Are we getting the best bang for the buck from our elected officials? Do existing politicians have the smarts we need to run the country? Would an IQ test raise the bar and attract better candidates to hold office? The answer to those questions and others is unclear and if any recent testing is any indication of what we witness may surprise you.

An accurate and repeatable result isn’t proof in the pudding and while IQ tests may rate an individual intelligence, it is a poor barometer to gauge one’s ability to be an elected official. President Obama (who’s well educated) in his State of the Union speech last night stated that funding education is a priority. In recent years, there has also been a demand by state and provincial governments, that teachers should also be better educated and tested regularly. Some would argue that we need to do the same with our elected officials since many would suggest that we have some very …fill in the blank… elected people governing. Is this an argument to suggest we need smarter elected officials? Would an IQ test be a good litmus test?

International statistics compiled don’t suggest so. On Wikipedia’s ranking of IQ scores, here is how the following countries rated:

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I'll eventually merge this topic into the existing "political thread" but wanted your opinions first.

they would score a 50.

I think they should all be tested on their knowledge of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.

Having a high IQ does not necessarily make one a good leader. Maybe an EQ test would be better suited for them.

They need only a very low I.Q. as they are just puppets of wallstreet bankers.

All the big decisions are taken by the private federal reserve bank members which is "federal" only in its name.

elliemay "I think they should all be tested on their knowledge of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights."

AMEN to that elliemay! Most of the clowns who decide OUR fate in Washington don't know the laws of OUR country nor do they uphold or abide by them IMHO!

TERMS LIMITS for all just as the President. 2 terms and your on the streets looking for a REAL job!

And they retire on SS and not the golden parachute of government service. And their pay while they are in office is mid-range of the average wage earner in their state. And the same National Health care.

Abraham Lincoln's IQ would have him classified as retarded.

A high IQ only gauges one's ability to take an IQ test. Nothing more.

Adolph Hitler had one of the highest IQ's recorded. Somewhere in the 240 range. Would you want him to be President?

The smart people won't run for government.

Who wants to put up with all the BS that goes with making a law and then watching everything you do and say turned into a political football by some crazy?

The smart ones just avoid the government and get the job done on their own.

DL, where did you get that? Someone's pulling your leg.

Lincoln was a relatively smart man, probably in the 95th percentile range. Hitler has been estimated at 140 (not 240) but you have to have serious doubts about that given some of his frankly stupid beliefs. Even at that exaggerated level, it would be four or five levels (standard deviations) below the highest recorded.

Of course we should not set an IQ threshold for holding public office - we settled that 40 years ago. Yet it would be helpful to have that exposed to the public, as just another factor to consider along with background, education, profession and so on.