Should Senators resign their seats to run for President?

No

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by Jake Betz

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This happened one time in modern history. Bob Dole, then the presumptive 1996 Republican presidential nominee, resigned from the Senate in May of that year, so he could devote more time to the campaign.

At the time, the blathering class (talking heads on cable and the experts they routinely interview), described Dole's resignation as a desperate gamble. Dole was consistently trailing incumbent President Bill Clinton in the polls, and voters seemed to have already made up their minds. Dole's decision to end his long and distinguished Senate career was an attempt to change the political equation.

The decision didn't affect the final result. However, since popular vote totals were much closer than many expected, Dole's decision may well have been based on intelligent intuition more than gimmickry.

Since the turn of the 20th Century, only three presidents came to the White House directly from the Senate - Warren G. Harding. John F. Kennedy and Barack Obama. All three resigned their seats when they became chief executive. In 2008, the top three presidential contenders, Democrats Obama and Hillary Clinton, whose nomination battle continued through June, and Republican John McCain, were all incumbent senators.

Presidential campaigns are no longer the six-month events they were in the days before the 24/7 news cycle. Rather, the campaigns are of many years duration. Prospective candidates are already testing the waters for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination. Although this seems like a waste of time for public officials who have serious responsibilities, the candidates really have no other choice. Failure to campaign early puts candidates at a disadvantage in fund-raising and in building grass roots organizations in early primary and caucus states.

Because of campaign obligations, McCain, Obama and Clinton had less time to spend in 2007 on official Senate duties and were absent from the Senate for most of the 2008 session. Their lack of attention to Senate responsibilities might provide an argument for requiring resignation of senators who become presidential candidates. Keep in mind, however, that this was not a major issue for the people affected most - namely, their respective constituents in Arizona, Illinois and New York.

A presidential campaign is no guarantee of victory. If a senator goes for "all or nothing" and comes up short, a once promising congressional career can end ahead of its time, to the detriment of the senator's home state and the entire nation.

American voters can and should assess the job performance of a senator who is campaigning for president, and that assessment should certainly take into account the senator's attendance record as well as the voting record.

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