Every President, and even big state Governor, is surrounded by advisers, appointees, bureaucrats, media and other elected officials who tend, on average to learn left.
A few leaders, such as Churchill, Thatcher and Reagan, turn out to have a strong foundation of understanding of the key issue of their day, unshakable by bad or misguided advice. Most leaders, even Bush to a considerable extent on domestic issues, I fear, are eventually isolated from their past connections to reality, surrounded by leftist crap, and ultimately led astray.
It is very difficult, in my view, to predict the strength of a leaders understanding and whether it will be able to resist these powerful forces for the duration of their terms in office.
First...very good post.
I'm counting on FDT to aspire to be like the good folks you mentioned.
If he isn't...well...there isn't anyone else to do that.
That doesn't mean there aren't those for whom I would vote.
It just means that we need another Churchill, Thatcher, or Reagan...NOW.