When he gained election to the Springfield statehouse, Mr. Obama taught himself poker; politics happened around card tables.
The PGA Tour announced yesterday that no new members had gained election to the World Golf Hall of Fame through the balloting process.
Many candidates they supported, including a number backed by the Tea Party, gained election as part of the Republican takeover of the House.
When, as a result, Jack's Senate seat fell available, a "seatwarmer" was appointed until 1962, when Teddy reached 30, the minumum age required to gain election.
As gaudy as Ochocinco's statistics may look, they can't compare to some of the players currently unable to gain election.
Given the historical maximum of a 15 percent increase, Barry Larkin, Lee Smith and Morris, who in 2010 all drew about 50 percent, would need unprecedented increases to gain election by 2012.
One, Roger Clemens, failed to gain election in his first time on ballot this past year because many voters have concluded that he used performance-enhancing drugs to bolster his career.
Nicolas Sarkozy is dogged by the Bettencourt affair, the allegation that he duped Liliane Bettencourt, France's richest woman, to gain election funds.
Even a representative of Germany's neo-Nazi National Democratic Party gained election to one of the country's 96 seats in the parliament.
The fragility of Africa's recent democratic gains has been exposed by the decision by the Burundian president, Pierre Nkurunziza, to override the constitution and gain election for a third term in a disputed victory, plunging the country into civil strife.
