I am glad I am not a politician. The family and personal attacks would really bother me. Last presidential race Herman Cain dropped out because of such attacks. I liked him because he had the main idea down. The President does not have to know everything, but he has to surround himself with people who do.
Here are a few characteristics we should look for in a Presidential candidate:
1. Humility- Someone who is humble will be willing to admit he doesn't know everything. No one knows everything, but there are plenty of people who think they do. If you think you do, you will not seek out advice. Proverbs says there is wisdom in the multitude of counselors. A humble person is also able to admit their mistakes. People are much more forgiving of mistakes when you take the blame. It is hard to attack someone when they are already pointing to themselves.
2. Service- Can we say of any presidential candidate that they are there to serve the country? I know they are there to serve; serve their own interests or the interests of special interest groups. This is not the right service. The office was created for service to the American people. I can imagine how interest groups started in politics and I can only imagine it starting in secret; now it is in the open, everyone knows and it is still allowed. Why? Can we not find someone with the service of the country in mind?
3. Courage- Tony Dungy in his book "Uncommon" refers to courage as standing by one's convictions. First of all, one has to have the correct convictions, but also be able to say no to what is wrong, or even to what is not right at that moment. The country right now is in lots of debt. Plenty of people "need" the government's help, but if the politicians keep saying yes to everything, they will soon have to say no to everything when there is no longer any money left to spend. Can we find a President who will have the courage to say no to the norms of present government to return the country to the government our founding fathers created and the one which made this country so great?
4. Honesty- Integrity is not common these days. Dishonesty is the norm, especially amongst politicians. Everyone can point to promises that were made and not fulfilled. If you are honest, you never have to remember what you did or didn't say. A trustworthy President would go a long ways in gaining confidence with the American people. But the American people also pressure presidential candidates into making promises. Can we look for a candidate that has priorities rather than promises?
5. Leader- We need a President who can lead our country back to greatness. A President who finds the right people for the right job independent of anything else. A leader who will pass down high requirements for leadership so that those high qualifications will be esteemed in the eyes of us everyday Americans. Brazil right now is suffering economically largely because of the corruption within the government, but the word on the street is that it is not just the government. The everyday Zé (Joe) is corrupt as well; so how should they expect the government to be any different. The same goes for the US.
Truly the President is just a representation of the American people and if the American people like you and me are not displaying these characteristics, how will we expect a President who does as well? Take the steps you need to take to stay informed about government through reading and research, but also take the steps in character development. If we are not where we should be character wise, how should we expect our government to be?
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