Published: May 16, 2008 12:38 pm         

What qualities should America's leader have?

I am writing this letter in regards to the upcoming election for our next president of The United States of America. I have flip-flopped so much these past several months I was beginning to think I was incapable of deciding which candidate to endorse.

I decided to write down the qualities I expect my next leader and future leaders to possess and that has helped me to make a decision. Although I cannot endorse any particular candidate in this article I would like to share with you the qualities which I deem crucial for my next president.

I want my next president to be brilliant, fair, unbiased, to be physically, mentally and spiritually ready to lead the most powerful country in the world. I want my next leader to use the gifts in which God bestowed upon him or her. I want my president to see but to be color blind, to hear everyone and not turn a deaf ear to anyone's concerns, and to have a voice to all Americans in this country.

I want my next president to be able to keep up with the never-ending changes in the world. A great leader stands tall in the company of adversity and does not falter. A great leader knows when to ask for help and admits to errors when made. A really great leader is able to discern the needs of the people and makes decisions based on that discernment instead of making selfish ones.

I want a president who wants to know what the people of this country feel when important issues arise. It would be wonderful if our next and future presidents would listen to all of the people and not rush to war without good cause.

A good leader must know "When to fold them" and not be too proud to do just that. I want my next leader not to see black Americans, white Americans, Latin Americans or Asian-Americans but rather just see Americans. We are a diverse country and we need a diverse leader. Like it or not, folks God, made all of us and he certainly did not make one race superior to another.

It is time to elect a leader who will make This United States of America "The Re-United States of America. Don't vote Democratic or Republican just for party sake, vote for Mr. King's American Dream that we are all equal in the eyes of God and what should matter is the innermost being of someone.

Don't vote black or white, male or female, rather choose the person who will best lead this country out of the turmoil it is in and will see all, hear all, and speak for all.

Carolyn Weigle
Short Gap, W.Va.