Perhaps it is simpler than that. People of limited intellect have to make simple issues appear complex in order to feel smart. People of true intellect can pull simple truth out of complex situations.
Take for example Lincoln's address at Gettysburg. He captured everything that needed saying in a speech that takes maybe a minute or less.
Take for another example, George W. Bush's sparse but overwhelming words at the site of the WTC with that megaphone in his hands. "Can you hear me? [cheer] Well, I can hear you... and the people that brought these buildings down will hear from ALL of us soon!". In that one simple moment, the whole hideous 'compexity' of the moment was boiled down to simple truth that changed the focus of a nation. And hear from us, they did. In spades.
Simple, really. :-)
Yup. Reagan subscribed to the K.I.S.S principle: Keep It Simple, Stupid. It's a principle his opponents were too dumb to adopt for themselves.
You are exactly right. As a research scientist, I saw that many times in my career. Richard Feynman (of Challenger Inquiry fame) was a great example.
It also reminds me of a letter Ben Franklin is supposed to have sent to a friend, in which he apologized for its excessive length saying "I just didn't have enough time to think out a short letter".