# What type of former president do think that President Obama will be? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [July 12, 2013, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312 "2013-07-12T14:01:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2013, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/81 "2013-07-24T09:13:01Z")
> [@Prejteach2](#): > > He would be great! I’m not convinced. I don’t think he’d be terrible (and he’d at least say something, unlike a certain sitting Justice I could name) but he’s a politician by profession. Being a judge is a slightly different skill set; he may know the law as a scholar but it remains to be seen whether he’s got the chops to apply it in a judicial context. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2013, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/82 "2013-07-24T11:11:12Z")
> [@Aro](#): > > Not exactly pertinant to the thread at large, but I thought I’d mention [this recent survey](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-19622330) to suggest that this is no longer the case… > > It’s all about personal perception (age is just a number etc..), and I’d suggest Obama is a guy who doesn’t see himself as being old. Yeah, I think a lot of people roughly from my generation feel that they are not old when they actually are. I think it’s part of maybe the ego or narcissism that is inherent in the generation born after WWII. And partly of course, we do understand things like health and physical fitness better. A lot of us decided to get obese and out of shape, but the people from my generation that “went the other way” are very fit, probably much more fit and in shape for people in their 50s and 60s than has been typical historically. But at the end of the day, 50 isn’t the new 40 and 60 isn’t the new 50. Life expectancy has not gone up all that much because I think we’re at a point with life expectancy where you won’t see significant increases now without some theoretical great leap forward in biology. So while a lot of people have themselves convinced they aren’t old, the reality is they certainly are. At 56 there’s a near 100% chance you’ve lived more of your life than you have left. ---
**Author:** ![Koshki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/da6949/32.png) [@Koshki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koshki)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2013, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/83 "2013-09-01T13:23:25Z")
I think he’ll be playing a lot of golf. Maybe write a few more autobiographies. Hanging out with his celebrity friends. I certainly don’t see him becoming gracious. ---
**Author:** ![computergeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e56c9b/32.png) [@computergeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/computergeek)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2013, 1:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/84 "2013-09-01T13:50:29Z")
I can see him campaigning some for other politicians and especially for the Democratic Presidential candidate in the next election. But he’s more of an intellectual, so I can see him writing more books and maybe doing a lot of speeches. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2013, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/85 "2013-09-01T15:59:58Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Or himself. He did go gray mighty fast! It’s actually quite alarming. Is his whole body aging in the same way? [http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/gawker/2010/08/0804\_obamagraybig.jpg](http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/gawker/2010/08/0804_obamagraybig.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2013, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/86 "2013-09-01T16:14:04Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > It’s actually quite alarming. Is his whole body aging in the same way? > > [http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/gawker/2010/08/0804\_obamagraybig.jpg](http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/gawker/2010/08/0804_obamagraybig.jpg) You can do that same thing for just about any president (since the advent of frequent presidential photography)…they ALL age considerably during their terms of office. The stress of the job has to be impossible. [Time: How Presidents Age In Office](http://content.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1872168,00.html) ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2013, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/87 "2013-09-01T18:29:51Z")
I think he’ll most likely try and become known as a public intellectual. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2013, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/88 "2013-09-01T19:35:16Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > You can do that same thing for just about any president (since the advent of frequent presidential photography)…they ALL age considerably during their terms of office. The stress of the job has to be impossible. > > [Time: How Presidents Age In Office](http://content.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,1872168,00.html) I think I’ve tried to address it before, but I don’t think there is much evidence that the Presidency actually ages you any faster. Most Presidents in the 20th century have been mid-40s to mid-50s when elected. That’s an age range where you start to show noticeable signs of aging in 4-8 year windows. If you took a picture of me at 28 and another at 38, I don’t look that much older. I still had no gray in my hair then, and while my face would “look” a little older in person, it would have been hard to tell unless it was some high quality close up picture that I was noticeably older. But take a picture of me at 45 and another at 55, and the aging is much, much more noticeable. I was not President during that time. ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2013, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/89 "2013-09-17T14:30:55Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > He’s got more than three years left - don’t rule (a sex scandal) out. HAHAHAHAHA. The President knows that Michelle would no doubt, without hesitation, castrate him if he were involved in a sex scandal. There will be no sex scandals in the Obama White House. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Subterraneanus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Subterraneanus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Subterraneanus)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/90 "2013-09-18T18:27:43Z")
Black ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/91 "2013-09-18T22:28:34Z")
1. Step back so Michelle can step forward, ala Hillary, for a probable Senate run. 2. Write books, seems to come fairly easy for him. 3. Stay quiet out of respect for the next president - it’s tradition. 3a. Console Hillary on her loss. 4. More writing and speaking. 5. Commissioner of NBA for a few years (Silver will serve for a relatively short time - compared to Stern, then step down due to league scandals and money loss. Obama will be brought in to clean house.) 6. Supreme Court ---
**Author:** ![Zakalwe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zakalwe/32/270_2.png) [@Zakalwe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zakalwe)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/92 "2013-09-19T01:22:20Z")
> [@Icarus](#): > > 1. Step back so Michelle can step forward, ala Hillary, for a probable Senate run. > 2. Write books, seems to come fairly easy for him. > 3. Stay quiet out of respect for the next president - it’s tradition. > 3a. Console Hillary on her loss. > 4. More writing and speaking. > 5. Commissioner of NBA for a few years (Silver will serve for a relatively short time - compared to Stern, then step down due to league scandals and money loss. Obama will be brought in to clean house.) > 6. Supreme Court Where in the world did #1 come from? As far as I can tell, Michelle has shown _zero_ interest in running for ANY office. #2-3 are pretty much no-brainers at this point (although depending on the book, 2 might conflict with 3). 3a - :rolleyes: 4. Duh, the man needs to eat. 5. :rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes: 6. I know people think/like to say this, but no way, no how. Those days are gone… ---
**Author:** ![Renee\_RL](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7c8e57/32.png) [@Renee\_RL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee_RL)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/93 "2013-09-19T03:16:41Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > Boy, I hope [Malia’s not still growing](http://www.theonion.com/articles/white-house-officials-confirm-malia-obama-now-seve,30033/)… Why? ---
**Author:** ![BigAppleBucky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigapplebucky/32/178_2.png) [@BigAppleBucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigAppleBucky)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/94 "2013-09-20T16:42:47Z")
Too damned young. He was too young when first elected, IMO. These days, appointing him to the Supreme Court _a la_ Taft, (if he wanted that) probably would be too controversial. ---
**Author:** ![adaher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dec6dc/32.png) [@adaher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/adaher)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312/95 "2013-09-20T23:05:35Z")
His expansive view of executive power alone would cause some Democrats to defect on his nomination. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-type-of-former-president-do-think-that-president-obama-will-be/663312.md?page=4)