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
DOES ANY OF THIS STILL APPLY: Yes or No, EXPLAIN. Post Name and Class #.
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22 comments:
Jon Smolen
Period 8
I think that the strength aspect definitely still applies to present elections. If we had a president that quit as soon as the going got tough, where would we be? Nowhere, because the person leading our country would have failed us. We need someone that can stay strong through it all, and lead our country without fear.
Yes, I do think that Eisenhower was right in his thinking. While the making of President are different now then back then, the overall theme and idea that he was trying to convey was right. Ideally we would like to be lead by someone that is moral, just, and still has the ability to be stern and forceful as commander in chief. However, since President Reagan I think that the Presidency has been undermined with the Bill Clinton controversy and George Bush's extremely low approval ratings. It would do our next President a lot of good to be familiar with what Eisenhower was thinking.
Yes, some of it applys, if only to a degree. For example, yes, it is necessary for a president to have self restraint through "moral judgement", but moral judgement is not simply limited to "the difference between telling the truth and lying"-- it requires more thought as to what is morally correct and what is not. It is deeper.
Furthermore, a strength of character is indeed necessary, but a good leader knows when to back down and compromise.
However, simply because one's view is extreme does not make one's view automatically wrong. Today I believe we are more open to all ideas.
Additionally, all the tenses used relate to "he;" nowadays, it is acceptable for a woman to run for president. Now the female may someday "carry [their] torch well," likely bringing a new spectrum of qualities into the presidency.
Class 8
I think all of those characteristics still apply to being a great president. You can't be irrational, scared, or be inexperienced. He/she has to be able to perform the duties of a president to their full potential. Something that has been added though is having a "good image" to America, but that has come with the expansion of media.
Dana Hansen
Period 2
I believe that all of these qualities still apply because the president needs to be able to understand everything that happens. They need to have enough experience to understand a situation and know what to do. They also need to be able to they need to be able to know when someone is telling them the truth, so that they can take appropriate action. They must also know that their decisions cannot be too over the top. The president cannot be a person who panics, or else everybody else will think that things are out of control. They also need to be a good leader, or else their position is pointless. The president of the United States must possess all of these qualities, which still apply today. Everybody says that Sarah Palin doesn't have enough experience to be the next vice president, but people would argue that Barack Obama is in the same boat. I believe that the qualities a president must possess were correctly stated by Dwight Eisenhower, and he definitely knew what he was talking about.
Class 8 - Calvin Song
I believe that most of those qualities listed still apply today. In the presidential race, the two candidates, John McCain and Barack Obama, like to show that they have or are capable of these qualities. One thing McCain emphasizes is that he has more "experience" but Obama might say that it's just "endurance". The two candidates want to make sure the voters know that they have the experience to help the people not to just be a figurehead. Also, with the recent financial crisis, the candidates want to show that they have "an inner calmness that lets him cut through crisis and make his decisions from a base of mature reflection." They want to show the American people that they can handle the crisis with a level head. Also, in the debates the candidates often emphasize how the other changes their opinion on topics. This is to show that they have "A strength of decision, so that he will surround himself with 'strong men holding strong opinions, not just straps.'" Many of these qualities are what the presidential candidates strive for in attracting voters.
Jay Lee
Period 8
All these defiantly should still apply. All of these qualities fit someone who's leading a country. Self-restraint; being able to compromise. Inner calmness; being able to rational decisions during times of crisis. Strength of decision; to surround themselves with people just as talented or even more talented than yourself so you get the best advisors and feedback on your decisions as possible. Experience; having been through enough to be able to know what to do at any given moment. Strength of character; being a man with strong morales and believes in what's best for this country. All of these should apply to a president and for the most part, they apply. Our current president isn't an exemplary subject for showing off these qualities, but they're still there.
I think leadership is definitly important in the political field, in fact it is one of the highest qualities to have. With leadership should come experience as well, but with experience, it doesnt always get you somewhere positive. Someone like Sarah Palin who doesnt have much experience with foreign affairs, is looked down upon, but our past presidents who had experience hasnt gotten somewhere wonderful. How much worse can Palin do than our past VP's? I'm not necessarily for Palin, but it was just a thought.
I think that all of these qualities absolutely still apply, and are, if anything, all the more important. Even in times of true disaster, when everything has failed, we need someone to stand up and take charge. Without those qualities, our president couldn't help us, he'd be just a man in a big office. We need a person who doesn't just understand, but comprehends. Our country can only be as strong as our leader.
Taegan Estores
Period 2
I believe that all of those characteristics still apply to being a great president. You need to have a general understanding of your people and what they want rather than what the president wants. We are a country of many different opinions and we fought for our freedom from anarchy. The president of the United States needs to be well qualified for his duty and understand the people of his country.
