It’s easy for a challenger to second-guess the actions of an incumbent who has had to make tough decisions.

As the November election draws nearer, the American public can see how easy it is for a presidential challenger to make all kinds of charges, promises and pledges or provide various explanations of how he or she would have handled a particularly difficult situation in the Oval Office.

The only trouble is that such officeseekers are like armchair quarterbacks who have all the answers, all the right moves and all the correct solutions based on hindsight. They never were in a position where they had to measure up, make the decisions.

John Kerry is having a field day telling the public how he would have handled threats posed by Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden, domestic employment challenges, the terrorist situation and other matters. However, the fact is no one has any idea how Kerry would have performed if he had, indeed, been in office.

He can fault President Bush for any number of actions or policies, but he never had to make a single decision and never had to decide whether to place members of our armed forces in harm’s way.

President Bush had to make these decisions, live with the economic situation he inherited from the Clinton administration and decide how to fight a new war on terrorism — something this nation had never faced.

The charges, claims, pledges, promises and efforts to act as all-knowing will continue by Kerry, his spin doctors and many in the media. This is not to suggest Bush has been a perfect president, making the perfect decision in each challenge he faced. But he is honest, genuine and committed to doing what he thinks is in the best interests of the country. He is not going to say something, make hollow pledges, or take some action merely to try to win some votes.

The contest between Bush and Kerry is sure to be a tight race. Voters will have to decide whether they trust Bush to do the best job of protecting the United States and its citizens in a more dangerous world or want to gamble on an unknown and untested individual who has a record of flip-flopping on many important issues while serving in the U.S. Senate.

There is no guaranteed perfect answer and it is understandable that many Americans are frustrated, worried and question how they will fare in the coming months and years.

Nevertheless, American voters will be faced with a tremendous challenge in selecting their president. This being the case, it is hoped citizens will pay attention to what Bush and Kerry are saying and how they measure up in terms of honesty, sincerity and trustworthiness.

As noted above, it’s easy for a challenger to have all the right and popular answers to the problems and challenges while the incumbent must live on his record and how he handled various situations including a deadly sneak attack by terrorists. This not only applies to the war on terrorism but also to the economic impact of this war on the American public. It’s been a challenge never faced by an American president or U.S. citizens. Unfortunately, it is likely to be something this nation will face for many years, and it is essential this country have the leadership, vision and commitment of a president who will not waver in doing what is right for the nation.