The United States is a diverse place with millions of people that have many distinct ideologies and ethics. Recent events have brought to the forefront of national attention what people view as morally acceptable behavior for public officials. These events have also raised the question: "What is the relationship between the personal character of our political leaders and their ability to govern wisely?" It is my opinion that the majority of Americans become concerned about the moral behavior of their leaders only when the country, state, or locality is going through a difficult time economically. Throughout history, and particularly in the case of President Clinton, if the economy is doing well and the country is in a general state of security, most citizens are willing to "look the other way" on the morality of their leaders. I want my leaders to have a strong moral character, with a solid foundation of religion, but I also think that when it comes to carrying out the duties of an elected office, personal character and religion do not affect a person's ability to govern wisely.

Throughout the rich history of the United States, many leaders have been benchmarks for morality an

American history is about the many leaders of our country and how they dealt with adversities and with their own personal demons. The aforementioned presidents were able to continue to govern although their character could be viewed as corrupt. The Presidents and member of Congress discussed in the following paragraphs were not, in my opinion, able to govern effectively because their lack of character interfered. President Richard M. Nixon would have been regarded as one of the greatest foreign policy presidents in history if he had not been entangled in the quagmire that was the Watergate scandal. President Nixon opened diplomatic relations with Red China and was finally able to secure an end to the Vietnam conflict, but his accomplishments will forever be overshadowed by his involvement in the Watergate break-in and subsequent cover up. If President Nixon had displayed more character, he would have made the decision not to authorize the break-in or order his subordinates to commit illegal acts. The cover-up and ensuing media attention totally consumed President Nixon much as Vietnam had President Johnson. Ultimately, Nixon was forced to resign the presidency in 1974 because of the Watergate scandal. President Ulysses S. Grant is perhaps the best example of how greed and lack of personal character can affect job performance. Grant implemented a spoils system much like that of President Andrew Jackson. He appointed old war comrades to his cabinet and friends to high-level staff positions. These people, not the president, ran our country for eight years. President Grant had conflicts of interest in military matters and in the oil business as well; furthermore, his political subordinates were makin

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Approximate Word count = 1150
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)