Proceed with caution, Mr. President
January 31, 2002 ~ 11:28 p.m.
From what was an otherwise inspiring State of the Union speech our President gave on Tuesday, two things have me concerned. Both are of only mild concern to me�I trust Mr. Bush, he is a reliable leader�but some slight doubts linger in the wake of his address.
In his speech, Bush fingered Iraq, Iran and North Korea as legitimate targets for the continuing war on terror. America absolutely must do what it deems necessary, and I will defer to Mr. Bush and his highly experienced core of advisers as to what course we should take. At no point was I opposed to our tactics in Afghanistan to oust the Taliban, and I am ready to support all subsequent efforts to squelch the states that still do sponsor terrorism. But we must be absolutely sure that all military engagements henceforth are validated. Overthrowing the Taliban only worked because we had proof positive that bin Laden, with the blessing of the ruling Taliban government, was responsible for the terror committed on September 11.
Is Saddam Hussein capable of chemical or biological terror? Absolutely. Are Iran and North Korea rogue states that shelter terrorist cells? Yes. But, again, for our battle against terrorism to be a success, we must caution ourselves against jumping too soon in our attacks against these nations. A rash strike against Iraq could jeopardize our Arab allies. Targeting North Korea too harshly could result in a dangerous split with South Korea and muddle our cooperative efforts with Seoul. It cannot be underestimated how vital an ally South Korea is to us. Lastly, we cannot afford to alienate reformers in Iran who are, for the most part, pro-Western. But theirs is a very tenuous support. �The American president had better back up his assertions with evidence instead of repeating old and unfounded claims,� said the Iranian foreign minister. I don�t buy for one minute the �old and unfounded claims� garbage. Iran has shown its intentions, often blatantly, many times over. But, the part about backing up accusations is the important point. If we truly do want to avoid another Vietnam experience, let our strikes against other states be validated. I back my president, my country and our military 110 percent; I simply want to ensure that our efforts will result in success.
During his address, Bush also made a vague, indirect reference to the energy trading company Enron, calling for reform in the wake of the company�s collapse. This appears to be a tactic to beat back the Democrats who, seeing a window of opportunity with which to discredit Mr. Bush, are raising a stink over the Enron fiasco. Understandable political maneuvering to be sure, but Bush needs to be more open about this incident. Making matters all the worse, Bush wishes to invoke executive privilege in order to keep the debate over Enron away from public view.
The problem? Not only does it deny the public�s right to know the truth about a potentially important scandal, but reeks of the former administration. Clinton claimed executive privilege over the Lewinsky scandal, and the public was rightly disgusted. No, we said, come clean, be a man and admit the facts. This was our demand. Now, Bush wants to pull a Clinton-esque act on us, keeping the uneasy facts on Enron away from our knowledge. This is dishonest politics. We expected this from Clinton. But I enthusiastically voted for Bush, knowing that his presidency would mark a refreshing change from the previous administration.
The clicker for me is that Bush is receiving support from former Clinton aides. With these individuals crawling out of the woodwork again to grant their blessings to Bush in his effort to shield the facts about Enron from the General Accounting Office by claiming executive privilege, it can only look really bad. Not only does it compare to the Lewinsky scandal, but also the debacle over Hillary�s dreadful healthcare task, when the former First Lady refused to disclose records of the group�s meetings to Congress. No good can come out of claiming executive privilege for Bush.
Mr. Bush, come clean. Let us know the facts. Every presidency has its scandals and you must deal with yours head-on. Yes, Enron was a disaster. Lay the facts out for public scrutiny, and you just may find a public that will appreciate your honesty and forgive you on that count. They already support you and your party�s policies on the economy, tax cuts, the budget, national security and the war on terrorism. Be serious and deliver on the reform you alluded to in your speech. We just want the facts; we want to see a leader come clean for once, and admit what he knows. It�s all about honesty, Mr. President.
If we can continue our anti-terrorism efforts prudently with evidence to back up military engagements and keep our alliances intact, and fully admit failure with Enron while crafting reform measures to prevent another similar debacle, then Bush can wind up with one of the most successful and popular presidencies in modern American history. It behooves the President to consider these points.
� M.E.M.
|
[Sign My Guestbook]
[View My Guestbook]
|
Copyright � 2001-2007 by M.E. Manning. All material is written by me, unless explicitly stated otherwise by use of footnotes or bylines. Do not copy or redistribute without my permission.
AMERICA FOR TRUE AMERICANS!