Intellectual Property Law

Why is it that most politicians are lawyers?

I was wondering, why is it that most politicians are lawyers in their private lives? I mean, only a select few are businessmen (like Bush), and other than the the majority of them are lawyers. Could someone explain why?

Public Comments

1. Birds of a feather ( crooks ) flock together...
2. Honest people don't get into politics..just crooks
3. The majority of politicians are lawyers for several reasons. First and foremost a lot of lawyers end up taking political science in their undergrad schools. Later on when they become lawyers they study the law and the court system (the judicial branch). The reason that so many lawyers become politicians is also because the majority of politicians deal with making laws (congress). Who better to understand this system then lawyers who have trained in the law. The third reason that so many lawyers are politicians is because today in order to run a campaign a potential politician needs to be able to raise a lot of money. Commercials and staffing all costs money and lawyers are able to raise that kind of money because they have a lot of contacts and a lot of them are independently wealthy. These are just a few of the more pertinent reasons why so many lawyers are politicians.
4. law is a really basic necessity of humanity, and negotiating is the politicians craft, therefore the answer to your question is greed.
5. Qualities that lawyers have are preferred by voters, so they're typically more successful in politics, even though a wide variety of people try to get into politics... businessmen are pretty popular too, and only a select few are retired professional wrestlers. Lawyers can explain things in simple terms and are pretty intelligent (your question mentions somebody who was in Harvard AND Yale). They also tend to have fewer skeletons in their closets and more positive things in their history.
6. Politicians learn how to lie in law school....Its 'Lying 101' ---otherwise known as --How not to let the facts stand in the way of a good story.
7. Lawyers and the law are inextricably linked. Laws are created by politicians; that's what they do. I think lawyers are attracted to the profession for three reasons: (1) an interest in or love of the law; (2) the prestige and power the job sometimes can afford; and (3) making money. Politicians are motivated ny the some of the same things, I believe. Also, after having worked with and studied the law for many years, some lawyers probably come to believe that they can do a better job of creating laws rather than applying them. Lawyers also have to use language extensively as do politicians. It makes sense that lawyers would become poilitians; more sense than lumberjacks or florists. Good Luck! ;o)
8. You have a posed a most interesting question, one that I do not have a specific answer to. What I note however is that there are too many lawyers to support those expensive degrees. I also know that when you run and win an elected seat in Congress you become very rich. I know what the pay is so how do they become rich> My guess, they are crooks.
9. because politicians write the laws...it only makes sense