Does The Next President Need To Be From The Private Sector?

1. Many conservatives feel our current President lacks the "street credentials" to govern our land.I recently read a letter from a conservative developer from the West coast that stated President Obama doesn't understand the private sector and job development because he was sheltered from the harshness of competition in the marketplace.He hasn't struggled with the risk of operating a small or large business.This lack of "real life" experiences hinder his leadership because he doesn't understand the private workforce and the  stress of living in an unstable economy. The anxieties and fears of the private sector allude him because he has been a public employee the majority of his life. President Obama also isn't an insightful Commander-In Chief because he didn't participate in the armed services and has no combat experience.His service as a community organizer is very pale compared to a man fighting the enemy on a daily basis.

         This viewpoint is consistent with many conservatives today. I will definitely give them credit for understanding market forces and the nuances of being successful while under stress.The private sector is enormously competitive and their success is getting complicated by the global economy.I respect entrepreneurs who build businesses from scratch and employ citizens and create revenue for many public projects. Inventive technologies spur new jobs that grow the economy and our GDP.When they argue for less regulations and lower taxes,I listen to them because they are always in the process of dealing with "the law of the jungle" and know how to survive in the marketplace.

This viewpoint,a private sector President, confuses me because it is a new twist in the debate over the management of public policy.Many past Presidents haven't had fruitful private sector experience. George W. Bush was an unsuccessful businessman.He started Arbusto Energy in 1979 with surplus money from his education trust fund(I bet President Obama wished he had one ) and had to sell it to Spectrum 7 in 1984 because of poor earnings.Under his leadership,Spectrum 7 also lost money and was merged into Harken. As CEO of Harken, the company's revenue declined annually.He left the oil business in 1987 to run his father's campaign.George H.W.Bush was successful with the help of his wealthy father.He co-founded Zapata Petroleum and became president of Zapata Offshore Drilling in 1954(ahead of his time as an environmentalist).He stayed president and became a millionaire until 1964 when he entered politics.His father,Prescott, was on the board of directors of Brown Brothers Harrison for twenty two years.(Wall St. Banker) Ronald Reagan moved to California in 1937 to be a successful actor.He was president of the Screen Actors Guild and a spokesperson for General Electric.He was a Democrat until 1962 until he switched parties after a Barry Goldwater speech.His experience in the private sector was very limited.Gerald Ford has no private sector experience.He was elected to congress in 1948 and served thirteen successive terms until he became President. President Nixon,like Ford,has no private sector experience.He was elected to congress in 1946 and stayed in many public positions until he became President.

President Carter had a successful private sector career before going into politics.He expanded his family business with increased revenue by the time he ran for governor in 1970.President Clinton and Obama have no private sector experience to speak of.Both were law professors before entering politics.As I tally the experiences, only two of the last eight Presidents had positive private sector experience. The two who had experience were helped enormously by their parents and didn't struggle the way most citizens do. The reality of this viewpoint by Conservatives seems invalid after reviewing the past experiences of the Presidents. The debate on who governs best will be continue as we get closer to the elections.