I have been following the presidential race rather closely this time around. I have read a good deal about all the candidates on both sides. While I tend to be conservative I don't ascribe to any particular party label and I try to avoid labels in general. I wouldn't even fall under "conservative" in some areas.
What I have been wondering this time around though is more fundamental than who I want to vote for. I have been pondering if it is even possible to choose the best candidate? Is it possible to correctly choose the person who will best lead our country for the next four years?
I have followed politics for most of my adult life and I am realizing that the characteristics that make a good candidate for president are not the same as the characteristics that make a good president. There is some overlap of course, but it's not the same.
Also, we don't have some very important pieces of information. What are the next four years going to bring for the US? Do we need a president who will carry us through war? Do we need a president who will guide us through a major economic crash? Do we need a president who will wisely manage the benefits of an economic boom or a dozen other major events? If you look at the narrowing field I imagine you might pick different people for different scenarios. We can't know that.
In addition, how well can we predict the future actions of any of the candidates? Who are their major influencers? Who has or will have their ears on important decisions? Can they stand up for what they believe in even if it is hard? Do they even believe what they say? Do they have the skills to bring about any of the things they say they will do?
In the end, it is I think, an impossible task. We can't know who will be best. We can rule a few out for sure, but the best? I don't think it logic can determine the answer.
Emotion is not any more help of course either. Some candidates have the ability to speak to emotions and really play on the heart strings, but that certainly doesn't inherently qualify them as the best. It really is a conundrum.
In the end I will make a choice, but only the next four years will bear out if we made the right one.
How are you going about deciding who to vote for?
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