Not only does character count, we have confused credentials with intellectual acumen. Having a PhD is as much a question of having the time, inclination, and money to devote to pursuing grad school as having true genius.
Considering Obama was awarded a Nobel even before he did anything (probably when his record was best), I even question that award.
In the meantime I have met a wide variety of people who demonstrate that even without extensive formal education they remain more intelligent than those they deal with who are more credentialed.
I received money to get a PhD. Other than that... it is true that it takes a lot of qualities in addition to intelligence to get through a PhD program. It takes qualities like patience, diligence, and perseverance to get through a PhD program.