Letter: We need the best-qualified person in the Oval Office to keep America safe

As we move along toward electing the next president of the United States, I am struck by the “deer in the headlights” look from my conservative friends. Liberal people also seem more than a little concerned with the apparent nominee and what appears to be a general distrust or dislike.

It’s a good bet whether we like it or not, we will get to choose between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton.

If you want to get a feel for the day-to-day challenges of being president, read Evan Thomas’ book Ike’s Bluff: President Eisenhower's Secret Battle to Save the World. Ike more than any single person won World War II as Supreme Allied Commander. As a two-term president, his focus was “not merely man against man or nation against nation. It is man against war.”

Voting for president this November will not be a popularity contest. What it should be is a cold, calculated decision to put the best-qualified person in the Oval Office to keep America safe.

This story was originally published June 7, 2016 at 1:21 AM with the headline "Letter: We need the best-qualified person in the Oval Office to keep America safe."