Last updated on July 18th, 2023 at 11:23 am
Laurence Tribe, noted professor of constitutional law at Harvard Law School who is part of a legal team suing President Trump for violations of the Emolument Clause, observed today that his former student Representative Adam Schiff, who reminds him of “No Drama Obama,” would make a great Senator or even President.
My former student @RepAdamSchiff would make a great US Senator or even President. Reminds me of No Drama Obama. . . https://t.co/0TMbo9Lv4Z
— Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) April 21, 2017
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That’s high praise indeed for the President a majority of Americans wish were in the White House right now instead of Donald Trump.
Tribe shared this over a Politico article about Schiff’s rising star in his home state of California, noting, “Schiff’s near-constant presence on TV is valuable in a state with 53 members of Congress who compete for attention with movie stars. And it’s practically a requirement for achieving name recognition in a state with eight major media markets that make it nearly impossible to reach voters through commercials.”
This echoes sentiments of readers (Democrats and Republicans) who have written spontaneous enthusiastic letters and tweets to us saying they would support Schiff for president.
Schiff does have that essential part of Obama, the part that is about the work above only glorifying his own ego. This isn’t to suggest neither has an ego; a person couldn’t be in politics without a strong ego and pride. But in an age of inflammatory rhetoric and accusations before evidence, Schiff is the slow, steady worker bee gathering evidence, staying focused, and doing a good job representing his constituents, especially when it comes to his role as a leader of the House Russia investigation.
It just so happens that Schiff is a former prosecutor, and one who has experience prosecuting a crooked FBI agent who was working for the Kremlin. This makes Schiff uniquely qualified at this point in history given President Trump’s campaign’s constant contacts with Russia while they were actively interfering in the 2016 election on his behalf, and the ensuing investigations.
Schiff isn’t running around saying crazy things or whipping up a storm of enraged, cult-like followers. Schiff is slow and steady, eye on the ball, unfazed by distractions and calm. No Drama Obama indeed.
Schiff is the antidote to Donald Trump and the general hysteria inflaming the left and right. He is the cool thinker in opposition to the ego-fueled flames of others who are deliberately using this crisis to propel themselves to fame. Schiff is doing his job and it just so happens to be perfectly positioned to elevate his standing dramatically.
Schiff’s approach is what makes him appealing. A public servant should be about the work, he or she should be evidence based and fact-oriented, with an even temperament that doesn’t swing wildly with their untethered emotions. Of course, Hillary Clinton had the same disposition, and it didn’t make for great campaigning. But she would have been a hell of a president.
The Democratic Party has a bench of talent poised for 2020 and 2024, including Senators Cory Booker, Elizabeth Warren, Amy Klobuchar, Bernie Sanders, Kirsten Gillibrand, Chris Murphy, former VP Joe Biden, former First Lady Michelle Obama (if she were so inclined), former HUD Sec Julián Castro, and many more.
Wherever Schiff goes from here, he’s an asset to government. He’s actually qualified, he’s serious, he’s calm.
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