When Is a Candidate Ready?

This morning, I was watching some election coverage when one of the commentators mentioned that he didn’t think Sarah Palin was ready to be President if, God forbid, anything happened to John McCain. I have heard folks say this about Barack Obama too. Considering that many people do not want a “Washington insider” to lead the country, a label that implies all kinds of experience working in Washington, D.C., my question for discussion is this:

What exactly makes an individual ready to be President?

The Constitution enumerates these qualifications in Article II, Section 1:

- must be a natural born citizen
- must be at least 35 years old
- must have lived in the United States for 14 years

Any ideas? Thanks for your input.

McCain campaign website
Obama campaign website