To sustain our Republic for more than 200 years, America’s leaders had to overcome numerous challenges, not only during the Continental Congress, but also during the Civil War, World War II, Cold War, and the Race to the Moon. Today, a convergence of foreign and domestic vulnerabilities threatens America’s financial capacity and strategic freedom. These challenges are laid out in the Center’s Declaration on Civility and Inclusive Leadership, and include the continuing wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and on terrorism; rising budget deficits; the decline of educational competitiveness; threats to our energy security; and growing anti-Americanism and loss of influence abroad.
The current political environment in the United States exacerbates these challenges. Increasingly, our nation is polarized over wedge issues just as government bureaucracy grows more compartmentalized. Most citizens are fed up with ineffective government, as witnessed by dangerously low Presidential and Congressional approval ratings.
CSP is uniquely qualified to marshall the expertise needed to create transformational change on critical national issues. In 1999, CSP compiled a series of case studies to assist the next President. For the 2008 election, CSP will expand its efforts by working with key Members of Congress, leaders in business and non-profit sector, scholars and policy makers to develop a strategic agenda for all Presidential candidates that responds to the challenges outlined in the Declaration.
The Center’s Agenda 2008 initiative is:
- Developing a profile of Presidential leadership, A Call to Greatness: Challenging Our Next President, that defines the organizational challenges facing the next President.
- Conducting a dialogue with Presidential candidates and their staffs, regardless of party affiliation, to inform the candidate and frame the strategic policy issues that candidates will confront during the campaign, as will the next President.
- Convening a series of working groups that examine major U.S. strategic challenges, frame key debates, identify creative policy options, and help prepare leaders to confront the most urgent national issues.
Overseas, our nation’s challenges include:
- The continuing global war against terrorism,
- Proliferation of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction,
- Growing violence and instability in Iraq and Afghanistan,
- Extended deployment of our Armed Forces, National Guard and Reserves, and
- The prevalence of anti-Americanism around the world.
At home, our nation’s challenges include:
- The need to strengthen homeland defense against terrorists and address the vulnerabilities of natural disasters,
- Runaway healthcare and Social Security costs,
- Rising federal budget and trade deficits,
- The decline of educational competitiveness,
- Threats to our energy security and the need to address global climate change, and
- The alarming decline in character-based leadership.
As part of its Agenda 2008 initiative, on February 20, 2008, the Center for the Study of the Presidency hosted a panel discussion at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, to focus attention on the upcoming Presidential election and the need for inclusive leadership and strategic organization for effective governing. Following the model set by former Senators David Boren and Sam Nunn during their January forum on bipartisanship at University of Oklahoma, the Center's panel addressed the current landscape and asked the question: "Can the next President rise above partisan posturing and organize for effective leadership?" Moderated by Center President David M. Abshire, Ph.D., the panel featured: The Honorable Bill Brock, former Senator and Chairman of the Republican National Committee; Norman Ornstein, Ph.D., Resident Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute; and The Honorable Leon Panetta, former Chief of Staff to President Bill Clinton.
View the February 20, 2008, discussion
For more information about Agenda 2008, contact Alex Douville, Director of Policy Studies, via e-mail or Sarah Ficenec, Associate Director for Policy and Communications, via e-mail. Both can also be reached at 202-872-9800.
A Call to Greatness: Challenging Our Next President
The cornerstone of the Center's Agenda 2008 project is a new book entitled A Call to Greatness: Challenging Our Next President, which describes how the next President must reorganize our resources and lead the nation so that we can effectively meet the major challenges we now face. This profile draws on history to identify the leadership traits and organizational skills needed in the next President for him or her to be successful. The present state of our union requires a creative reexamination of our national interests, a comprehensive vision, the ability to organize and marshal the best people and resources, and the ability to communicate this vision to our citizens and the world-themes which are consistent within the Portrait. The Center looks forward to the ensuing exchange of views on the nature of Presidential leadership and the characteristics required of our next President.
The Center shared a confidential draft of A Call to Greatness with principal Presidential candidates and has received positive feedback. Several candidates have already turned to the Center for consultation because they admire the mission and methodology of the institution. A Call to Greatness is now available to the public.
For more information on A Call to Greatness: Challenging Our Next President, contact Margot Connor, Special Assistant to the President, at 202-872-9800 or via e-mail.
