AMY HOLMES: Tomorrow is Election Day in Afghanistan. There have already been a string of suicide bombings, designed to intimidate voters into staying home. The Taliban promises there's more to come. With tensions high, we turn to someone who knows the stakes, and knows the strategies well. Retired four-star general, Tony Zinni, served as Commander in Chief of U.S. Central Command, overseeing U.S. operations in Afghanistan, and the entire Mideast, until he retired in 2000. Months later, he returned as President Bush's envoy to the Middle East, and as the Bush administration prepared to invade Iraq, he became known as one of the most senior retired commanders to oppose the war. He's also an author. His new book, co-authored by Tony Koltz, is called "Leading the Charge: Leadership Lessons from the Battlefield to the Boardroom". General Zinni, let's dive right into Obama, and his health care reform push. Some are saying that his leadership has gone off the rails. What do you say about that?

GENERAL ANTHONY ZINNI: Well, I think this issue of health care, it should have been realized that this was going to be a contentious issue, and required a lot of presentation. In the military, we have a term, "information campaign," and you need to make it clear what you're trying to do, get in front of the objective, and ensure that the right information's out. He certainly had the power of the bully pulpit that should have been used, I think, early on, and now, I think, we're seeing him trying to catch up and get on the road. Much of this, in my mind, should have been done beforehand.

Amy Holmes: In your book, you list characteristics of good leadership: being curious, team building, having a global perspective. Which of these are most relevant right now, for the president to be able to prevail on health care reform?

Anthony Zinni: I think, in any case, it's a clear, detailed understanding of the environment you're in. Ever since the collapse of the Soviet Union, we've had a very complex, and growing, more-complicated world, not only in the global sense, but domestically and otherwise. And we've seen this, obviously, with problems with the economy, our security challenges, health care, many other issues. And, I think, if you don't have a good day-to-day handle on what you are facing, what people are facing, what they're feeling, then I think you're not going to make the kind of decisions that are going to be effective.

Amy Holmes: So, how do you rate President Obama? His approval numbers are falling. He seems, some critics say, to not be in charge of the health care debate. How do you rate him?

Anthony Zinni: Well, I think, that&Well, first of all, he has a style that I think's very appealing, in this sort of set of times. He communicates well, he's highly intelligent. He has a charisma. I think he's curious, certainly. They're some decisions that were made that we could question. I certainly think he let the health care issue get in front of him, instead of he getting in front of it, as I mentioned. I think additionally some of the structure and organizational things he's done with the czars, and the super-envoys, you know, the jury's still out, and there's some question about how that may complicate structure, who's in charge, the team of rivals. But in all fairness, it's a little early. Obviously, he inherited a number of crises: two wars, an economy that was slipping, and other problems, and he's just past his 200th day. If the economy turns around, whether it was his actions or not, he'll get credit just like he would get the blame. So, if he starts to score some victories, I think you would see it turn around. But he's certainly done some things that are different and will be questioned if they don't succeed.

Amy Holmes: So, what leadership elements do you think he needs to acquire, in order to succeed?

Anthony Zinni: I think it, you know, obviously, he didn't come into this position with a lot of political experience, and I think in many cases, he's learning the political environment, and especially the Washington, and global, political environment. But he's a fast learner, and he's a quick study, and I think he will learn from what he's gone through here. That's part of the environment. You have to read your stakeholders, you have to read, sort of, the rules of the environment you're in, and how the game is played, and...

Amy Holmes: So, let's talk about that political environment.

Anthony Zinni: Sure.

Amy Holmes: Some observers are saying House democrats, led by Nancy Pelosi, are riding roughshod over Barack Obama, that he's failing in his leadership there. What do you think?

Anthony Zinni: Well, I think you hit the nail on the head, in terms of the political environment in Congress is one element of this. It's key. Your own party, the leadership there, obviously, the opposition – and no assumptions about their weakness should be made because they're still very powerful, and we've seen that now in reaction to the health care issue – and how your own administration runs, a sense of the people and their mood, what is influenced by politics and what is not. And sometimes that can be very confusing, but even people that are very experienced and have a lot of time in politics, my observations have been that this is a very complicated system, and if you don't understand it, it's difficult to operate. You can't make any assumptions going in about this, and unless you understand that environment.

Amy Holmes: So, General Zinni, in your book, you say that we need a new type of leader for this post-Cold War era. Can you offer some examples of leaders who possess the qualities you think we need to move forward?

Anthony Zinni: Yeh. I think you see, like in business, if you look in the automobile industry, or the airline industry, you see the exceptions to the rule that are doing it in businesses, or models that are failing. The Richard Bransons of the world, you know, the Toyotas and Hondas of the world, and the leadership that seems to be responsive to the needs of the customer, and sensitive to the changing environment. Even in the military, I mentioned General Petraeus, and others, that think differently, are more creative, think outside the norm, and make decisions in a different way. And again, going back, assess a very different world, and are able to see things that others don't. And so, we're seeing more and more examples of people that are successful. Especially in models, in business models, and others, that tend to be failing for everybody else.