Posted on 02/03/2003 5:17:39 AM PST by Master Zinja
DISPATCHES FROM THE AMERICAN FRONT
George Bush, Real Man
By James Benton
You could see it in his eyes, hear it in his tone Tuesday night in the second half of his State of the Union speech: this was a man not to be trifled with, a man who would see a difficult, dirty business through to the end, and God help anyone who stood against him as he does battle against the foes of America and her ideals. If anyone had doubts about Bush's commitment to victory in the War on Terrorism, they were laid to rest Tuesday night.
Rarely in history has an American president faced as much adversity as George W. Bush has in his first two years in office. Probably only Washington, Lincoln and FDR have had as tough a time as Bush, becoming president during tumultuous, difficult times, having so much happen so quickly.
Washington had to forge a nation; Lincoln had to fight a war; FDR battled the Depression from Day 1. However, Bush has probably had the worst time of all since taking office.
For those of you keeping score at home, so far President Bush has endured:
-An incredibly close election whose outcome was delayed for over a month,
-The first attack by a foreign power on the continental United States in nearly 200 years,
-A world war which may not be won before he leaves office,
-More terrorism at home with anthrax,
-A teetering economy,
-Fierce opposition from his political opponents if he does anything more than sneeze,
-The destruction of Columbia on Saturday and the loss of seven more heroes.
And that's just the highlights of his first two years in office, with Iraq and North Korea on the horizon and God knows what else still to come.
Yet, with all this going on, two indisputable facts have surfaced about the man in the Oval Office.
First, this is a man we in middle America have always identified with and trusted. We know his word is his bond. He's not perfect, he might not always be right, but we instinctively know he makes his decisions based on what he believes is best for the American people. If America were a small town, Bill Clinton would be the used car salesman everyone but newcomers and idiots avoided; George W. Bush would be the owner of the general store who also happened to be mayor, chewing the fat with the locals around the wood stove on Saturday mornings and helping them to get things done that needed doing.
Second, this is a sincere, pious man, which is also the underlying reason for the first point. George W. Bush demonstrates a quiet yet confident faith in the Creator, which governs his everyday life and decisions. We have seen it all too often in his eyes in the past 18 months - there is real pain there, real tears when things have gone truly bad, tears shed not for himself but for those of us who are suffering emotional or physical pain. Again, if we saw America as a small town, George would be in church on Sundays and would try to close up early on Wednesdays to get to church then also. He'd be one of the first on the phone to you when a family member died, and no doubt Laura would be by soon with a covered dish and just the right words of comfort.
In short, this is a real man, and it's been too long since such a person - such a family - has graced the White House. After eight years of scandal and a me-first attitude, Bush & Company have restored many American's respect for the office of president far fast than anyone believed possible. Respect may not wipe away the tears of tragedies and war, but it's a start at helping to keep us from total despair. God only knows what we would be feeling or how much confidence we'd have that everything will turn out all right if Clinton or Gore were at the helm; the mere thought gives me nightmares.
I would say I hope George W. Bush stays the course no matter what he faces, but that would be merely stating the obvious. He will. We instinctively know this, those of us who work a real job, worried about mortgages and kids. We know this, because at heart he's one of us, a working man, doing his best for all of us.
A real man. Thank God.
Now, Condi Rice, yes, m'am.
And then we'll see how George P. is shaping up, if he's been able to think straight and do right with all the women throwing themselves at him.
I often think about how many difficult situations President Bush has had to deal with, and sometimes feel more than a little guilty that I can sleep better knowing he's the man in charge. That seems terribly unfair, but I suppose he knew he might have to contend with all sorts of things. I sure didn't expect to see what looks to me like a battle between good and evil being waged right before our eyes; the only explanation I can come up with sometimes, though, is that evil doesn't attack evil--evil attacks good.
I'm always comforted when I visit FR and see how many of us are praying for him.
So's Dubyuh, IMHO...MUD
That's EXACTLY what we've got...and in their ZEAL to contradict Dubyuh, the Leftist RATS have inarguably allied DEMselves to the Anti-American Terrorists, demonstrating to many previously-unaware folks that the DemonRAT Party is now dominated by folks who HATE America and the FReedom that made America the Greatest Country in the History of Mankind!!
Don't worry, though...Be Happy!! The Right's winning...MUD
If I could go back in time, I'd tell GWB several things he must do:
No troops on the ground, aside from Special Forces hunter-killer teams. No nation-building: Afghanistan will have to stop fighting among themselves and build their own nation, when they are ready.
Finally, leave with a warning: if you don't mind your own business and we have to come back again, we won't leave ANYTHING standing. And, if we see you build anything bigger than an outhouse, we'll drop a bomb on it.
This isn't hindsight. In the run-up to the second war in Iraq, I posted something to the effect of what Biden actually proposed later (and one of the few times I agreed with him): Iraq will just degenerate into factions fighting each other, and we don't have the political will to stay the course. The only way to a lasting peace is to separate them.
If the US did ANYTHING in Iraq, we should have said: We recognize the Kurds as a separate nation. If the other two factions try to attack them in any way, we'll bomb you back into the Stone Age. Let the Sunni's and Shiite's work out their differences, or keep fighting -- it's their choice, but we stay out of it.
Yes, I'm sure I'll get flamed for this, so I'll put my Nomex suit on.
But, I'll reiterate: I don't think Bush is a bad guy. I don't think he did anything intentionally to screw up the US, unlike his successor. But, he made mistakes, and they were colossal ones that he should have known to avoid.
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