The "truthfulness" of Washington. The height of Lincoln The wisdom of JFK The shoe-size of Dubya.

The charisma, freshness and good looks of Obama The crusty credibility of Fred Thompson The good common sense of Joe Biden Wesley Clark's understanding of the military Mitt Romney's business talents and understanding The feisty courage of McCain Howard Dean's outbursts - I liked that about him The independence of Ron Paul John Edwards' accent, likability, and wife Dodd's intellect Brownback's views on a couple of issues, especially pro-life Giuliani's administrative skills Gore's environmentalism Ralph Nader's irrational perseverance and tenacity, with a touch of sarcasm and sassiness Jerry Brown (who has neither chance nor interest) because he is not impressed by power Clinton's campaign strategy and political savvy Huckabee's integrity Mike Bloomburg's ability to make and manage money Gilmore's home state - The Mother of Presidents has been a little barren. Kucinich for peace and freedom Reagan's humor and compassion (something from the past) Carter's understanding of world affairs and appreciation of the complexity of foreign policy (also from the past) George Bush's aborted dream of utilizing faith based institutions to partner with communities for community development George H.W. Bush's gracious spirit Bill Clinton's speaking ability LBJ's bear hug and humor Nixon's diplomatic abilities Truman's honesty and no-nonsense approach Kennedy's ability to assemble the best people for his team What is left? Vulnerability - the ability to admit that you have changed your mind when presented with better facts and that is OK, that you have made some mistakes, that your record is not spotless, that you are human, that you may be wrong, that you have been wrong, that you can laugh at yourself, and that some special interest groups are really making fools of themselves even though you respect their humanity and right to petition their government. Also missing quite often - respect for the opinions of others and a deep distrust of partisan politics. Put all of that together with great leadership abilities and the ability to win an election and shazzzam, you've got a great president. remember, however, that most great presidents were rather unlikely candidates.

I am really indifferent about the canidates that are in the field right now, but I have thought about characteristics based on past presidents: A) George Washington- the whole presidency is based on what HE did, I would take the historical importance he had no huge corruption and the American people Loved him. B) Thomas Jefferson- his intelligence, even George Bush would sound eloquent if reading speech written by jefferson (if read correctly anyway) C) Ronald Reagan/John F. Kennedy- their charisma D) Franklin D. Roosevelt- his International/National Respect (he was elected to 4 terms as president) E) Dwight Eisenhower- military background F) Lyndon B Johnson- his stubbornness and SOME of his intimidation factors G) Bill Clinton- his ability to talk TO people H) George H.W. Bush- speech giving I) George W. Bush- aid to Africa (and helping other parts of the world dealing with poverty would be appealing as well)