Qualities of a Leader: Does McGuinty Have Them?

Recently I attended the Ontario Liberal Party Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Windsor. At this AGM I had the pleasure of hearing Ted Sorenson speak about what it takes to be a successful and very good leader. Ted Sorenson was the speech writer for the late President John F. Kennedy. He wrote the famous speech for Kennedy "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country." Mr. Sorenson listed Courage, Ideals, Compassion, Integrity and Information as the most important qualities a leader should possess. I compared these qualities to our Premier Dalton McGuinty and found that our Premier exhibits all these qualities.

The first quality listed by Mr. Sorenson that I see in Premier McGuinty is courage. Mr. Sorensen wasn't talking about physical courage, but the courage to tackle issues head on regardless of its popularity. Dalton McGuinty has had to deal with many difficult situations, ranging from the introduction of the health tax (due to inheriting the previous Conservative government's undisclosed deficit), EHealth and the introduction of the Harmonized Sales Tax. The Premier has had tremendous courage while dealing with all these situations. He has made the right decision each time and sticks with it no matter what people or the polls say about him. He has shown extreme courage to lead a government through the world's worst economic conditions since the great depression are upon us. In terms of Courage, Premier McGuinty has a ton of it.

Secondly, Sorenson mentions one's Ideals as a very important quality of a leader. Again, Premier McGuinty's ideals are in the right place. Dalton McGuinty grew up in a home of 10 brothers and sisters and learned how to share and be fair. His family instilled in him strong values and ethics. His lessons learned as a child have directly helped him be the outstanding leader he is today.

Thirdly, Compassion is listed by Sorenson as one of the most important qualities. A leader must be able to show compassion to everyone with whom he deals. This includes opposition members, voters, etc. One needs to go no further then the daily proceedings at Queens Park. During question period, Premier McGuinty never raises his voice nor pokes fun at any other members of the house yet others do this to him quite often. This is one of the best examples of McGuinty's compassion. Another prime example is the fact that the Premier was unwilling to introduce the HST unless the federal government gave the provincial government money in order to support Ontarians, especially those most in need, while the HST is implemented. This money is going to be given out over a select period of time to all of Ontario.

Information, in other words having all the information available in order to make a decision, is another a very important quality of a leader according to Sorenson. I agree with this and could also say that the Premier has this exact quality. Premier McGuinty seems to be very intellectual. When ever the press ask him questions (including ones not pre-prepared) he is always able to give a substantially informative answer. His decisions are soundly based on all information available to him - he doesn't just use the most convenient information for his purpose.

Finally, Integrity as one of the most important qualities of a leader. Integrity is defined as being honest, fair, truthful and sincere. I believe that Dalton McGuinty holds every single one of these qualities.

Ted Sorenson was a close assistant to one of the greatest presidents this world has ever seen. When comparing all these qualities to Dalton McGuinty, one could say that he is one of the greatest premiers this Country has ever seen.