Choosing a President

Even though the U. S. President has limited power to unilaterally change things in the country, he or she is the symbolic leader of the country and has considerable influence over the future of citizens.  Since the job of President is complicated and requires making good decisions about complex matters, as well as kissing babies and reassuring the citizens, it would seem valuable to consider just what skills and traits a President would have to have in order to do the best possible job as President.  Unfortunately, there is almost no public discussion of this, even in election years.  Voting decisions are made in a number of ways by citizens, including:

• voting for the party’s candidate rather than for an individual candidate, even when the party’s candidate may not actually represent the beliefs of the party (e.g., Donald Trump, 2016)
• voting for the whole slate of the party
• voting for the candidate that someone else is going to vote for (a parent, a friend, someone one respects), without trying to consider who is best qualified
• voting for the candidate who agrees with one on a single issue that is important to one, such as abortion, unions, the environment, or war
• voting for the candidate who seems most aggressive (and therefore supposedly best for defending the country or waging war)
• voting for the candidate who is best looking
• voting for the candidate who comes from one’s own part of the country
• voting for the candidate with the greatest name recognition, even though that recognition may not be entirely positive
• flipping a coin
• voting for the candidate who promises the most (even though these promises by presidential candidates are almost never fulfilled, since the President does not have the power to actually make these thing happen but must have agreement from Congress and/or the courts)
• voting for the candidate who justifies and expands one’s grievances
• voting for the candidate who seems most like oneself
• voting for the person whose name appears at the top of the ballot
• voting for the candidate whose campaign has done the most negative advertising (or, alternatively, voting for the candidate whose campaign has done the least amount of negative advertising)
• voting for the candidate that one “likes” best
• voting for the candidate with whom one would most like to share a meal or a beer
• considering a range of issues that are important to the country and matching up those issues with the candidates’ positions
• carefully evaluating the personal traits and abilities of candidates to do the job of President well

Only the last two of these consciously aim at electing the best qualified candidate, so it is little wonder that Presidents who are elected vary a great deal in fitness for office!  For some voters, the use of intuition, based on various social cues, may help them rule out some unqualified candidates, but careful attention to actual job functions and associated skills would identify the most qualified candidate even better (assuming that voters can know what the abilities of a particular candidate are).

JOB TASKS OF THE PRESIDENT

The President engages in the following activities (if he/she is to be maximally effective):

• after carefully considering various alternatives, identifies what seems to be the best solution to a problem or the best policy to follow (with regard to problems and issues that are usually quite complex and require research, lengthy reading, and gathering opinions from “experts” and advisors), while still aware that such decisions may need to be updated as more information becomes available
• proposes the above solutions/policies to the public and to Congress, with supportive reasons and data
• organizes support for his/her positions among legislators and the public
• compromises on solutions/policies when doing so is demanded by the exigency of the situation and the impact on the public
• hires and appoints a multitude of government officials and administrative advisers
• considers all citizens and their needs, not just those he/she likes or identifies with, and seeks solutions that are in an overall sense best for the country
• acts as commander-in-chief of the country’s armed forces; inspires the troops; makes military decisions with the advice of generals; seeks Congressional approval or support for what he/she views as needed military actions
• determines foreign policy, considering the needs of the U.S., the values of the U.S., and the impacts on other countries, with an emphasis on cooperation and mutual benefit whenever possible
• interacts with leaders of foreign nations and groups in order to build relationships and obtain cooperation
• informs citizens about problems, solutions, and policies
• inspires citizens to be “good citizens” and participate in community and government
• lives by values that inspire citizens (setting an ethical example and modeling adaptive ways of relating to other citizens)
• maintains objectivity by not being motivated to become President for personal aggrandizement, power, or pride but rather to serve the country and its people
• engages in symbolic actions that engender a feeling of togetherness on the part of all citizens (christening submarines, kissing babies, opening shopping centers, hosting Easter egg rolls, inspecting sites of disasters, etc.)

The most qualified President is the one who can do the greatest number of these things well, with legislative, military, and foreign policy functions weighted more heavily.

HOW DO I MATCH UP?

• after carefully considering various alternatives, identifies what seems to be the best solution to a problem or the best policy to follow

I am a careful decision-maker, gathering facts and opinions before settling on the best solution.  I base decisions on extensive data-gathering and am immediately responsive to new information that changes how we should approach things.  I have years of experience integrating evolving knowledge about psychological assessment and treatment with changing governmental regulations to produce a training program that has all the needed information for trainees, gives them meaningful experiences applying what they are learning, and keeps all the administrators and lawyers happy.  I will identify knowledge-experts in economics, ethics, taxation, management, etc., with whom to consult and will of course use my cabinet members and the Joint Chiefs of Staff extensively.

• proposes the above solutions/policies to the public and to Congress, with supportive reasons and data

I am good at organizing information and making it understandable.  I wrote the charting/medical records manual for our mental health department, and my experience analyzing legislation will make reviewing the work of Congress easier.  I frequently had to present changes in my training program to department administrators who were not clinicians, so I know how to phrase things to be both accurate and understandable.  I also revised the Constitution and Ethics Code for the Inland Psychological Association and the By-Laws of the Education and Training Division of the California Psychological Association.

