The United States needs a great leader. Instead, we have one of the least qualified presidents in our history, Barack Obama.
He’s seeking a second term, but he’s being challenged by a host of Republican candidates who, unfortunately, have yet to demonstrate that any of them is clearly the one to unseat him.
That was on display Thursday night in a nationally televised GOP debate.
There was a fair amount of arguing among the participants and between participants and moderators. But none of the candidates was electrifying in the way that will be necessary to defeat the incumbent.
Even the least of the GOP candidates would be an improvement on Obama, and many gave good answers to questions posed by the moderators. They generally opposed the imposition of higher taxes or the expansion of the bloated federal government; they supported the sanctity of unborn life; and they opposed the appointment of activist judges to the federal bench, among other positions.
In short, many of their views are soundly conservative, and they are probably all “good people” with a range of accomplishments.
But it will take more than that to convince voters that they are “presidential.” We don’t expect a Washington or a Lincoln. But the nominee selected to oppose Obama must have obvious, standout leadership skills.
Yet one recent poll on the announced or potential candidates put Mitt Romney at only 21 percent as the top GOP choice, Rick Perry at 18 percent, Sarah Palin at 10 percent, Rudy Giuliani at 9 percent, Michele Bachmann at 8 percent, Herman Cain at 6 percent, Ron Paul and Rick Santorum at 3 percent, and Newt Gingrich and Tim Pawlenty at 2 percent. And while some polls show Obama would lose to a “generic” GOP candidate, he fares better in head-to-head contests against named opponents.
Someone in the GOP pack may rise to the occasion.
But time is short.