Perspective

Hope we know when we see one

By JIM VERHULST, Perspective Editor
Published December 2, 2007

When I asked Bill Adair, the brains behind our Politifact Web site, to write an essay defending its efficacy, I was hoping for an answer I knew Politifact, for all of its value, could not offer up: How do we know who will lead us well?

As good and vital a service as Politifact provides, it can only tell us the "truthiness" of the candidates on the assertions they choose to make. Leadership is a very different and amorphous thing. Like obscenity, you know it when you see it. You can't quantify it, but you sure hope your president has it when the time, a 9/11 or a Pearl Harbor, comes along.

We won't pick our next Washington, Lincoln or Roosevelt by assessing the accuracy of their claims. But it's a big step on the way.

I had all of this on my mind as my 15-year-old son and I made our way to the balcony of the Mahaffey Theater to watch the Republican presidential debate in person last week. I don't believe in affiliating myself with a party, and my son is too young to vote but certainly would if he could, so I was there as a citizen looking for fleeting flashes of leadership that night, not knowing what they might be until I saw them. (Keep in mind, I'm looking at this as the one and only time I've seen these men in person, this one debate, not a candidate's record. I wasn't assessing their stances on the issues, just seeking signs of leadership.)

Saw little of it Wednesday night in Rudy Giuliani or Mitt Romney, who in a very personal attack and counterattack on illegal immigrants, seemed like two brothers arguing "did, too," "did not," "did, too," until it didn't matter who might have been right. Both looked smaller for the fight.

Saw some of it in Mike Huckabee, who that night had an ease of delivery and humor, defending an unpopular position - giving merit scholarships to children of illegals - with passion and defusing tough questions with humor. Jesus on the death penalty? "Jesus was too smart to ever run for public office." And on an odd YouTube question about support for a Mars mission: "Hillary could be on the first rocket to Mars." It was so over the top that it was funny, not mean-spirited. But he seemed more like a good pastor than a great leader.

John McCain, dripping with stern incredulity at Romney's refusal to say whether or not he considered waterboarding torture, certainly looked presidential dismissing him by saying "Governor, let me tell you, if we're going to gain the high ground in this world ... we're not going to torture people." But despite his appropriately high moral ground, he came off more as a great adviser, the one who would whisper in the presidential ear the uncomfortable things he needs to know, but doesn't want to hear. In the cliche, he would speak truth to power.

My son knew little about Huckabee before last week. He liked him, even while disagreeing with many of his positions and were he 18, not 15, could even see himself casting a vote that way. He liked McCain second for his clear path to his convictions. He was surprised at how poorly Romney and Giuliani came off in person.

A few words about watching a debate in person: It's not about you in the audience, it's about the TV viewership. Moderator Anderson Cooper was looking at the camera, not us. Candidates, even when engaged in a personal fight, responded directly to the camera, not to the candidate right beside them whom they were criticizing. We were there mainly to clap when the break approached and when the show came back live. A producer motioning to all of us clued us in on how long and loud to applaud. (Before "air," we actually had to practice clapping to get it right.)

If you were watching on TV, if you saw a close-up that allowed you to study the pores on McCain's nose, you should know that shot was made possible because a mobile cameraman in black walked on stage, hovering inches from McCain's face, and standing directly in front of debater Rep. Duncan Hunter (he's running for president, by the way). In fact, even though we were "there," we oftentimes had to watch the monitors to get a sense of what was "real" on TV. Which led me to wonder: Which was more real? Judging leadership is hard in such circumstances.

A couple of asides: It was fun to hear Mayor Rick Baker, in welcoming the audience to St. Petersburg before airtime, utter the phrase "I'm thankful to YouTube." What a changing world we live in. And then to hear St. Petersburg's Charlie Crist, the governor, say "Mom and Dad, where are you? I love ya!" Hmm, maybe some things aren't changing at all.

Fred Thompson, let the record show, is really, really tall. Though when Mayor Baker came out for a group photo, he was taller still.

When it was over and my son and I joined the herd moving outside the theater, we were told "you are all puppets" by one group of protesters (not sure what they were protesting, but I can tell you that is not a method to win hearts and minds). And as we walked back to the car, I was thinking that none of the GOP candidates had offered me a proof-positive sense of their ability to lead the country.

Then we passed by the homeless men, who didn't panhandle us and were as polite to us as we were to them. And I thought of the Democrats, because currently the disenfranchised Florida delegation more resembles those homeless men than they do the GOP debaters. As it now stands, they won't even get hotel rooms at the Democratic convention next summer. Maybe the homeless men can offer them some tips on tenting.

I flashed back to the Mahaffey and thought, we just saw the Republican mayor, the Republican governor and the eight Republican candidates for president in St. Petersburg seeking our votes for their man. The Democrats, fearing Howard Dean and their national committee, won't even come to Florida looking for my vote. They would come only for my money.

While the Republicans didn't bowl me over, at least they were here. And while I'm still waiting for signs of their ability to lead, I can say the same for the Democrats. For if they won't stand up to Howard Dean and seek my vote in my home, what kind of leadership can I really expect?

Despite all of the polls, not one vote that counts has been cast, and all of these candidates have a long time - since I won't be voting in a primary - to make their leadership case to me. Meantime, between now and Election Day, I'm going to review four books to school myself in how to seek out signs of leadership. I recommend them to you:

1776, for how George Washington led a nascent country out of a terrible time.

Team of Rivals, for how Abraham Lincoln became a great leader by relying on the strength of his rivals, yet making decisions that were all his own.

No Ordinary Time, for how Franklin Delano Roosevelt held a country together in world war.

Blink, for an intimate look at how intuition works, so with any luck, I'll know a leader when I see one, even if I don't know why.

In the meantime, use PolitiFact.com as a tool to help you pick a candidate. And follow the race. Figure out who can lead. Too much is at stake not to care.

[Last modified December 3, 2007, 09:04:26]