Rowitz On Leadership

Many Americans are disenchanted with their elected officials. The recent national deliberations over the budget and the closing of the Federal government and also the conflict over the raising of the debt limit brought the American society to a standstill. The Founding Fathers must have been turning over in their graves. Yet, many did not understand what was going on. Many didn’t care. Some have argued that our society is selfish, prejudiced, pro-gun, anti-immigrant, anti-government, anti-poor, anti-Islamic, and maybe just anti-everything, We need to step back and look at what our democracy stands for. Politics must be more than character assassination. This posting will look at the characteristics of a politician that is also a leader.

A politician needs to be civil to other politicians. Collaboration should be the major orientation to the political process. After all, politics is about change and transformation, The goal of the political process is to improve our quality of life. Political leaders need to find was to address society’s challenges in a civil manner and within budgetary parameters. An elected official needs to not only the people who elected him or her but also the needs and perspectives of those that did not vote for him or her. The leader must not ignore, for example, the 30-50 percent of the population that did not vote for him or her. The political leader needs to study the community and understand all the needs of all the people in his or her jurisdiction. Respect for the President , the Governor , or Mayor is critical in a democratic society. In fact, the political leader needs to show respect for all his or her constituencies. People first and then money concern must be the guiding principle for the political process. Political process must not only be concerned with lobbyists and their financial contributions It sometimes seems that politicians are not concerned with the Bill of Rights unless it relates to their political agendas.

In summary, here are ten characteristics for a political leader:

    1 Civil

    2. Collaborative

    3. Transformative for society’s good

    4. Respect for others

    5.Willing to compromise

    6. Represent all the people not just the followers of their political party

    7. Support the Constitution and the Bill of Rights

    8. Set governmental priorities from a people-first approach, but within budgetary constraints

    9. Work together and share the leadership

    10.Make passed legislation implementable even if you don’t completely agree with it