• organizes support for his/her positions among legislators and the public

I am persuasive with information but not so good at soliciting support, since I believe that each person should make his/her own decisions after being given a fair representation of current knowledge.  I will never, of course, engage in “dealing” or vote-trading, since I see them as destructive to democracy.

• compromises on solutions/policies when doing so is demanded by the exigency of the situation and the impact on the public

I am very good at reconciling various opinions by identifying factors that bring benefit to as many stakeholders as possible.  I strongly believe that leaders must advance the country’s status in as many areas as possible, whenever possible, which makes compromising necessary.  We can never make things perfect but must do as well as we possibly can.  I see a good compromise as a win for everyone.

• hires and appoints a multitude of government officials and administrative advisers

I am good at evaluating people and their strengths and weaknesses and have much experience at doing this.  I am not extensively “connected” in academic and financial circles and will need to rely on the contacts of advisers to fill many important positions.

• considers all citizens and their needs, not just those he/she likes or identifies with, and seeks solutions that are in an overall sense best for the country

I am very good at involving all sides and at considering all of the likely consequences of various courses of action.  My sense of fairness requires of me that I consider the impact of decisions on everyone before acting.  I organized my training program through a Training Committee consisting of supervisors who each had their own philosophies of care, and I brought them all together to agree on the basic structure of our program.

• acts as commander-in-chief of the country’s armed forces; inspires the troops; makes military decisions with the advice of generals; seeks Congressional approval or support for what he/she views as needed military actions

My seven years in the Air Force gives me a fair understanding about how the military works, and I am completely prepared to make difficult decisions in this area (with appropriate advice from the Joint Chiefs, of course).  I think that the U.S. has gotten overly involved in country-building using the military in the past and will avoid that myself.  I strongly believe that Congress must be involved at every step of the way whenever U.S. troops are at risk around the world.  For my trainee group, I had to keep their spirits up and keep them inspired about their clinical work even when administrators put obstacles in our path.

• determines foreign policy, considering the needs of the U.S., the values of the U.S., and the impacts on other countries, with an emphasis on cooperation and mutual benefit whenever possible

Other countries’ rights and needs are just as important to the future of our country as our own rights and needs in this increasingly interdependent world, and other countries will react positively to being treated fairly and with concern.  I believe that our sense of ethics should apply to all people all around the globe, and not just to our own society.

• interacts with leaders of foreign nations and groups in order to build relationships and obtain cooperation

I am a good team player and do not need to assert primacy in relationships with other countries, while at the same time not allowing ourselves to be taken advantage of in any way.  I am good at finding win-win solutions to problems.  I will be pressing Congress to ratify treaties and other agreements that they have in the past been unwilling to do.

I formed an association of training programs in the Los Angeles area to share information and updates about training.  This involved bringing together equals and helping them to work together.

• informs citizens about problems, solutions, and policies

I am very good at explaining all the pros and cons of issues and believe that citizens should be given both (all) sides of issues instead of only what I think is best.  I will give weekly televised or internet presentations informing citizens about current issues and concerns.  In my Training Committee meetings, I presented options for meeting our requirements, and together we sorted out what was most acceptable.

• inspires citizens to be “good citizens” and participate in community and government

I believe that greater involvement of citizens in community affairs and in advising government are both crucial to bringing us together to do the best work possible for our country.  I will welcome more citizen feedback and will organize regular referenda on big issues.  As noted above, I had to support and inspire my trainees even when the going was tough.

• lives by values that inspire citizens (setting an ethical example and modeling adaptive ways of relating to other citizens)

I will live my values with consistency and integrity at all times (as explained in this document).  As a leader I will at all times act as a caring and responsible adult.  You can check this out by contacting those I have worked with over the years.

• maintains objectivity by not being motivated to become President for personal aggrandizement, power, or pride but rather to serve the country and its people

I want to serve as President not for personal gain or fame but to be a healing factor in our present circumstances.  I enjoy helping people solve problems and be happy!  I am very good at thinking independently no matter what people around me are saying and very good at not being influenced by lobbying and salesmanship.

• engages in symbolic actions that engender a feeling of togetherness on the part of all citizens (christening submarines, kissing babies, opening shopping centers, hosting Easter egg rolls, inspecting sites of disasters, etc.)

I prefer spending time working on issues and problems rather than seeking PR opportunities, but I understand that the President must do a certain amount of inspiring and public posturing.  I like people, though, and will have no trouble with being with them and celebrating our shared love of the country and our fellow citizens.

Voters are cautioned against choosing a candidate to vote for on the basis of only a few criteria.  The President’s job is multi-faceted, and a candidate with whom you disagree on the issue most important to you may do you more good on ten other issues, so it may be in your best interest to vote for that candidate in this election.

See Appendix A for a rating scale to be used to compare candidates for the presidency.