Now if he would take on the Goebellsian media, my day will be made and I'll have confidence that he is finally ready to enter the fray.
Finally ready? FINALLY ready? You are referring to a man who, unique among all presidents except three others, saw his nation attacked on our own soil on his watch. You are referring to a man who, unique among all presidents except one other, saw our nation's capitol attacked by a foreign enemy. One of our oldest and most storied cities attacked by a foreign enemy, as well as three of the first states in the union attacked by a foreign enemy for the first time since the War of 1812.
You are referring to a man -- a MAN -- who stood atop a ruined fire engine, on a still smouldering pile of rubble that used to be the World Trade Center, at a time when no one knew when the next attack might come. From atop that ruined fire engine, that "dumb" cowboy who supposedly can't communicate well said, "I can hear you. The world hears you. And those who brought these buildings down will hear all of us soon."
Plain, spontaneous speech; not fancy. Not written by anyone. Just from-the-heart speech by a plain-spoken Texan talking to ordinary Americans the way we speak to each other. Yet those few words are among the greatest ever spoken by an American president.
Those immensely important words came from somewhere inside him; inside the core of who George W. Bush is as a MAN.
You are referring to a man who showed immense courage when, during the 2001 World Series, with Ground Zero still smouldering at the other end of Manhattan Island, he walked alone out to the mound in front of a huge crowd and a mesmerized worldwide TV audience, and threw a perfect strike -- while wearing a bulletproof vest.
Sometimes words, alone, won't suffice. And courage is not always found in big words or on the battlefield. Courage can also be found in a man who, by his own example -- his tears, his anger, his dignity, his steadfastness -- made this country pick itself up, dust itself off, hold its head high, and carry on.
You are referring to a man -- a MAN -- who stood fast through some of the darkest days this nation has ever faced, and made the best decisions he could to protect us while taking the fight to the enemy.
Finally ready to enter the fray, indeed.