How long in politics before becoming President?

XXX: How long in politics before becoming President?
I am still undecided on who I want to vote for. I think both candidates have good and bad points. I know Obama has only been in politics for a few years, so I was wondering if anyone knew how long Reagan and Clinton were in politics before they were elected President?

Answers and Views:

Answer by banjo
The better politician is not always the better choice.

Answer by greenman
Reagan had been the governor of California and Clinton had been the governor of Arkansas.

Neither Obama or McCain have had any executive experience at all. Palin is the only one with any direct leadership experience. Obama has the least experience of any of them. He had been president of the Harvard Law Review, but never had anything published. To put this in the proper perspective, my granddaughter held a similar position at the University of Texas, not the president but some position of honor. I have forgotten what it was. It is a feather in their caps, but not necessarily a rarity. Somebody gets this honor bestowed upon them each year.

For the most part, in his evasiveness, Obama has been the least straight forward in elements of his politics, making him the riskiest of the candidates thus the less suitable for the presidency.