Throughout the history of the United States, whenever the dark clouds of apprehension, fear, and adversity cast a long shadow over the nation, a leader has emerged to successfully guide America into even greater prosperity and achievement.  Men such as George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Ronald Reagan understood that among the many duties of the president of the United States, the most important was to instill faith and an unbridled confidence -- not only in their leadership and policies, but in the future of the country.

Today the people of America are desperately searching for such a leader to take over the reins of power.  They know instinctively, and not from biased news reporting or the ruminations of pundits on all sides of the political spectrum, that the nation has embarked on a perilous path which can end only in dissolution and national bankruptcy.  Yet this political season has been marked by the same tired platitudes, gamesmanship, and politics as usual by both political parties and candidates for president.

Barack Obama is an unmitigated failure whose dedication to leftist ideology has potentially doomed the United States and its citizens to second-class status.  The month of June 2012 was among the worst ever experienced by any president and his administration, as the events of that period dramatically exposed Obama's radical mindset, dishonesty, and megalomania.  Further, it is now unambiguously certain that the economy will continue to deteriorate, and joblessness will accelerate and become more entrenched.  In the meantime, America's stature, influence, and standing around the world have hit a post-World War II low as the nation has become powerless, by choice, to control events.

Barack Obama, devoid of any character and integrity, can thus easily obfuscate and lie about his record as well as demagogue his opponent in an attempt to fool as many people as possible.  He has no leadership skills and does not inspire confidence in the vast majority of the people, as a recent poll indicates that just 20% of the populace are satisfied with the direction of the country.

Yet the presumptive Republican nominee for president, Mitt Romney, appears incapable of putting or unwilling to put on the mantle of confidence-inspiring leadership.  He does not convey a genuine sense of understanding of the people's angst and is unwilling to display an immutable set of core convictions.  The campaign, thus far, seems to be relying on the assumption that the election in November will be solely a referendum on Barack Obama, as enough people will be so intent on change of any sort that they will vote for Romney as the only alternative. 

The people running Romney's campaign, apparently having decided that their only strategy is to use well-worn platitudes about the economy and jobs, blissfully ignore the myriad other failings of the Obama administration.  Take for example the deliberate lies regarding taxes vs. mandates and the catastrophic loss of individual freedom exposed by the Supreme Court ruling on ObamaCare or Obama's callous refusal to enforce immigration and other laws or the unconstitutional actions of the EPA or the Nixonian cover-up of the Fast and Furious scandal.  In fact, it seems that the Romney team cannot even co-ordinate a plausible response to any of these issues, much less campaign on them.

If Mitt Romney cannot control and coordinate his campaign team, how can he inspire others?  How does surrounding yourself with advisors of similar mindset and background, nearly all of whom come from the Republican establishment, create an air of genuine leadership?  How does the inability to successfully deviate from one set strategy reveal an ability to handle crises?  How does willingness to play it safe as a campaign tactic arouse confidence?

Is Mitt Romney running for president solely as a fulfillment of a personal or family ambition?  Or because he sees the bleak future ahead for the nation and is determined to reverse its course?  Does he have a plausible plan based on a core set of principles he will implement once elected, regardless of the caterwauling from the media and the Democrats?  Or will he "compromise" away these principles?  Will he be willing to go before the American people every day during the campaign and talk from the heart, and not from a set speech, about the boundless future and the nation's ability to be great again?  Will he be unrelenting in pointing out the ruinous impact of the failures of Obama and the Democrats?  Does he truly understand how disastrous and irreversible the future will be if Barack Obama is re-elected?

Mitt Romney must honestly answer these questions and understand that in order to succeed as president and accomplish the herculean tasks necessary to return the nation to greatness, he must have an overwhelming mandate in November -- which can be brought about only by inspiring the American people to have confidence in his leadership.  If he cannot, then it would be his patriotic duty to refuse the Republican nomination for president and leave it up to the Republican convention to choose a nominee.

Fate has brought Mitt Romney to a time and place of great distress and historic opportunity.  It is not in his patrician nature to be as inspiring as Ronald Reagan or to talk to the American people as if he were their next-door neighbor, but he does not need to, as more people innately know if someone is genuine in this time of national uncertainty.

Because of deteriorating economic and international circumstances as well as the alternative media's exposure of his record and personal failings, Barack Obama will, in all likelihood, lose in November.  But will it be to someone who has inspired the American people that the nation's best days are still before it and who can be bold and decisive in his actions and decisions?