Ellington

Recently, President Barack Obama appeared on an episode of ABC's "The View." I don't consider myself a fan of the show. Although it doesn't necessarily speak to my demographic, no doubt shows like "The View" or "The Oprah Show" speak directly to a core audience that any elected official should jump at the chance to reach. Considering all the controversies the Obama presidency has had to endure—health care, Guantanamo Bay, the stimulus, the BP oil spill—it seems like common sense to accept a platform to speak directly to your constituents. Right?

Apparently, not so much. The president's appearance on "The View" drew ire from the mainstream media, and not just from his nemesis FOX News, either. Shockingly, MSNBC, CNN and several other outlets questioned Obama chatting on the show's couch. It didn't help that he cancelled an engagement with the Boy Scouts of America to do it.

I've always thought the media took itself too seriously. Perhaps those "serious" journalists are a little miffed that the president chose to field questions from Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg instead of them. But the fact is, most pundits and media types need to get over themselves. The ladies of "The View," whether you or I like it or not, have a substantial following. Not only that, they are more in touch with what average Americans, particularly women, think and say about the problems plaguing our country. In my opinion, they asked intelligent, probing questions, and at no point did Obama seem, well, un-presidential in his responses.

Seems to me we've set an unreasonable bar for our elected officials. We've let politics trump people. At times we look at our commander in chief as some kind of deity, not to be confused with mere mortals. Elected officials are not gods or kings. They are representatives of the people who are supposed to walk with us and lead us. The best, most effective leaders are those who are of the people, who have walked in the people's shoes, and don't see certain venues or people as "beneath" them. The most effective leaders are those that respect others and their customs. The most effective leaders are the ones that shun go-betweens and strive to speak directly with the citizenry, even if isn't the popular or "political" thing to do.

Hey, media, we "regular folks" are educated, too. Sometimes we'd also like to speak directly to our president. "The View" wasn't tawdry TV; it was not "The Jerry Springer Show" or "The Maury Povich Show." It was a respectable showing that in all likelihood reached more homes than either FOX News or CNN would have reached had they aired it.

We've gotten away from what our representatives are supposed to be, and crafted them into something others want. We need more Jesse Venturas or Wyclef Jeans and fewer of these cookie-cutter career politicians. I guess presidents are supposed to be stiff, cold, unavailable and devoid of humor or emotion. We fancy our officials to have Ivy League pedigrees. We like them groomed for office. They're more appealing when they have law degrees or million-dollar corporations or the right family name. But in my opinion, all it takes is common sense and a willingness to serve.

Visiting "The View" was a bold move but one I hope sets a precedent for future leaders. As leadership expert Ken Blanchard once said: "In the past a leader was a boss. Today's leaders must be partners with their people. They no longer can lead solely based on positional power."

And that's the truth ... sho-nuff.