Presidential Hopefuls' Types

[eyebyte]

Read this


Edit:

...
The other temperament, the Idealist[NF], has provided one of the great surprises in this study of character: we find that there has never been an Idealist[NF] President in all the two hundred year history of The United States of America.
...

 

[Numbers]

I haven't studied all the presidents or anything, but from reading Lincolns personal letters and knowing what I know about him, he's always seemed NF to me.

 

[The_Liquid_Laser]

I haven't studied all the presidents or anything, but from reading Lincolns personal letters and knowing what I know about him, he's always seemed NF to me.

I saw a documentary which seemed to paint him fairly clearly as an INTP.

 

[Numbers]

Well, that's a valid opinion. There are plenty of different sites/opinions that type him in different ways. I personally see him as a NF, but I don't think anyone could say for sure what he was.

I guess in the end it all comes down to opinion, even your own personal type is opinion really. It kinda makes me scratch my head when people say someone is a certain type and anyone who disagrees is wrong with such authority.

Not that anyone in this thread has done that, i'm speaking in general.

 

[Economica]

Barack Obama's type

I'd say well-rounded ENTP, but I've seen people type him as ENFP and ENFJ.

To start things off, here's a quote from The Audacity of Hope:

Like most of my values, I learned about empathy from my mother. She disdained any kind of cruelty or thoughtlessness or abuse of power, whether it expressed itself in the form of racial prejudice or bullying in the schoolyard or workers being underpaid. Whenever she saw even a hint of such behavior in me she would look me square in the eyes and ask, "How do you think that would make you feel?"

But it was in my relationship with my grandfather that I think I first internalized the full meaning of empathy. Because my mother’s work took her overseas, I often lived with my grandparents during my high school years, and without a father present in the house, my grandfather bore the brunt of much of my adolescent rebellion. He himself was not always easy to get along with; he was at once warmhearted and quick to anger, and in part because his career had not been particularly successful, his feelings could also be easily bruised.

By the time I was sixteen we were arguing all the time, usually about me failing to abide by what I considered to be an endless series of petty and arbitrary rules—filling up the gas tank whenever I borrowed his car, say, or making sure that I rinsed out the milk carton before I put it in the garbage.

With a certain talent for rhetoric, as well as an absolute certainty about the merits of my own views, I found that I could generally win these arguments, in the narrow sense of leaving my grandfather flustered, angry, and sounding unreasonable. But at some point, perhaps in my senior year, such victories started to feel less satisfying. I started thinking about the struggles and disappointments he had seen in his life. I started to appreciate his need to feel respected in his own home. I realized that abiding by his rules would cost me little, but to him it would mean a lot. I recognized that sometimes he really did have a point, and that in insisting on getting my own way all the time, without regard to his feelings or needs, I was in some way diminishing myself.

There’s nothing extraordinary about such an awakening, of course; in one form or another it is what we all must go through if we are to grow up. And yet I find myself returning again and again to my mother’s simple principle - "How would that make you feel?" - as a guidepost for my politics.

 

[The Ü™]

I can go with ENFJ.

That way, not only does he have the potential to be America's first black president, but he can also be Keirsey's first NF president!

 

[Totenkindly]

I would also be interested in seeing how male ENFP/ENFJ/ENTP types here perceive him (i.e., do they feel a connection or does he seem alien?)

(ENFP women seem easier to mark; ENFP men can tone down or rechannel the F energy into more T-styled approaches. They can present differently.)

 

[disregard]

This quote gives me NFJ vibes.

 

[redacted]

this could be anything except SJ:
"By the time I was sixteen we were arguing all the time, usually about me failing to abide by what I considered to be an endless series of petty and arbitrary rules—filling up the gas tank whenever I borrowed his car, say, or making sure that I rinsed out the milk carton before I put it in the garbage."

this is NJ:
"With a certain talent for rhetoric, as well as an absolute certainty about the merits of my own views, I found that I could generally win these arguments, in the narrow sense of leaving my grandfather flustered, angry, and sounding unreasonable. "

this is NFJ:
"But at some point, perhaps in my senior year, such victories started to feel less satisfying. I started thinking about the struggles and disappointments he had seen in his life. I started to appreciate his need to feel respected in his own home. I realized that abiding by his rules would cost me little, but to him it would mean a lot. I recognized that sometimes he really did have a point, and that in insisting on getting my own way all the time, without regard to his feelings or needs, I was in some way diminishing myself."

xNFJ. i'd lean towards ENFJ.

 

[Economica]

this is NJ:
"With a certain talent for rhetoric, as well as an absolute certainty about the merits of my own views, I found that I could generally win these arguments, in the narrow sense of leaving my grandfather flustered, angry, and sounding unreasonable. "

I disagree, I think that's ENTP in a nutshell.

this is NFJ:
"But at some point, perhaps in my senior year, such victories started to feel less satisfying. I started thinking about the struggles and disappointments he had seen in his life. I started to appreciate his need to feel respected in his own home. I realized that abiding by his rules would cost me little, but to him it would mean a lot. I recognized that sometimes he really did have a point, and that in insisting on getting my own way all the time, without regard to his feelings or needs, I was in some way diminishing myself."