I think that Eisenhower was right in many of his claims of which qualities a president should have. I agree with most of these decisions he made, the president definetely has to have self-restraint for if not, he could have a fatal outburst and ruin the reputation of not only himself, but of the entire country.The president definetely has to have an inner calmness or else they could not make good decisions with a peace of mind that thinks through all of the consequences of hte decisions one has to make as a president. All of Eisenhowers claims seem to be about strength of character and clarity of mind which of course a president must need and these qualities would make the ideal president.
Olivia period 2
Although standards and responsibilities as president have changed throughout time, I agree with Eisenhower's thinking. The desired characteristics he displays in a President are the same characteristics that are desired today. I find it completely necessary, if not more necessary today, to have experience when in Presidency. There needs to be a base of experience where the president can make decisions based on previous occurrences, and without panic. It is still necessary for the president to have strong morals and opinions. During this time especially, it is necessary for our president to be a strong leader for our nation, and these characteristics are what Eisenhower believed as well.
I think all these qualities of a President do matter, especially experience and leadership. For the election of 2008 the people of America are looking for all these qualities. American does not want a President who going to run in fear when a problem comes along, we want someone who is going to stand up to it. Experience is defiantly an important quality as well. It is needed because how can someone run the country lacking experience? But with saying that, Obama is lacking experiecne and has the better odds to winning this election, while McCain has first-hand experience.
Kate Bowen
Period 2
Jeff Keating
Period 8
For a person to prve themselves a truely great president, they need to have not just on but multiple outstanding qualities. The first and most important of them all is the ability to lead the country in a possitive direction and to work for the greater good of the people. If the cindidate is in favor of taxing people based on their status in the community (in a not possitive way), then they should not be in the White House. They also need to be a charismatic person, who will captivate the country and have possitive relationships with other countires. Finnaly with out the ability to hold their word, their speeches are usless and missleading. They need to follow through on every plan they make, and to make correct, educated desicions. Without these qualities, the leader is not truley a great leader. To truley be a great leader they must posses these essential qualities.
Laetitia de Brantes
Period 2
There are a few qualities that do not really apply any more in this day but there are some that still do. For example to have an "inner calmness" is extremely important. If for some reason we are ever attacked the president needs to make a decision that is "based off mature reflection," not sure just some random spurr of the moment thought.
I think many of these qualities still apply in theory. While they are not qualifications in order to become president, the American people tend to look for many of these qualities when choosing who they want to lead their country. Strength of character is a rather important one I believe, because it is one that recent presidents have not seemed to grasp the concept of, such as Bush sending troops into Iraq and keeping them there. While the idea of standing strong is good in theory, a good President needs to know when backing down can sometimes take more strength of character when it is needed than simply sticking with a bad decision. While these qualities are not always expected or observed, they definitely still apply when considering a presidential candidate for office.
Chelsea Young
Class 8
aquib 2
I think that some of the aspects definatly still apply. Especially with which the article says "don't confuse experience with endurance. I find this entirly true, the naiveness for us to base our thoughts of how someone is by how long someone has stayed with something is ridicilous. experince is about how something was dealt with. was it handled corectly? experince is still very important but we should be carefull for which we interpret experice as
aquib 2
I think that some of the aspects definatly still apply. Especially with which the article says "don't confuse experience with endurance. I find this entirly true, the naiveness for us to base our thoughts of how someone is by how long someone has stayed with something is ridicilous. experince is about how something was dealt with. was it handled corectly? experince is still very important but we should be carefull for which we interpret experice as
Molly Nostrand
Class 2
I believe that most of the qualities described by Dwight Eisenhower are still fundamental in this election. Decision making skills are still admired today. However, I don't feel that we value "calm" decision making as much today. Experience is still a priority. Not only poltical experience is desired, but educational experience as well. Education is not blatantly stated in the article, yet I feel that Americans in 2008 are looking for a president with at least a college education. "Strength of character" is still essential today; Americans want a leader who is reliable.
All of these qualities definitely still apply to a president. Of course we want a president who is strong, calm, has experience, and has the ability to make decisions. If we had a president who did not have these qualities, we would not be a strong country. A president is the leader of a country they MUST be able to do their duty well and be able to protect the people of the country. If we have a president who isnt calm and strong, the country would not be as powerful as it has the potential to be.
cameron gehrman class 2
These qualities still apply today. If the president of the United States of America had these qualities the betterment of America would be their main priority, and that is a crucial element of what makes a superb leader. For example, if the president has an “inner calmness” he would be able to make prudent decisions in the event of a crisis. In the event of a crisis you need a strong leader how is not going to panic and make a dumb decision, so clearly an “inner calmness” is, and always will be, an important quality.
Jason Howell Class 8
I believe that all of President Eisenhower's characteristics of a good president apply today. Although a lot has changed since 1964, what America needs in a president has not. We still need someone who has self-restraint, otherwise our president will never be able to compromise. We need a calm president, who does hold grudges. We need a president who will make decsiions and stick to them. If the president does not stick to his descisions he will never accomplish anything. We need someone who is prepared for both the good and the bad times. And of course leadership, because we will need someone who is able to rise up and lead us out of this depression.
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