# American's are too dumb for an Obama presidency. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 8, 2008, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-are-too-dumb-for-an-obama-presidency/476295 "2008-12-08T20:02:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-are-too-dumb-for-an-obama-presidency/476295/121 "2008-12-11T06:06:33Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > And, of course, you are incorrect - the Bush team was forced to deal with the sort of people who engage in petty vandalism thru out the transition, who had every opportunity to hamper the transition - with, for instance, lawsuits and whining. :dubious: Gore’s contesting the blatantly illegal Florida election results in court was not “petty vandalism.” The only “petty vandalism” in that contest was committed by the Pubs who came down to Florida Mau-Mauing the election officials with their fatuous “SORE LOSERMAN” signs. As you know. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-are-too-dumb-for-an-obama-presidency/476295/122 "2008-12-11T06:12:46Z")
> [@Mr.Moto](#): > > Strange, though - Bush has been getting a lot of credit for making the current transition as painless as possible for the new president (or at least as much as external events will allow.) 😕[No, he hasn’t.](http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1108/15982.html) ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 6:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-are-too-dumb-for-an-obama-presidency/476295/123 "2008-12-11T06:43:18Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > 😕[No, he hasn’t.](http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1108/15982.html) I think this is the money quote: > [@](#): > > Last May, White House chief of staff Joshua Bolten wrote a memo instructing federal agency heads to make sure any new regulations were finalized by Nov. 1. The memo didn’t spell it out, but the thinking behind the directive was obvious. As Myron Ebell of the conservative Competitive Enterprise Institute put it: “We’re not going to make the same mistakes the Clinton administration did.” > > President Bill Clinton finalized regulations within 60 days of the 2001 inauguration, meaning Bush could come in and easily reverse them. Regulations that have been final for more than 60 days are much more difficult to overturn. In other words, Bush’s team is making it MUCH MORE DIFFICULT for the incoming Obama administration. Good thing Obama is bringing some qualified people to his team, rather than horse show judges and inexperienced sycophants. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 7:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-are-too-dumb-for-an-obama-presidency/476295/124 "2008-12-11T07:10:42Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > I think this is the money quote: > In other words, Bush’s team is making it MUCH MORE DIFFICULT for the incoming Obama administration. > > Good thing Obama is bringing some qualified people to his team, rather than horse show judges and inexperienced sycophants. That seems like it should be normal business for any administration regardless of party. Clinton probably should have done it, too. Any president is going to want his policies carried forward, but that’s not neccessarily going to affect the logistics of a transition. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [December 11, 2008, 8:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-are-too-dumb-for-an-obama-presidency/476295/125 "2008-12-11T08:13:18Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > That seems like it should be normal business for any administration regardless of party. Clinton probably should have done it, too. Any president is going to want his policies carried forward, but that’s not neccessarily going to affect the logistics of a transition. Nor will West Wing graffiti nor removing keyboard keys. I’m just glad W isn’t making use of this period to bomb Iran. That **would** affect, etc. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-are-too-dumb-for-an-obama-presidency/476295/126 "2008-12-12T00:34:49Z")
[Obama makes pick for energy chief, sources say - CNN.com](http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/12/10/obama.energy/index.html) Heres todays addition. Chu is the new energy chief. He is a physicist and the head of Livermore Labs. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-are-too-dumb-for-an-obama-presidency/476295/127 "2008-12-12T00:55:35Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > [Obama makes pick for energy chief, sources say - CNN.com](http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/12/10/obama.energy/index.html) Heres todays addition. Chu is the new energy chief. He is a physicist and the head of Livermore Labs. This egghead does not sound like the kind of down-to-earth guy that I could have a beer with. I know a guy who pumps gas down at the Pay n’ Save who would make a great Energy Chief. He would do a heckof a job. ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-are-too-dumb-for-an-obama-presidency/476295/128 "2008-12-12T02:16:25Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > This egghead does not sound like the kind of down-to-earth guy that I could have a beer with. I know a guy who pumps gas down at the Pay n’ Save who would make a great Energy Chief. He would do a heckof a job. Well, sure. He never wastes a drop. I’d like to see the egghead pull that off. Does he have the decades of experience with the AX01450 that Flick has? I don’t think so. -Joe ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-are-too-dumb-for-an-obama-presidency/476295/129 "2008-12-12T02:23:11Z")
> [@Biggirl](#): > > In the [WorldNutDaily pit thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=495989) I posted a link to this article [Academic Elites Fill Obama’s Roster](http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28092935/) and I was going to leave it at that. But the more I thought about this article, the angrier I became. > > Because the norm in government for the last eight years have been graduates from barely accredited Bible colleges. Don’t believe me? From the article: > And Bush’s model worked out so well for this country. > > Because ‘regular Americans’ are a bunch of dumb fucks with no education and a good education is nothing but “highbrow snobbery”. > How about we try this. We wait until Obama is President and when he fucks up (and he will. He’s only human) we can jump all over his shit. Until then, lets stop making up shit to attack. Obama’s cabinet is _too smart for America_? What the fucking fuck? Wr can haz r dum! I do agree with your point though. The exaltation of ignorance is extremely detrimental. Although, come to think of it, I don’t think many of the actual neocon leaders and pols came from “barely accredited Bible colleges.” Bush, for example, went to Yale, as did Bush I. Yet many fellow travelers do berate “innalekshulisim”. ---
**Author:** ![Merijeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@Merijeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merijeek)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-are-too-dumb-for-an-obama-presidency/476295/130 "2008-12-12T02:41:12Z")
> [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](#): > > Wr can haz r dum! > > I do agree with your point though. The exaltation of ignorance is extremely detrimental. Although, come to think of it, I don’t think many of the actual neocon leaders and pols came from “barely accredited Bible colleges.” Bush, for example, went to Yale, as did Bush I. Yet many fellow travelers do berate “innalekshulisim”. Many fellow travelers also think Bush is a “texan”, “cowboy” and “regular guy”. -Joe ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2008, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-are-too-dumb-for-an-obama-presidency/476295/131 "2008-12-12T03:58:48Z")
> [@Euphonious\_Polemic](#): > > This egghead does not sound like the kind of down-to-earth guy that I could have a beer with. I know a guy who pumps gas down at the Pay n’ Save who would make a great Energy Chief. He would do a heckof a job. Problem is he probably does not know how to make money off the job. A poor example of our politicians the last few years. How can you trust someone you can not buy? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/americans-are-too-dumb-for-an-obama-presidency/476295.md?page=6)