I'll only speak for myself on this one. I'm not that interested in priorities. In a very real sense, the job of President is to do everything all at once. You don't get to prioritize. You have to do it all, and do all of it at the same time.

If there is any priority, most of the time that priority of the day/week/month will be dictated from outside events. A recession or inflation will happen, forcing economics to become a slightly higher priority. Or a pandemic will hit, bringing that to a slightly higher priority. Or some countries will be on the brink of war and bring that to the top of the list for a while.

But even when that happens, the President doesn't get to skip out on all of the other things that also continue. They have to do it all.

Which is why I put policy way ahead of priority. Policy is what you will do when something becomes a priority for a while. So you ask a candidate what they will do if a recession seems imminent or has begun. Or you ask what they will do if Whats-it-stan goes to war with Place-over-there-land.

And maybe you'll ask what will get their priority for those few days over the course of 4 years when priority isn't dictated by outside events.

The problem with focusing in priority is that doesn't tell you want the candidate will actually do. I'll accept that the border is something Trump will prioritize. But what does that mean? What will he do? Is he going to deport people who aren't white? Is he going to build more walls? Is he going to stop letting anyone who is not a citizen into the country? Without knowing the policy, the priority is useless.


--Peter