Since 1988, every US president has been a Harvard or Yale grad.

[El_Johns]

[4] Beginning in 1988, every US president has been a graduate of Harvard or Yale. Beginning in 2000, every losing presidential candidate has been a Harvard or Yale graduate, with the exception of John McCain in 2008.

http://billmoyers.com/2014/02/21/anatomy-of-the-deep-state/


Just thought it was an interesting data point.

[seattledo]

1. And some people here say white privilege doesn't exist

[El_Johns]

3. ? "Every President" includes Barack Obama, Harvard Law.

Only 3.8 percent of American families make more than $200,000 per year. But at Harvard University, 45.6 percent of incoming freshman come from families making $200,000 or more. A mere 4 percent of Harvard students come from a family in the bottom quintile of US incomes, and only 17.8 percent come from the bottom three quintiles.

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2013/10/immorality-college-admissions-2013102945841711416.html

[hobbit709]

2. Maybe therein lies the problem.

[blkmusclmachine]

4. All Skull & Bones members, too, I bet!

[Igel]

12. Esp. the Harvard grads.

Considering that Skull and Bones is at Yale.

Humorous, to imagine Columbia grad and Harvard Law student Obama heading up to New Haven, to enemy territory, for Skull and Bones.

[MannyGoldstein]

29. Down.

New Haven is *down* from these parts, at least on standard maps.

[Spider Jerusalem]

5. And half of all presidents since 1900 have been Ivy League graduates.

Harvard: Both Roosevelts, Kennedy, Bush II (MBA), Obama (Law)

Yale: Both Bushes, Taft, Ford, Clinton (Law)

Princeton: Wilson

of non-Ivy League graduates, two (Truman and Johnson) succeeded on the death of their predecessor (later winning election in their own right).

[XRubicon]

6. and Columbia...

Just sayin...

[El_Johns]

7. Barack Obama, Harvard Law. Just sayin'.

[XRubicon]

8. Barack Obama Columbia undergraduate

He can't be all bad.

[El_Johns]

9. Stand Columbia.

[Jenoch]

10. I did not know that Reagan went to either Harvard or Yale

[El_Johns]

11. That's why it says "since 1988".

[Jenoch]

13. I suppose the OP meant 'after' 1988 because Reagan was president for all of 1988.

[El_Johns]

14. 'since' includes the meaning 'after,' so pointless comment.

[Jenoch]

15. When read since such and such date,

I always have known that it starts with that year and not the next. I think it has more to do with people confusing election years with years served. Many years ago the USPS had to recall stamps honoring HHH because it was printd with VP 1964-1968. we did not have a VP in 1964 and he was VP into 1969.

[El_Johns]

16. I think it has more to do with you conceiving of the year 1988 as a period beginning at the start of

that year while the author conceives of it as a point that includes both beginning and end.

Neither is any more "correct" than the other & given the context, it's a pointless comment.

[Jenoch]

17. If you tell someone you have worked for a particular business

since 2010, does that really mean you did not start work there until 2011?

[El_Johns]

19. Pointless argument. If I say "Blacks have been free since the Civil War" does that mean they were

free in 1861?

If I say, "The US has been the dominant world power since 1945" is my meaning specifically that they became the dominant power in 1945, or that they've been the dominant power since the end of WW2?

The "meaning" is not inherent in the word "since," but rather in whether the time in question is conceived of as a point or a period, and the general context.

If you conceive of 1988 as a period of time, then you think "from the beginning of that period".

If you conceive of it as a point in time, then you think "after that point".

A year can be conceived of either way.

Neither is more correct than the other, and given the context in the OP, the meaning is quite clear and the comment pointless.

and that's all I have to say about that.

[Jenoch]

20. Ok Forrest

I would say the U.S. was the dominent world power for all of 1945.

The were many blacks that were free in the U.S. in 1861, but the Civil War was several years, not a particular year. You are right that this has gone on long enough.

[fujiyama]

18. This is an interesting fact

and I think this elitism plays a part in the increasing economic (and political) inequality we're dealing with.

