In what forum today are politicians given an opportunity to speak/write intellectually?

Sadly too, there has been for some time an under current of anti-intellectualism in politics. It is my understanding that Barack Obama, as an example, is highly educated, no doubt could engage in lofty discussions… that would be political suicide.

> In what forum today are politicians given an opportunity to speak/write intellectually?

That quote is from a letter from Jefferson to Madison.

Barack Obama famously wrote a book. A "leader" leads by example. So I have a different take than your "sadly politicians are discouraged from thinking" and it goes like this:

Patronizing and conditioning the political discourse to be at the level of 'high school civics class' is a powerful mechanism for keeping actual thinkers away from politics.

Ron Paul. That is literally it.

the guy whose platform is going back on the gold standard and abolishing embassies to other countries?

i'll give him credit for having a consistant platform and world view, but if he had his way we'd hand control of everything over to corporations -- and that's what his son is doing everything in his power to make happen.

The question wasn't who do you agree with that also writes good and can do other things good too, it was are there any politicians who write with the thoughtfulness approaching Jefferson (who would have agreed on the gold standard btw). Ron's ideas on freedom are excellent, they just aren't tempered with a strong understanding of market power and how it in itself can cause all the abuses the freedom from government he proposes is supposed to stop because there is little attempt to apply said freedoms to private companies who clearly have market power.