President should be accessible to people

I would like to make a few comments regarding the recent dissent about the president on the opinion page of the IDS ("Candidates pander to the people," Nov. 1). Saying that presidential candidates should not appear on talk shows and on "Saturday Night Live" and such because the president of the United States needs to be respected by foreign dignitaries could not be more wrong. First and foremost, the president should "sink to our level" and let the people know he knows he is not above the common citizen. Sure, he is the president, but he is just a man. We as the people he leads and represents have every right to have every opportunity to see the president not as a politician blazing his campaign trail, but as a man and a person.\nMTV's "Choose or Lose" forums and "The Oprah Winfrey Show" appearances only make the potential leader of the most powerful nation in the world more respected by his people. Without the respect of his own people, how can you expect a leader to be respected by other nations in times of crisis? When I see the presidential candidate on regular television shows in regular clothes, it makes me respect him as a man. It lets us know he does care what the younger generation thinks, instead of just going for the money and pleasing the lobbyists. We do have power to change the nation, and the fact that a presidential candidate respects that power we have only makes him a better president.\nI do recall George Bush would not do many of the things that Bill Clinton did, such as answering the "boxers or briefs" question in front of a large group of young adults. I can look at Gore and see the man behind the negative ads and the political mudslinging because he has "sunk to our level" to show us he cares. Without that, I would be more likely to vote based on party rather than who is the better man.\nWhen it comes down to it, the fact that Gore and George W. Bush have appeared on such lowly shows as Oprah (one of the most respected talk show hosts in the industry, if not the most) and David Letterman and Jay Leno, really helps all voters decide who is the better man for the job. I give praise to them for daring to be different and actually realizing there is a large population of young adults out there who do give a damn about the supposed "most important election of our times."\nThe most important thing you as a voter and a citizen of the United States need to remember is this: The president, when all is said and done, is a fellow man (or perhaps a woman some day), and "sinking to your level" should be a willful act, not a requirement.