I don't know how all of you are looking at the debt ceiling discussions, but I have the hair up on my neck.  I worry that those who hold leadership positions in the Republican conferences in each house of congress are not really conservative and are not really interested in doing what is in the best interest of the country.  I am not sure what it is going to take to get the message across to them that We, the People are serious about spending cuts and fiscal discipline, but another four years of Obama and socialists running this country is what is going to happen if these guys don't muster some courage along the way.  This incredible penchant on the part of the party leadership to compromise with the president is a losing proposition.

I had a conversation with one of my friends this week about the pausity of leadership we have in the Republican party.  I advanced the idea that perhaps we needed a different model.  Perhaps, as both of us are veterans, we need a command mentality instead of hoping some leader emerges from the mist.  I am not talking about a top-down command and control structure.  I am talking about what it takes to be an effective commander.  That model ought to be considered.

In the thousands of leadership books written and the millions of words advanced on leadership and management in books, monographs, case studies and journal articles, none address what it is to be a good commander.  There are four traits that differentiate good commanders from those who are not so good.  The first trait is competence.

Clearly, the president is not competent, and neither are the leaders of the Republican conferences in congress.  How can people who have been in office so long be so paralyzed in action?  How is that they cannot seem to hold to principle, as is demanded?  How is it they are so tongue-tied when it comes to developing and advancing a strong narrative about fiscal responsibility?  Of course the media are against them, but how does that keep Republican party leaders from doing what is right and from pounding the administration and other progressives?  The other side has nothing to offer except more of the same.  Our side cannot simply enable more destructive behavior, even if we call it something else.

The second trait is selflessness.  A commander must put the organization above any personal motive or gain.  In the current circumstances, re-election to a leaderhship position or even to the Congress should be secondary.  Doing what is best for the people of America is--or should be--first at all times.  Personal subordination to the people is the sign of a great politician, and I bet anyone reading this will not be able to count more than a handful of those that might qualify.  Our party leadership needs to focus on the flag and and the nation and get past this notion that democrat cocktail parties are better than conservative parties.  One should consider it a badge of honor that one is not on the Inside the Beltway A-list.

The third trait is decisiveness.  This salami slicing approach to incremental government is bad all the way around.  Make a decisiion and stick to it.  Do what is right and stick to it.  Have a plan and execute it.  Nolan Richardson used to be the head basketball coach at the University of Arkansas.  His 40 minutes of hell approach to the game was infamous.  When a reporter asked him how he would adjust to a particular opponent, the coach responded that perhaps the other team might have to react to his squad.  Hmmm.  Perhaps if we had the reputation of sticking to principles, the other side might take us seriously and might realized that perhaps they were the ones that need to adjust to the new reality.  Just a thought.

Finally, a good commander must be courageous.  I cannot think of a character trait more important than courage.  When one is right, one does not need to bend on anything, regardless of the heat that might come.  Many of us have been in command and know that command is the loneliest social environment there is.  Great commanders stand alone, but they do so with the firm conviction of their cause.  Really, if one has that conviction, then one is never alone. 

I am not sure how to influence this discussion other than to write here and to call my representatives.  They need to know what I expect from them and right now, I expect them to display the attributes of being good commanders, particularly the leadership.  I don't hold out a lot of hope that they will all measure up, but I hope one or two do, and that will be enough to carry the day.