by Sam Thede

Created on: July 16, 2008

According to Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary, inspire means to exert an animating, enlivening, or exalting influence on. I believe this is something the President of the United States of America absolutely, without question, must do by definition of the position.

How can a person lead effectively if they can not inspire those who follow them? A president must have the influence and presence to push those around them to edge of their abilities and beyond. That influence must not stop there, however. The President is the leader and representative of every single citizen of the United States of America! If they are not an inspiration to their own citizens, how can they have any influence on the rest of the world? A President must inspire confidence in their abilities as well as the abilities of the entire nation they represent. Without this confidence, the best laid plans can be swept aside by doubts and insecurities, which can feed on one another.

Not only must the President simply inspire confidence, hope, and strength in those they lead, the must provide positive inspiration. When was the last time we had a President who inspired the nation and the world in a positive way? Can we afford to have such a long string of Presidents who don't have that intrinsic quality of instilling hope, trust, and confidence in our great nation? I think it is time we look for the person who will inspire the world to look at the United States as a nation of strong, confident, yet helpful nation. We have accomplished this once before and I honestly believe it can be done again.

Many people will tell you that politicians lie to get into office. This stereotype is the result of many years of negative inspiration! An inspirational candidate would not need to resort to lies, bribes, or distortions of the truth; they can influence the opposition to see how their ideas could bring about a better world. Many times the person elected to office must contend with a Congress comprised of members of the opposing party. Any President in that situation must be able to inspire the representatives of the people of the United States to follow their lead for the betterment of the country as a whole. If a President can inspire a nation to elect them to such a position, they will need to inspire the Congress and Supreme Court with their ideas and plans. They need to be so effective that the walls of partisanship become like paper and blow away in the winds of change.

Without an inspiring personality who is willing to take the fate of this great nation into their hands and turn it toward it's inherent greatness, the American citizen is relegated to the old stand-by; determining which candidate is the lesser of two (or more) evils and hoping they will not turn our country toward a downturn. By inspiring hope, confidence, and strength in the American people, their lawmakers, and the entire world, the President of the United States of America can affect a great upturn and bring our nation to the position of well-earned and well-deserved respect and greatness and we have always known is inside each of us.

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