Should There Be Another
Scots-Irish President?

Many are surprised to learn that at least 35 of the 42 Americauin presidents have their roots in Ulster Ireland. That’s over 80%. After the Civil War, there was an uninterrupted period of Scots-Irish presidents for 63 years straight! Since World War II, 56 of the 63 years have seen the White House controlled by a Scots-Irish man.

I’m sure you’ve heard it before, the American presidency is the domain of old, white males. It is in fact, the domain of old, white men of Scottish background. There have been no Italian, Greek, Spanish, Norwegian, Russian, Slavic, or French heritage presidents. It is a mistake to tar all white men for the stranglehold that the Scots-Irish have on the presidency.

Who are the Scots-Irish? They are Scottish people who settled in Northern Ireland before coming to America. They are Protestants whose roots go back to Oliver Cromwell and William of Orange. They are very clannish and proud of their Scottish roots. This explains Bill Clinton’s affinity for the Bush family and Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon’s close relationship. It is strange that so many of our presidents come from such a small location on the planet as Ulster-Ireland. What does this fact portend for the future?

First, it explains why Rudy Giuliani never had a chance. The Scottish media would never allow it. (Chuck Todd, Charlie Rose, Chris Wallace, Harry Smith, Anderson Cooper, Candy Crowley, Lou Dobbs, John King, Glenn Beck, Campbell Browne, Britt Hume, Cynthia McFadden, Terry Moran, Jake Tapper, Charlie Gibson, Diane Sawyer, Brian Williams, John Harwood, Pat Buchanan, Andrea Mitchell, Mark Potter, Chip Reid, Jim Lehrer, Michael Duffy, Jamie McIntyre, Kyra Phillips, Nic Robertson, Shephard Smith…)

Second it explains the annointed front runners of Hillary Clinton and John McCain. Barack Obama, John Edwards and Mitt Romney have Scottish blood too. Take it farther and you’ll see that John McCain has the upper hand. The others, a woman, an African-American, and a Mormon, have obvious weaknesses.

Maybe you’ve noticed the orange ties and the orange scarves. These candidates have chosen orange as their fashion statement for a reason. The Orangemen of Ulster have a long history understood by many voters. It is also why Hillary chose KT Tunstall, a Scottish lass, to sing her campaign song.
The Scots have had their time in the Oval Office. I say it is time for a change. NO MORE SCOTS-IRISH PRESIDENTS!

This article was originally published at Daily Kos on Sat Jan 26, 2008

Aaron Dahl

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