How much information about a candidate should the voter be entitled to? Is there anything the public should not have the right to know?

 

Seems like health issues should be private, yet so important to the job. Tax returns? Who they are sleeping with? College transcripts?

No one is forced to run for this position. Anything the people might legitimately care about is pretty much fair game.

Health records should be a must. Simply because of the importance of the position. That being said, FDR might not have been elected 4 times if most people knew he had polio and I think he did a pretty good job. So.... i dunno. Probably better to release them.

 

With regards to taxes, I really think that's more of a political ploy to show how "out of touch" someone is with middle America. Maybe it shows some conflicts of interest or dubious political ties, but in general it's just a ploy and not essential.

 

Nothing else beyond those two is really important to a presidential candidate. Grades are irrelevant. The President has to be a discerning decision maker, not a know it all... advisers are supposed to be the experts int heir field.

Edited January 17, 201214 yr by Athomeboy_2000

No one is forced to run for this position. Anything the people might legitimately care about is pretty much fair game.

 

No one is forced to run for this position. Anything the people might legitimately care about is pretty much fair game.

 

Therein lies the rub. What people should actually care about, and even what the actually DO care about, is trumped by what the media thinks the public should know/will get the most viewers.

Therein lies the rub. What people should actually care about, and even what the actually DO care about, is trumped by what the media thinks the public should know/will get the most viewers.

And I have little to no issue with the media scouring everything they can find. It's the Presidency for crying out loud, this guy/girl would command enough nuclear weapons to end life on this planet.

And I have little to no issue with the media scouring everything they can find. It's the Presidency for crying out loud, this guy/girl would command enough nuclear weapons to end life on this planet.

 

But how far down the path of birtherism do you go?

But how far down the path of birtherism do you go?

I have no issue with the press having checked into those allegations. They were clearly untrue, the documents all exist, there's no reason to file lawsuits over documents that have been checked, that should have been that.

I have no issue with the press having checked into those allegations. They were clearly untrue, the documents all exist, there's no reason to file lawsuits over documents that have been checked, that should have been that.

 

WHERE ARE HIS COLLEGE TRANSCRIPTS? WHAT ABOUT THE SHAH WHO FINANCED HIS RADICAL EDUCATION? MADRASSAS!

WHERE ARE HIS COLLEGE TRANSCRIPTS? WHAT ABOUT THE SHAH WHO FINANCED HIS RADICAL EDUCATION? MADRASSAS!

See the difference there though, you crossed into demanding non-existent documents 1/2 way through that statement.

See the difference there though, you crossed into demanding non-existent documents 1/2 way through that statement.

 

Once you open "any and all records" up as legitimate, then Obama's got to release his college transcripts, his student loan information, etc. etc.

 

There are plenty of things that are either dumb, irrelevant or both. One of those, imo, would be medical history outside of anything that may seriously impair their ability to perform their duties (e.g. terminal cancer), since it is none of my business if Mitt has some allergies or once had a broken arm or if he takes Lipitor to lower his cholesterol and doesn't impact his ability to be a President. Another would be college transcripts, because how Mitt or Obama or whoever did in undergrad 20-30+ years ago really doesn't matter. At all.

 

Candidates should not be forced to disclose any and all personal information requested or otherwise suffer from the impression that "they must be hiding something!"

Once you open "any and all records" up as legitimate, then Obama's got to release his college transcripts, his student loan information, etc. etc.

 

There are plenty of things that are either dumb, irrelevant or both. One of those, imo, would be medical history outside of anything that may seriously impair their ability to perform their duties (e.g. terminal cancer), since it is none of my business if Mitt has some allergies or once had a broken arm or if he takes Lipitor to lower his cholesterol and doesn't impact his ability to be a President. Another would be college transcripts, because how Mitt or Obama or whoever did in undergrad 20-30+ years ago really doesn't matter. At all.

 

Candidates should not be forced to disclose any and all personal information requested or otherwise suffer from the impression that "they must be hiding something!"

Actually, it ought to be very much your business whether a Presidential contender is taking cholesterol medication, because having to deal with a cholesterol problem substantially increases the chances that the Vice President is going to wind up taking over. Or if he's allergic to bee stings, a single bee sting might remove the head of government and create a near crisis.

 

College transcripts, yeah, that's iffy, but heck, if someone wants to double check to actually make sure a guy went to the courses he's alleged to have gone to, why not. I believe I recall an example of a Notre Dame coach hiree having a college on his resume that he actually didn't attend.

Bee allergies: overcoming political tribalism, uniting the country.

 

Come on, Balta. It'd be a completely irrelevant issue.