As spring comes upon us and John McCain comes nearer to selecting a running mate, the coal-to-diamond pressure will continue to build on our Democratic candidates to settle the dust, place unifying the party above all else, and leave one candidate to abandon years of strategizing agonizingly close to fruition.  

When lost in the dizzying cyclone of punditry, majestic rhetoric, and our projected realities, it is easy to forget that not only is winning the nomination extremely difficult but a long view of history illustrates that nominees have virtually one chance to achieve the ultimate seat of power.  Successful second acts are rare in presidential politics.

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Cross-posted from Black Thought Blog

How should we chose out next President? I think that one incredibly important aspect of our decision should be based on their ability to deal with the increasingly tumultuous conflicts in the world.

The Middle East is only going to get worse before it gets better, and we need a leader who can intelligently lead the world, and can lead the world in solving international problems as previous Presidents have done (to varying but higher degrees of success).

Perhaps most importantly, there is a high likelihood that there will be multiple international incidents that may change the nature of the entire planet.

How do we decide which Presidential candidate is up to the task, or better yet, who is our best representative to the global community?

For me we should apply the Cuban Missile Crisis Test to the each of the candidates.

The real question is of the current Presidential candidates, who would you have wanted to be in the White House during the Cuban Missile.

As that crisis demonstrated, sometimes being strong meant being smart, and having that diplomatic touch to avoid a global disaster. George Bush has basically demonstrated how to do things in exactly the opposite way that Kennedy did. In fact, had been in office during the Cuban Missile, we would all be dead, or living below the ground in bunkers to take shelter from an ongoing nuclear winter.

So who of the current Presidential candidates could have dealt well with the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Let's just eliminate the Republican candidates. They're from the party that got us where we are in Iraq, and their war mongering approach to international relations is just about the last thing that we need.

So who of Hillary Clinton, Obama, Edwards, and Richardson could have dealt best with this conflict?

That... is the million dollar question.

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