The Oval Office at the White House in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

The latest officially announced Republican hopefuls for president are former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania.

They say, correctly, that President Barack Obama is undermining American freedom, spending countless billions of dollars that our country does not have, and adding massive debt to future generations.

But we cannot help but notice a general lack of excitement about either Romney or Santorum.

Other announced or possible GOP candidates include Newt Gingrich, former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives; Sarah Palin, former governor of Alaska; Tim Pawlenty, former governor of Minnesota; Michele Bachmann, U.S. representative from Minnesota; Ron Paul, congressman from Texas; Herman Cain, former CEO of Godfather's Pizza; Jon Huntsman, former ambassador to China; and Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

It's still relatively early, of course, in the process of selecting a Republican nominee to challenge Obama in 2012. Some of the individuals above have a number of strong qualities. Others we're not so sure about. And some just really aren't known well enough at this point.

It is clear that Obama is vulnerable - because of his poor handling of the economy and health care in particular. But his potential opponent will have to put forward a strong plan to defeat Obama, and will have to have leadership and intangible qualities that will appeal to many voters.

We're not sure we've seen that candidate emerge yet.