Revealing Quote of the Day: Who cares about “dumb” Presidential candidates?

To say that right-wing outlets like Fox News put a premium on intelligence is a wee bit of a stretch. Consider this latest example, one of the more telling ones I’ve yet seen: Concerning attacks against Gov. Rick Perry (R-TX) over running for President whilst possessing the IQ of a moldy turnip, America Live host Megyn Kelly actually asks, “Does it matter – should it matter – if somebody is dumb?” Watch it for yourself:

My transcript: (click the [+/-] to expand/collapse →)

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[From Fox News’s America Live, aired 08/29/11, with guest Michelle Malkin]

MEGYN KELLY: I wanna ask you this: Does it matter – should it matter – if somebody is dumb?

[Rest of video is utterly unmemorable mix of description of “partisan attacks” against Rick Perry and Malkin’s babbling about it. Not transcribing that.]

To answer Ms. Kelly’s question: Seeing as how we’re talking about a candidate vying for the position of President of the United States, a supreme role of political and military might wherein he is put in charge of the entire nation’s present and future direction and well-being, not to mention at which point he receives the allegiance of the most powerful military force in human history … then yeah, I’d say it’s pretty fucking important that he have some modicum of brains in his head.

The far-Right these days gets all verklempt over the idea that any “elite” should run for President. This was characterized perfectly when Rush Limbaugh actually criticized President Obama for sounding “smart” and “articulate” during a speech. No; to the modern Right, the best candidate for presidency should be some half-witted yokel whose academic credentials ended with their high school graduation. After all, what’s so hard about being in charge of a society of over 300 million people, anyway? Surely one don’t need no stinkin’ school smarts fer that?

One thing that’s growing increasingly clear is that if the far-Right does end up running the United States into the ground, it sure as hell won’t have been as a result of some complicated and brainy plot.

Tags: Megyn Kelly • Rick Perry • US President • anti-intellectualism