With less than a week to go until Election Day, some choices on who to vote for may be easier than others. Some voters have carped that quality candidates are lacking. Such a shortage often leads them to question whether to even bother to vote, let alone make a specific choice.

Earlier this year, a friend, formerly of Auburn and now living in California, dropped off Lee Iacocca's new book, “Where Have All the Leaders Gone?” (Scribner $25), that looks at the state of the nation and politics, on the verge of the 2008 presidential sweepstakes.

The former chairman of Chrysler is biting in his assessment of both the current administration, Congress and even us, the voters, who have failed, in his opinion, to make tough choices and look long-term.

He hopes that voters will take a hard look at the candidates, using a simple list - his 𔄡 C's” - to measure those who run for office. While he hopes that voters will look at the candidates for president utilizing his criteria, local voters could also use them as a way to rate local candidates.

So what are Iacocca's 9 Cs“?

“A leader has to show CURIOSITY. He had to listen to people outside the ”Yes, sir“ crowd in his inner circle.

“A leader has to be CREATIVE, go out on a limb, be willing to try something different. You know, think outside the box.

“ A leader has to COMMUNICATE. I'm not talking about running off at the mouth or spouting sound bites. I am talking about facing reality and telling the truth.

“A leader has to be a person of CHARACTER. That means knowing the difference between right and wrong and having the guts to do the right thing.

“A leader must have COURAGE.” Swagger isn't courage. Tough talk isn't courage.“ If you're a politician, courage means taking a position even when you know it will cost you votes.

“To be a leader you've got to have CONVICTION - fire in your belly. You've got to have passion. You've got to really want to get something done.

“A leader should have CHARISMA. I'm not talking about being flashy. Charisma is the quality that makes people want to follow you.

“A leader has to be COMPETENT ”You've got to know what you're doing.

“You can't be a leader if you don't have COMMON SENSE.

Nine simple traits that you might want to consider when you go into the voting booth on Tuesday.

Cosentino is a former mayor of Auburn and can be contacted at cozguytho@aol.com