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What was Barack Obama's GPA?

Hi,

Although I am British, Barack Obama is my idol - and I think he's the greatest politician there is. I was curious to know what his GPA was? I heard he had a "B" average - if this is true, then I doubt UChicago would've accepted him and he would've never gone onto Harvard because after all the best of the best apply to their (academic wise).

If it is true, does this show that grades aren't reflective of the intelligence of somebody, and also if UChicago did accept his "B" average what swayed their decision to a "yes" rather than a "no" due to poor grades?

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Original post by JDWhite1995
Hi,

Although I am British, Barack Obama is my idol - and I think he's the greatest politician there is. I was curious to know what his GPA was? I heard he had a "B" average - if this is true, then I doubt UChicago would've accepted him and he would've never gone onto Harvard because after all the best of the best apply to their (academic wise).

If it is true, does this show that grades aren't reflective of the intelligence of somebody, and also if UChicago did accept his "B" average what swayed their decision to a "yes" rather than a "no" due to poor grades?


George Bush went to Harvard.
Original post by internetguru
George Bush went to Harvard.


I really think that he's the exception rather than the rule :tongue:
Reply 3
Original post by internetguru
George Bush went to Harvard.


Daddy Bush bought Jr's grades from Yale

Harvard was the MBA... he bought that too!
The best of the best academically do not go to Harvard, the sons of rich businessmen and politicians go to Harvard.
Barack Obama got into harvard because he was black, they get affirmative action.
Original post by thegodofgod
I really think that he's the exception rather than the rule :tongue:


Bush is a very smart man, he just played the friendly idiot card. He was smart enough to make everyone think he was an idiot. :tongue:
Pick a better idol.
Reply 7
Original post by JDWhite1995
Hi,

Although I am British, Barack Obama is my idol - and I think he's the greatest politician there is. I was curious to know what his GPA was? I heard he had a "B" average - if this is true, then I doubt UChicago would've accepted him and he would've never gone onto Harvard because after all the best of the best apply to their (academic wise).

If it is true, does this show that grades aren't reflective of the intelligence of somebody, and also if UChicago did accept his "B" average what swayed their decision to a "yes" rather than a "no" due to poor grades?


He never studied at Chicago, but I believe that he briefly taught there.

He did go to a pretty good Private College near LA, before transferring to Columbia to finish his BA, so I can't imagine his GPA would have been too low. He also went to Harvard Law School to do his Law degree, so chances are, to get into Columbia and Harvard, he will have been pretty bright as he didn't have the rich/famous parents that Bush had.
Reply 8
Original post by Classical Liberal
Bush is a very smart man, he just played the friendly idiot card. He was smart enough to make everyone think he was an idiot. :tongue:


I've heard this too. I know someone who met him, and apparently all the negative things you thought about him disappeared instantly; supposedly an extremely personable and enigmatic fellow. I can believe it, in all honesty.
Original post by Classical Liberal
Bush is a very smart man, he just played the friendly idiot card. He was smart enough to make everyone think he was an idiot. :tongue:


He was a figurehead basically. Most of the actual governing was done by the people around him.

This is why Bill Clinton, Colin Powell, etc get asked about their opinions on issues occaisionally but Bush never does. He has nothing interesting to say.
Original post by anarchism101
He was a figurehead basically.


The President was designed to be precisely that.

For example on Thomas Jefferson's tombestone it does not say that he was the President, he thought of it as being irrelevant. Unfortunately such a sentiment no longer exists...

I would imagine at the very least a 3.8, if not a 4.0.

I don't see how he would've got into Harvard Law otherwise.
Original post by Classical Liberal
The President was designed to be precisely that.

For example on Thomas Jefferson's tombestone it does not say that he was the President, he thought of it as being irrelevant. Unfortunately such a sentiment no longer exists...



I was talking about Bush personally rather than the executive as a whole. Yes, I know the executive didn't do a lot in the USA's early years, but during the Bush years the executive did do a lot, it was just that Bush personally didn't do a lot except say to the cameras what the guys around him told him to.

It was a similar story with Reagan, though Bush wasn't to the same extent as him. Reagan didn't have a clue what was going on half the time.
Original post by anarchism101
He was a figurehead basically. Most of the actual governing was done by the people around him.

This is why Bill Clinton, Colin Powell, etc get asked about their opinions on issues occaisionally but Bush never does. He has nothing interesting to say.


Precisely. It's still an important job - who can deny that whoever is president of America has a lot of power - but the man actually holding the post doesn't really make that much difference.

The way to get elected is to be a charismatic personality figure with a bit of political insight and intuition. The people who are really qualified to do things are working underneath the president away from the public eye. The president is the speech giver; the dignitary meeter; the reassuring, inspiring public figure.

Here's Obama and his wife performing one of their very important duties as president and first lady:
NFcyC.jpg
(edited 11 years ago)
It's just a shame he condemns every black killing but when a black kills a white, particularly in the recent spate of murders because of that Treyvon kid he completely ignores. He'll never get my vote because he doesn't care about my people.
Original post by internetguru
George Bush went to Harvard.

Yes but he actually worked hard for it... allegedly.
Original post by HeavyTeddy
Pick a better idol.


Seriously.
Having read the book on rediscovering his origins, I'm pretty sure he lived in Hawaii and smoked weed...


He never studied at Chicago either. He studied at Columbia NYC and then did his masters at Harvard Law.
Reply 18
Original post by Classical Liberal
Bush is a very smart man, he just played the friendly idiot card. He was smart enough to make everyone think he was an idiot. :tongue:


I don't reckon Bush was/is genuinely an idiot, just simply not a great president.
Reply 19
Original post by HeavyTeddy
Pick a better idol.


[video="youtube;GHska5QJPIc"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHska5QJPIc[/video]

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