Sabato: “That every President from 1989 to 2017 may be a Bush or a Clinton is a national disgrace”

Written by Sarah Pavlus

Published

In his June 21 column, Larry J. Sabato, the director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia who is frequently featured as a nonpartisan political commentator by media outlets, wrote that the possibility of no one but Bushes and Clintons in the White House from 1989 to 2017 is a “national disgrace.” Sabato stated:

A much more reasonable criticism is directly related to the dominating presence of Hillary Clinton in this election cycle. The population of the United States now exceeds 300 million, and the talent pool of the world's only superpower is deep and rich. How is it that the country is on the verge of filling its highest office for the sixth consecutive term from one of two families? That every President from 1989 to 2017 may be a Bush or a Clinton is a national disgrace. What has happened to the American Republic? How does it differ from a banana republic -- where a couple of dominant families often run everything for generations? Have we driven the vast majority of the potentially best Presidents out of the contest because of the high personal and professional costs of running for office? Are we the voters responsible because we are too lazy to go beyond the simplistic attractions of familiarity and high name identification? Or, most disturbing of all, has our political system become ossified, so that we are too fearful of change to seek out the most outstanding leaders among us for the toughest job in the world?

His comments raise the issue of whether the media will continue to feature him as a dispassionate commentator, given Sabato's clearly stated his views on what the election of Hillary Clinton would mean for the nation.

Sabato's recent television appearances include:

  • On the June 21 edition of NBC's Today, Sabato was identified as a political analyst.
  • On the June 13 edition of Fox News' Special Report with Brit Hume, Sabato was identified as being from the University of Virginia.
  • On the April 23 Special Report, Sabato was identified as being from the University of Virginia's Center for Politics.
  • On the April 5 edition of ABC's Good Morning America, Sabato was identified as a Ph.D. and director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics.
  • On the April 5 edition of Special Report, Sabato was identified as being from the University of Virginia.
  • On the April 2 edition of CNBC's Kudlow & Company, Sabato was identified as the director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics.
  • On the March 21 Kudlow & Company, Sabato was identified as the director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics.
  • On the February 12 Special Report, Sabato identified as being from the University of Virginia.
  • On the February 12 edition of National Public Radio's News & Notes, Sabato was identified as the director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics.
  • On the January 29 Kudlow & Company, Sabato was identified as the director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics.
  • On the January 25 edition of NBC's Nightly News with Brian Williams, Sabato was identified as a political analyst.
  • On the January 25 edition of ABC's Nightline, Sabato was identified as a professor from the University of Virginia.