think we Americans have a (unique?) tendency to want leaders who are also "average joes". Remember how one of the selling points of George W. Bush was that we'd rather have a beer with him then with Al Gore? Perhaps the concern with politicians' families is similar.
i can agree that personality matters to an extent. when it comes to personal life, the most i hope for is that it is not a distraction, and certainly i don't want it to be his #1 concern.
The job of President of the United States is one of complications. You have to be the leader of this nation, and at the same time, all eyes of this country and the world are on you...the First Family of the United States. The country sets their expectations of you, and every moment you spend in the Oval Office you are judged by your experience and leadership. It is an added bonus, to me, if you can be labeled...caring family man.
It has been quite some time since we have watched children grow up in the White House, and I think it will be interesting to see Obama's daughters grow and mature in the next four years. Maybe if the First Family stays in the spotlight, and they are depicted as a close-knit, loving family...perhaps the United States may gain back some of the respect we have lost in this world.
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