7 Essential Qualities of a Political Leader — Guidelines for Voting with Author David Koyzis

Welcome to a listen-to-learn episode of the Share Life podcast. I'm speaking with a former university professor and Canadian Christian, David Koyzis. David has been on the Share Life podcast to discuss his book Political Visions & Illusions and Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

In this episode, we're talking about the values required for someone to hold political leadership. David articulated 7 guidelines he shared after the Jan 6 hearings, and has resurfaced in a recent blog post about America's current societal crisis, in light of Trump's 34 felony convictions and adamant Republican support.

In this conversation, we discuss the 7 guidelines and the history that brought us here.

Conversation Questions & Highlights

1. must respect the rule of law above his or her own ambitions
2. must be loyal to the country's constitution and abide by its provisions, even to his or her own disadvantage;
3. must not abuse the office to advance personal financial or other interests;
4. must honourably concede to his or her successor when defeated in an election;
5. must refrain from divisive rhetoric and undertake, where possible, to unite the nation around a common task of doing public justice;
6. must unwaveringly adhere to the truth and refrain from self-justification to cover missteps;
7. must be generous and charitable to opponents and supporters alike.

We discuss those guidelines and the following topics.

• "Trump famously boasted that he could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot someone and not lose votes. At the time many people scoffed at such bluster, but since then it appears that he was largely correct. Four years later, his refusal to admit that he had lost an election led his followers to attempt violently to derail Congress' ratification of his opponent's victory. That virtually an entire political party supports him unquestioningly and that so many are willing to indulge his infantile ravings does not speak well of the health of the country's political institutions."
• There is something about an ideal standard that is clarifying and convicting, versus simply being opposed to something or someone. By stating your vision of a political leader clearly, it provides clarity about the candidates we Americans have to choose from. What are your thoughts about this dynamic?
• A Trump loyalist and skeptic of your list might want to say that Biden falls short of the ideal too, so how would you differentiate the two primary American candidates?
• In your list, you are focusing on the most important values, but many people who support Trump and oppose Biden are doing so for policy and partisan reasons. Why should someone pick a leader who is closer to your list, but is the opposite in their policy preferences, when they do conflict?
• You and I are both Christians, so what's most disappointing for me is how much this political crisis is enabled by a large number of  Christians. What are your thoughts on this dynamic and how do you reconcile it? How'd we get here?
• What are some short and long-term solutions to the problems we've found ourselves engulfed?
• You've got a book coming up. Is that related to this topic or does it delve into something different?

Watch or listen to our conversation below.

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