Update: 5-13: live stream here and at CNN.
Update 4-11: Crow now honors Obama with a scholarship--still not certain about that honorary degree.
Update: Arizona State's lame president Michael Crow says that he's going to reconsider his earlier position of not giving Obama an honorary degree. Perhaps that's because the university became a laughingstock today. I look forward to seeing Obama handle this incident with the utmost grace.Original post:
Arizona State invited Obama to speak May 13 but will not give him an honarary degree because they say he hasn't done anything yet, which leads me to wonder: why did they invite him?
It seems they're trying to make a point or embarrass him. Perhaps the president of the university, Michael Crow, is a birther?
When I first heard about this, I dismissed it because I thought it was more right wing noise, something with a legitimate explanation. Maybe they never give presidents honorary degrees? It doesn't look like there is a reasonable explanation.
Another thing, Arizona State? Not to look down on the school, but it's hardly worthy of dissing the president. I wouldn't want to be going to that school in the future. It will be full of hard right extremists. Maybe that was the plan, to boost admissions.
Arizona State's president Michael Crow is on Twitter, or at least one of his staff is, and I didn't see mention of this issue.
SU has recognized a large number of politicians in the past 60 years. Some, such as former Govs. Rose Mofford and Ernest McFarland, clearly had moved into the twilight of their careers.
But others had much still to accomplish. Barry Goldwater received his honorary degree in May 1961, three years before his Republican nomination for president and only eight years into his three decades as a U.S. senator. Sandra Day O’Connor was similarly recognized just three years in her 25 years on the U.S. Supreme Court.
Of course, all of those people have deep Arizona roots, and Obama has no real ties to the state. But what connection did ASU have to other honorees such as L. Douglas Wilder, the first black governor of Virginia, or Kim Campbell, the first woman to be Canadian prime minister?
Obama almost certainly won’t speak at another ASU graduation, and no one knows if another president ever will either. The university should reconsider this arbitrary decision and honor Obama in May. East Valley News
