You\u2019ve heard it a thousand times; a likely candidate for political office announces that he or she has chosen to not to run. Usually the candidate references family considerations as why he or she is not running.<\/p>\n

How do we in the public react? Often we first wipe that smirk off our face and then say something like, \u201cOh yea, I really believe that one.\u201d We smell a rat and dismiss what the presumed candidate said.<\/p>\n

Recently a candidate, not to be named now, said the following:<\/p>\n

This has been a difficult, personal decision, and I am very grateful to my family for their total support of my going forward, had that been what I decided.<\/p>\n

A candidate for president today is embracing a ten-year commitment to an all-consuming effort, to the virtual exclusion of all else. His (or her) supporters expect and deserve no less than absolute fire in the belly from their candidate,\u201d he added. \u201cI cannot offer that with certainty, and total certainty is required.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

A frequent response to a statement such as this, particularly if it comes from someone from a political party other than our own, is, \u201cThat\u2019s a bunch of B.S. He\/she clearly is covering up dirt and is afraid that it will come out in the light of day that the campaign will shine on it. Furthermore, a politician couldn\u2019t really care that much about his or her family to place their well-being ahead of his or her own ambition.\u201d<\/p>\n

It is true that many individuals testing the waters announce their withdrawals through code language when what they really mean is (a) I have little or no chance of winning, or (b) there\u2019s no way that I can keep the dirt from coming out.<\/p>\n

However, there is considerable truth to what the candidate mentioned above said. \u201cSupporters expect and deserve no less than absolute fire in the belly from their candidate \u2026.I cannot offer that with certainty, and total certainty is required.\u201d<\/p>\n

If an individual wants to run for president, he or she will inevitably think of two terms and that will mean ten years of unimaginable intensity and scrutiny. Barack Obama announced his candidacy in February, 2007 and if he wins reelection will serve until January 20, 2017 \u2013 ten years.<\/p>\n

Any candidate who takes the plunge is saying that he or she will live on pins and needles for years to come. At the very least, this can be an extremely unpleasant way to live one\u2019s life. At its worst, it can do serious psychological and moral damage to that individual.<\/p>\n

One of the questions raised about Richard Nixon when he was running for president was, \u201cWould you buy a used car from this man?\u201d I would have done so immediately if I knew that it would keep him on the used car lot and out of politics. From his earliest days in Congress in 1946 it was clear that this was not a man to be trusted. However, this was apparently not of concern to a great number of Americans. He served just four years in the House of Representatives and two in the Senate before moving on to two terms as Vice-President, and one and a half terms as president. Through his political career, he evolved from not just someone of questionable integrity to someone who clearly had serious psychological issues. This culminated when he was president of the United States and had his finger on the nuclear weapons button.<\/p>\n

What if in early 1946 Richard Nixon had said words to the effect of, \u201cI have chosen to not run for Congress because with young children I cannot guarantee the electorate that I can fulfill the expectations that they would place on me.\u201d Perhaps he really felt that way but did not back off from running because he thought such a decision would not be believed.<\/p>\n

Four decades before Nixon, Woodrow Wilson spoke of the \u201cmaking the world safe for democracy\u201d when he reluctantly lead the United States into World War I. On a less global level, democracy would be safer if we made it easier for those who would not serve us to walk away without being mocked. Why do they have to justify that they don\u2019t want to spend years in a fishbowl in which any mistakes that they make would be greatly magnified over mistakes they would have made in private life.<\/p>\n

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