What examples prove or disprove that the Peter principle applies to US President

1. 84

   Express10posted 11 years ago

   What examples prove or disprove that the Peter principle applies to US Presidents and candidates?
   
   The Peter principle states that employees/people rise to their level of incompetence.

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2. 66

   Michele Travisposted 11 years ago

   There might be a lot but here are a few.
   1) Richard Nixon and his problem with Watergate.  That did not happen very well
   2) Andrew Johnson who became President after Lincoln was assassinated.  He tried  vetoed the first civil rights bill.  He thought this was a country for "White Men"  Congress overrode his veto. He was the first president ever to be impeached. However he was found innocent by one vote.
   3) Jimmy Carter, he was a good man, but had a hard time at the Presidency.  The inflation rate was a little over 5% and went up over 14%, then he had to deal with the Iran hostage problem.
   4) George Bush he had a lot of problems to deal with, but the biggest mistake of all was
   President George W Bush declared major combat in Iraq over today and called the six-week war "one victory" in the campaign against terror.
   After a dramatic cable-assisted landing on the USS Abraham Lincoln, which is steaming home with its crew of more than 5,000 from the longest deployment in three decades, Bush said the United States and its allies had won in Iraq.
   "Major combat operations in Iraq have ended," Bush said in a televised address from the carrier certain to provide powerful pictures for his 2004 re-election campaign.
   "In the battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed."
   
   I wish that was true.

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   1. 84

      Express10posted 11 years agoin reply to this

      You have provided a few good examples that would support the Peter principle applies to people at all levels.

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3. 60

   TheSingularityposted 11 years ago

   It is hard to say for sure. The United States is so polarized, so pretty much every presidential decision will be equally approved of and disapproved of. Also, the President represents a massive team of experts, advisers, etc, so very few actions are the work of the president alone. It would be easy to describe presidents as "good" or "bad", but most fall into a grey area. I do not think it is possible to apply the Peter Principle to US Presidents.

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   1. 84

      Express10posted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I agree with you on the polarization detail, it's strange to see how polarized people are in their beliefs on various issues. Frighteningly, saying that most of them fall into a gray area rings quite true.

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4. 52

   whonunuwhoposted 11 years ago

   To move beyond your level of competence and ability to meet the needs a job requires can be said of many and under quite a lot of similar circumstances. Some presidential candidates may well fit more appropriately in the box of the Peter Principle, than an elected president, who has multiple sources of advice and many to help him through crisis situations. True, groups of people can make wrong decisions at times, for the majority of these, a suitable and more appropriate solution is usually achieved. It has been the fortunate history of the United States, that most elected presidents have risen above their expectations, and achieved the best for our country and its people. The times are new and always possible that this may, indeed, come about as to inability to fulfill the job requirement, yet, as a people , is it not in our best interest to be more positive, and supportive in our thinking?

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