Is this really what the development of true empathy sounds like though? I think it sounds like realizing that a rational reason for respecting his grandfather's rules is because they are important to his grandfather.

 

[proteanmix]

With a certain talent for rhetoric, as well as an absolute certainty about the merits of my own views, I found that I could generally win these arguments, in the narrow sense of leaving my grandfather flustered, angry, and sounding unreasonable. But at some point, perhaps in my senior year, such victories started to feel less satisfying. I started thinking about the struggles and disappointments he had seen in his life. I started to appreciate his need to feel respected in his own home. I realized that abiding by his rules would cost me little, but to him it would mean a lot. I recognized that sometimes he really did have a point, and that in insisting on getting my own way all the time, without regard to his feelings or needs, I was in some way diminishing myself.

Generally, I would say Barack Obama is an extrovert and he uses Fe. That leaves ESTP, ESFJ, ENTP, and ENFJ. I don't want to jump on the intuitive bandwagon and always assume anytime someone has a modicum of intelligence they're an N. That being said, I'm going to say he's either ENTP or ENFJ.

The time frame of this passage is during his high school years. What teenager isn't rebellious or try to avoid doing household chores? I argued quite a bit with my parents during my teenage years. If I start with him being an ENFJ or ENTP then I'd wonder why an ENTP would seem to acquiesce to such a Fe sentiment (bolded part) at 17 or 18. Using a tertiary function so adeptly at such a young age is rare. And the type of Fe that manifests itself in ETPs at that age tends to be the showy, bow to me and my cleverness (think nocapszy:hi.

 

[nottaprettygal]

Marged with another thread having to do with the type of the candidates (and moved as well)

 

[Totenkindly]

I agree with Eco's objection to dissonance's "NJ" assignation, but otherwise I am leaning towards PM's assessment of Fe use.

And honestly, if you just go by presentation alone, he presents in the typical lower-key and more personal way an ENFJ does, NOT in the more grandiose hyped-up rather frenetic way an ENTP (even a mature ENTP) tends to.

 

[Economica]

Marged with another thread having to do with the type of the candidates (and moved as well)

Am I the only one who thinks typing threads are more manageable and thus productive when they are about one person only...?

 

[Kiddo]

He seems remarkably ENFJ to me. I've never noticed any strong NT traits. He seems like a classic idealist.

 

[Economica]

If I start with him being an ENFJ or ENTP then I'd wonder why an ENTP would seem to acquiesce to such a Fe sentiment (bolded part) at 17 or 18. Using a tertiary function so adeptly at such a young age is rare. And the type of Fe that manifests itself in ETPs at that age tends to be the showy, bow to me and my cleverness (think nocapszy:hi.

See my query to dissonance about whether this empathy was instinctive or a rational adoption.

 

[redacted]

I disagree, I think that's ENTP in a nutshell.

you're probably right. it's just that i'm an NFJ and i relate to literally all of that. it was the phrase "certainty of the merits of my views" that made me think Ni. i guess i should've just said N.

Is this really what the development of true empathy sounds like though? I think it sounds like realizing that a rational reason for respecting his grandfather's rules is because they are important to his grandfather.

empathy isn't some intangible, irrational thing. my explanation of empathy would sound much like that. and plus, he's taking the perspective of his grandfather (Ni) with a social harmony slant (Fe).

And the type of Fe that manifests itself in ETPs at that age tends to be the showy, bow to me and my cleverness (think nocapszy:hi.

hahaha

 

[nottaprettygal]

Am I the only one who thinks typing threads are more manageable and thus productive when they are about one person only...?

Yup.

I'm here for efficiency. Besides, others interested in this topic may not have known that the other thread existed with prior opinions on the exact same person.

Carry on!

EDIT: Oh...I think ENFJ by the way.

 

[Economica]

And honestly, if you just go by presentation alone, he presents in the typical lower-key and more personal way an ENFJ does, NOT in the more grandiose hyped-up rather frenetic way an ENTP (even a mature ENTP) tends to.

Hmm. This is the part where I wish I knew The_Liquid_Laser IRL for comparison...

 

[redacted]

See my query to dissonance about whether this empathy was instinctive or a rational adoption.

i think a rational would be more likely to explain it as "i realized placating my grandfather was a better strategic move". (although i'm exaggerating a bit, i'll admit)

his explanation seemed more like "i felt bad because he'd been through a lot, and i realized i should make my thankfulness more clear"


and regardless of all this stuff, he just gives me such an NFJ vibe!