Qualities of a President

Friday, Jun. 14, 1963
SIX QUALITIES THAT MAKE A PRESIDENT
WRITING his memoirs in the serenity of his Little Gettysburg office sits the most influential Republican of them all. There had been reports that Dwight Eisenhower favored, and was quietly promoting, Michigan's Governor George Romney for next year's G.O.P. presidential nomination. But Ike insists that this is not so, that he prefers no one man to another-and that, in any event, he will not try to swing or sway the 1964 Republican convention toward anyone.
This does not mean that Ike is not interested. He is. He makes it clear that Rockefeller, Goldwater, Romney and Scranton are all acceptable to him. He asks about Kentucky's Senator Thruston Morton, Oregon's Governor Mark Hatfield, even the Governor of his old home state, Kansas' John Anderson Jr. His face lights up when a visitor mentions as possibilities such old friends as retired Generals Lucius Clay and Al Gruenther.
Ike feels strongly that any intervention on his part would be an obstacle to "useful debate, serious thought and a sound decision" at the 1964 convention. But, just as deeply, he also feels that any acceptable Republican candidate must live up to certain standards. According to Ike, he must have:
∙Self-restraint, a characteristic that exists only through "moral judgment -the difference between telling the truth and lying" and an ability to make decisions on positive grounds without reaching for extreme solutions. Ike believes that extremists are always wrong.
∙An understanding of the "qualities which have made this country great -a respect for the freedom of people to work for themselves, their families, their communities; and this with a minimum of interference from government."
∙An inner calmness that lets him ycut through crisis and make his decisions from a base of mature reflection. Ike likes to cite Napoleon to the effect that the true genius in war is one who can do the average thing when those around him grow hysterical with emotion or fright.
∙A strength of decision, so that he will surround himself with "strong men holding strong opinions, not just satraps."
∙Experience, in the sense that he is fully prepared for the crises of the presidency-and no one should confuse "experience" with "endurance." To make his point, Ike recalls the words of Frederick the Great, who once answered a request to promote an officer simply because of his long service by pointing at a pack mule and saying, "That mule has carried that pack loyally and effectively for twelve years. But he's still a mule."
∙A strength of character that makes his leadership one of "principle, not expediency-a man who doesn't run away when the going gets tough."
If the Republicans can find a man of these qualities, Ike feels, President Kennedy can be defeated: "With the right ticket and a good campaign, we'll give them an exciting race. A Republican able to create confidence, a candidate able to carry our torch well, would have a fine chance of winning."
* Five stars, symbolizing his Army rank, are painted on the window.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,874810,00.html
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