It’s hard, these days, not to think about the quality of our leadership, not only at the national level, but also in our states. The leaders we select to govern across the nation very much reflects the quality of our choices. Moreover, the people we elect also reflects a voter’s ideology, preferences, and personality. In other words, our leaders reflect who we are. And who we are is a function of our world view.
But there’s more to selecting our leaders than the framework of how we see things in the world. We really must do our level best to encourage and support the best among us to hold public office so that we benefit from their skill and ability to do what leaders ought to do in sustaining our republic and supporting constitutional governance. Put succinctly, we need highly qualified and virtuous leaders. Moreover, for that reason, we also should individually embrace the same virtue we expect from our leaders.
Recently I have shared with you some of the leadership principles I have learned during the course of my life. They guide me when I consider candidates for public office who sometimes come to me and ask for my support or my personal endorsement. For those who do, I almost always ask them this question. Why are you seeking to lead? Some then launch into a litany of generalized bromides about “being a voice for the people” or expressing some ”passion” for this or that issue, or some other motivation you could find in a generic resume. Once they do, I then delve deeper into what they want to accomplish. More bromides usually surface and eventually in the discussion when I’m asked what I think about their desire to lead, I will say this. I am far more interested in what you want to do than what you want to be.
That is what I care about. Because when I know what you want to do, I can then assess whether I would like you to be my leader. That translates to a bedrock principle of leadership that I subscribe to; be what you say you are and do what you say you will. That’s fundamental to my process for picking people I think will be the best to lead us. It’s not always easy to do this. Yet understanding the quality and motivations of those who seek to lead us is vitally important if we are to have the best among us to possess and wield the power we the people grant them to rule us in accordance with our Constitution.
All of this comes to mind as I look at candidates in the 2020 elections. But in my native Virginia, as soon as the national election this year is behind us, we will be confronted with a plethora of political races at the state level in 2021. The parade of candidates will be long, the promises grand, and the choices especially important, particularly since we will elect a new governor in our Commonwealth.
So what am I looking for in a governor? To be sure, I hope we will have one who subscribes to the “be what you say you are and do what you say you will” measure that I have embraced. But there are other considerations. Will he or she have the right focus, the right motivation, the right skills, and the humility to lead? I enjoy an advantage in assessing candidates for Governor in large measure because—after a 16-year stint in the General Assembly as a legislator—I know many of them. I have seen them at work, I know their motivation and ideology, but importantly, I know who they are. I know what kind of leader they will “be” and I know what they seek to “do.”
This week I learned that my former House of Delegates colleague, Kirk Cox, is giving serious consideration to running for governor. Normally when I learn that someone I know is going to run for office, I am able to quickly assess the “be-do” proposition. But when I heard that Kirk Cox was in the mix, it was easy. Why? Because I know both his quality and his motivation for leading. Frankly, I know few people who exceed his ability, knowledge, and approach to governing. But most of all, I know the kind of man he is and the humility he possesses to subordinate himself to be a servant leader entrusted with the power granted him by the people. So if you’re seeking a leader who keeps promises, respects the rule of law, is steeped in experience, and motivated to be what he says he is and do what he says he will, well I know him.
PS: Take a look at the recent Webinar I did with the Association of the US Army on my book. I am sure you will like it!
1 Comment
Paul · August 10, 2020 at 1:28 pm
While not totally against Kirk Cox I feel he has no chance of beating Ex.Gov.McAwful. He is another middle of the road Republican- he had no problem supporting Medicaid Expansion and was quite TIMID against all the Second Amendment garbage(Red Flag Laws/long gun registration/clip size etc.) forced on law abiding citizens of Virginia !
Amanda Chase is by far our best chance to restore true conservative values to Va. She understands and can restore sanity in Education in all parts of our state ! She knows and has been opposed by law enforcement in her own county’s sheriff’s department for stating their leniency on illegals while being dropped from the Republican Party in Chesterfield.
Another big reason and possibly the best reason is because Cox and Norment say she can’t be controlled-but in case you haven’t noticed our House and Senate got the living crap kicked out of them not just this year but for years !