Certain professions are virtually closed off to those who don't go to an elite university (investment banking and high end law firms won't even look at applicants regardless of their GPA if haven't attended a particular Ivy League school). Now I understand people have various biases for fellow alum, but we're seeing a lot of people basically pulling in fellow "elites" and kicking the ladder after they get to the top. It creates a bizarre incestuous atmosphere (especially in power centers of DC and NYC). And since these schools' price tags are increasingly out of reach for most Americans this problem is simply reinforcing itself.

Granted, it can be debated how much value investment bankers and corporate lawyers bring to society in the first place (I'd say very, very little). But this is the crux of the problem - many of these graduates are indeed brilliant (of course there are exceptions - look at the previous president!) - but are doing very little to actually contribute to society. They're sucked into Wall Street or K street because the money is great and they work "hard" but they are basically parasites, producing no product and a service of questionable good (if not outright evil as in the case of CDOs).

[jsr]

23. Exclusion is how our ruling class perpetuates itself.

Merit is mostly an illusion in the Ivy League.

[onenote]

21. Doesn't seem that interesting when you realize you're talking about three people

Clinton 1993-2001
Bush- 2001-2009
Obama 2009-2017

[El_Johns]

22. Yes, I noticed that too. And also their opponents, save McCain. The next election should be

interesting.

But you forgot Bush Sr, a very important part of the mix....1989-93.

[Throd]

24. It probably won't end until I become President.

[El_Johns]

25. lol

[Iris]

35. I can't wait!

[madville]

26. Hillary can continue the streak

Since she's a Yale Law grad.

[Malone]

27. Maybe voters see that as being "qualified"

Maybe part of being "qualified" for the job in the mind of the populace is graduating from some hard to get in elitist school.

[MannyGoldstein]

28. As were Theodore and Franklin Roosevelt, JFK, probably some others...

they tend to accept very, very driven students who are quite bright, generally affable, and have great connections.

My sister went to Harvard*, I think it's a fantastic school. But the "inbreeding" that's happening in the top 0.001% with respect to these schools is a problem.




*Unlike many of her classmates, she's dedicated her life to helping others - cancer victims and their families, and mentally ill people in prison among others.

[El_Johns]

30. Before JFK = DDE, West Point. After JFK = Johnson, Texas State Teachers College.

Before TR = McKinley, 1 term at Allegheny College. After TR = Taft, Yale.

Before FDR = Hoover, Stanford. After FDR = Eisenhower, West Point.


The only similarity to the present situation is that FDR had 4 terms, so you could say it was 4 terms for Harvard.

Bush 1 through Obama = 7 terms for Harvard & Yale.

[MannyGoldstein]

31. True... but still a huge percentage, if not 100% nt

[El_Johns]

32. Yes, a large proportion of Presidents have come from Harvard & Yale. But I think it would be

interesting to look at when. I can't remember any other 7 terms of Harvard & Yalies.

In fact, here is the list of Presidents who attended Harvard & Yale; though they are the universities the largest number of presidents attended, it seems the dominance is a recent phenomenon.

Harvard University

John Adams
John Quincy Adams
Rutherford B. Hayes (Law School)
Theodore Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
John F. Kennedy
George W. Bush (Business School)
Barack Obama (Law School)


Yale University

William Howard Taft
Theodore Roosevelt
Gerald R. Ford
Bill Clinton
George H. W. Bush
George W. Bush

http://www.presidentsusa.net/collegelisting.html

[Retrograde]

33. John Adams and John Quincy Adams, for two

both Harvard, and William Taft, Yale (his father founded Skull and Bones).

[El_Johns]

34. BO is the 44th president. 8/44 went to Harvard, 5/44 went to Yale. GW Bush is on both lists.

40% of the Yalies have been President since 1988 & 25% of the Harvardites. Furthermore the last 7 terms (26 years) have been Yale/Harvard.


Harvard University

John Adams
John Quincy Adams
Rutherford B. Hayes (Law School)
Theodore Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
John F. Kennedy
George W. Bush (Business School)
Barack Obama (Law School)


Yale University

William Howard Taft
Gerald R. Ford
Bill Clinton
George H. W. Bush
George W. Bush

http://www.presidentsusa.net/collegelisting.html