Race To The White House – Part 2

Should a college drop-out be eligible to run for president?

Scott Walker

The latest entrant into the 2016 race for the Oval Office is Scott Walker which brings the total of Republicans who vie for the highest prize (the Oval Office) at over 31 (List of Declared Republican Candidates), 16 of which have name recognition – The Democratic Party (List of Declared Democrat Candidates) has a current total of 17, 5 of which have name recognition. – Scott Walker is the only major candidate without a college degree. Does it matter?

A college degree is not a requirement to run for any office in the United States; in fact, to run for the office of the presidency, the requirements are quite simple 1) you must be at least 35 years of age 2) you must be an American born citizen 3) you must have been in the country for 14 consecutive years. So, a college degree is not needed. Should it matter anyway? Before rushing to answer NO because you are Republican or YES because you are affiliated with the Democrat Party, let’s take a look at the pros (and cons) of a college degree for running the largest ship on the planet.

Consider the following scenario: your retirement portfolio poor performance prompts you to consider taking your nest egg to a more reputable financial institution. You meet with the manager; after giving you a brief overview of the institution, he introduced you to Joe, your assigned financial advisor. The manager speaks highly of Joe as a great guy, a hard working individual, someone who will take care of your investment as if it were his own. The manager re-assures you are in good hands. Joe greets you, makes you feel comfortable. After filling out the papers, you walk out convinced that your portfolio is now in good hands and should perform better; after all, Joe, your personal advisor is great, caring and gives you all the attention you need. However, both Joe and the manager failed to mention that Joe does not have a license; in other words, Joe is not a professional financial advisor. Does it matter? Should you care that Joe did not complete the courses to obtain a license? Would you panic when you find out?

Let’s consider another scenario. Dr. Smith is a well renowned surgeon at the neighborhood hospital; everybody he has cared for the past decade has spoken highly of him. Naturally, when you were diagnosed with a tumor which presses against your pancreas, you quickly asked for Dr. Smith to perform the surgery. A day or so before the scheduled operation, someone leaked the news that Dr. Smith is not a real doctor; he did not even finish medical school. Does it matter? Should it matter? After all, everyone believes he is a great surgeon. Would you hesitate to let him operate on you?

Well, before you jump in the “Scott Walker for President” bandwagon, consider whether you are okay with a non-license financial advisor managing your retirement investment or it’s okay for an unlicensed doctor to perform a delicate surgery on you or a loved one. A financial advisor or a doctor can only impact a very small group and yet you would not subject yourself (or a loved) to such predicament (as described in the aforementioned scenarios); should you put the country in that predicament?

Follow @mducheiney

Apps Downloads