Do you want the job of president? Do you want the pressure? Do you want the tension? Do you want the continuous attention on your life? Do you want to make decisions that could cause a war? Do you want to make decisions that hold people’s lives in your hands? Do you want to make decisions that can decide who gets a job? Do you want to navigate interactions with world leaders on a daily basis? Do you feel prepared for that?
That type of job is what I’m preparing for, I’ve spent three years studying political science, American History, and Communications in an attempt to be ready to be the best city council member, or state senator, or congresswoman I can be. I don’t want to be president right now. I’m not ready. I don’t have the experience, I don’t have the education, I don’t have the capabilities yet. Maybe someday, but the day will come after concerted effort and education and hard work. I don’t want someone “just like me” in the office of the President right now, and I’m a political scientist.
Yet, that’s a quality Americans are looking for in their president. They want someone “just like them.” They want someone "normal." They want someone they can drink a beer with.
There’s a fine line here. It is a completely valid desire to want someone that is in tune with your day-to-day life. In order to represent us, our president has to understand us and the problems we face. We should vote for someone who is empathetic to our concerns. This means they have to be sympathetic to groups outside of their own, they have to seek opinions from people who are dissimilar to them, and they should probably know what the price of milk is; please vote according to that.
Please don’t vote according to the fact that the candidate seems “normal.” Don’t vote for someone because they seem fun to hang out with. You are voting for a leader, a policy maker, a face for the nation; you are not voting for a friend. Vote for the person you can picture in the oval office, not in a bar. If that’s the same person, great; if not, then vote for the presidential one and befriend the other one.
