Obama’s “Intellectual Stammer”

Friday, 27 May 2011 | by Pat's Picks

The Chicago Tribune picks up an interesting opinion piece today by writer Meghan Daum. In response to a recent column she wrote about the inarticulateness of Sarah Palin, Daum says she was flooded with letters claiming President Obama suffers from the same affliction. More pointedly, many suggested that his tendency towards “uh, uh, uh” might mean he has a stutter. Not so, says Daum—that’s an “intellectual stammer,” the sign of a “brain that is moving so fast that the mouth can’t keep up.” It’s a common affliction of university professors, says Daum, and Woody Allen characters but is rarely on view in a politician: “Unlike other presumed political brainiacs — Bill Clinton or Newt Gingrich, for example — he isn’t able to bury his ideas behind a folksy regional accent or good-old-boy affectations when he wants to.”

(Photo via WhiteHouse.gov)