"It is the common fate of the indolent to see their rights become a prey to the active. The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt." -- JP Curran, 1790

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

The Age of President Bush is at an End

At noon today, as a nervous new President-to-be became the 44th President of the United States, the age of Bush came to an end. It never ceases to amaze me that the press is so brazen in its double-standard of coverage of the two major political parties. When a Democrat president is leaving office to make way for a Republican, much attention is given to the old president and his legacy. We see nothing but fond memory pieces from commentators on the major media outlets, while they pay scant attention to the new Republican Commander-in-Chief. Eight years later, as it has come to pass, when a Republican makes way for a Democrat successor (and I might add with the greatest sense of grace and dignity that any President has ever left office with) all of the media attention is on the new president, and the nation's jubilation.

This is clearly President Obama's moment, and I wish him well. As our new President takes over the reigns of power, let us hope and pray that we come out of this with the same old America that has come through each and every challenge we've ever faced. Let there be no mistake...we are one nation, under God, indivisible. That does not mean we will agree on policy. Tomorrow I will probably have a fresh new criticism of the President's policies, something I haven't enjoyed much since the Clinton years...in the era before Offering "Common" Sense! This will be nothing if not interesting!

President Obama's history is as yet unwritten (much to the consternation of the liberal pundits). We will just have to wait and see how he governs.

President Bush, on the other hand, is now a former president, and his history is in the books for all the world to read. If they actually take the time to look at his accomplishments, they may see that his only true failure was believing that he could be bipartisan in a partisan world that is D.C. He tried to reach across the aisle, and did so on numerous occasions, but it only put him off balance to the liberal attack dogs, and gave him bad press.

Still, last night was another good night's sleep for this nation. With President Bush at the helm, we knew what we had, and we had a warrior who would never falter in the face of terrorism. I really don't know how we'll sleep tonight as a nation, because we honestly don't know what we've got in our new Commander-in-Chief. I remember the frustration I felt in 1993 after the first terrorist attack on the World Trade Center when President Clinton got on the public airwaves and declared the issue one of law enforcement rather than war. Muslim fanatics who wanted to bring the towers down were largely ignored, and they were left to continue planning. All of that frustration, as a young American, built up over the remainder of the Clinton years as we saw attack after attack against American interests (Khobar Towers in 1996, US Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998, and the USS Cole bombing in 2000). The lawyer-turned-president demonstrated to the world what bin Laden would call the "paper tiger." He was just as wrong as Osama in his assertion of American might.

Then came President Bush, announcing to our troops (I was one of them during his campaign) that "help is on the way," and he delivered. By the grace of God, he got into office as the 43rd President by just over 500 popular votes in Florida! Talking about budgets, lock-boxes, and tax cuts during the campaign, President Bush was the businessman-turned-president... up through Sept. 10, 2001. The minute we were attacked, he became a warrior, and he never ceased to be one for the remainder of his presidency. President Bush did not take a public opinion poll to act, and he successfully defended our country everyday after the Sept. 11 attacks. Zero attacks on American soil. Mission accomplished.

In stark contrast to his large boasting during the end of the Clinton Administration, Osama bin Laden has been effectively muted. Too afraid to use a cell phone, or even offer a public appearance, Osama bin Laden has been in hiding and on the run since he dared to put himself in the cross-hairs of our former President. Rather than shooting his rifle off in celebration of his 100% election victories while murdering political dissenters, Saddam Hussein is dead. Another stark difference between the end of the Clinton Administration and the Bush Administration! Rather than worry about Iraq attacking Israel or going for Saudi Arabia's oil, we now have a common ally in our greater Global War on Terrorism. Another important distinction between Clinton and Bush's last day in office. Rather than see a fugitive financier political contributor (Mark Rich) get a pardon, we see commuted sentences for border patrol agents who were abused by our own legal system for defending our borders. Today, on Bush's last day, we look across to Afghanistan, renewed with a sense of Democracy, which is a far cry from Clinton's last day when that nation, under oppressive Taliban rule, was plotting for our next terrorist attack.

The world is a great deal better off after 8 years of President George W. Bush. Let's hope that the same can be said for his successor. Sphere: Related Content

No comments:

Post a Comment

I believe in the 1st Amendment. Say whatever you want. If you're a moron, I may point that out...if I have time. :P

Site Meter

Blog Archive