PM Howard has the right stuff of leadership- like most heads of state, he is privy to information that cannot be made public, and so must argue without being able to lay all his cards on the table... but rest assured, the cards are there.
Tony Blair was a Clinton-lite "third-wayer" before 9-11, and he suddenly transformed into a fire-breathing warrior-- because of things he knows that can't be made public.
Look at all the information we can find running a common web search ( want to really scare yourself? Search "North Korean Nuclear..." ) and multiply that a hundredfold. That's one reason President Bush has aged so much in office- the awful worry over what people who hate the West are planning.