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Volume CXXXIII, Number 11 |
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Ominous clouds for the president
ALEXANDER REED
CONTRIBUTOR
The American people have, especially in recent years, been very forgiving towards Republican presidents. Whether it be Ronald Reagan during the Iran-Contra affair, or George W. Bush during Election 2000 and the Second Gulf War, we have often had a very long fuse.
However, years from now, when we re-examine the present global political situation from the vantage point of hindsight, we may ask ourselves how we could have allowed someone like George W. Bush to seize control of the White House and, in effect, steal what was once America's vaunted position in the world community.
We might ask ourselves how, in our country, enamored for its democracy and social progress, could we have given a blank check to a president who has waged two costly wars that have alienated our best friends and has emboldened our worst enemies.
Hopefully, we will avoid having to ask ourselves these questions, because we Americans are as reasonable as we are forgiving, and therefore will likely not vote Bush into the White House for a second term. Americans have realized, in large part, that Bush's foreign policy and theory of pre-emptive warfare are not only fatally flawed, but a proven blueprint for diplomatic disaster.
All of our former best friends and allies, including France and Russia, have been insulted and isolated by Bush, and thus are no longer prepared to lend us their support, as demonstrated by their opposition to the Iraq war in the U.N. Security Council. The last thing we need in the fight against terrorism is to foster anti-Americanism in Europe, which is one of the last remaining strongholds of American political support.
Most conservatives and Republicans in the U.S. could care less about America's international reputation. You're either with us or you're with the terrorists, as they believe. Yet for the average, reasonable American, the Bush Administration's fairy-tale diplomacy of good vs. evil holds no credibility. The failure of the Administration's diplomatic approach is evident: mounting casualties in Iraq, the continued operation of Al-Qaeda, and the never-ending search for Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein. This has not gone unnoticed by the American public, and Bush's standing in national polls continues to fall.
However, President Bush, theoretically, could still win the next election. The key, either for Bush or for the Democratic nominee, will be the Iraqi question. Nobody in America or the rest of the world expects Bush to draft the Fourteen Points or a Marshall Plan for Iraq. However, a clearly defined, effective idea of a democratic Iraqi government and plan for reconstruction is essential.
Whichever candidate is able to provide such a plan will likely take the presidency. As the situation stands, there is little or no foreign intervention in post-war Iraq except, of course, that of the United States and Great Britain. What is needed is a broad, international coalition force and administration that has not only the muscle, but the financial backing with which to restore order in Iraq.
If George W. Bush admits he made a mistake in the post-war planning, and subsequently works to change the status quo, then reasonable American people will recognize this and give him not only their faith, but their votes.
This is unfortunately not the first time a president has launched an unpopular war with no clear end-strategy. During the Vietnam War, Lyndon B. Johnson did not even bother to run for re-election in 1968. Despite his many Great Society programs, civil rights support, and well-intentioned War on Poverty, the American people never forgave him for his real war in Southeast Asia. George W. Bush, who can point to few tangible positive effects of his term in office, might very well occupy a similar place in history.
It would be one thing if Bush passively ambled through his term in office without working to change anything or do anything at all for the betterment of the country. However, in his callous, reckless vision of national security, he has allowed his administration to turn a necessary and commendable attempt at deterring terrorism to a constitutional assault.
The Patriot Act, which is likely the most unconstitutional move ever perpetrated by the federal government since the Alien and Sedition Acts, has struck a chord among all Americans who believe in the founding idea of liberty. Many Americans are outraged at this unprecedented assault on their right to privacy, and do not believe eroding our core rights as Americans is the way to fight terrorism.
As Howard Dean has repeatedly asked: "Are you better off now than you were four years ago?" The answer among most Americans is "no." America is indeed in worse shape on all levels since the ascension of Bush to the presidency.
Yet, the coming months will for sure tell whether the American people see Bush's spectacular failure as a leader. Most Americans are, despite our characterization in the media, wise, reasonable people. As such, the future of this country, and its historic place in the international community as a beacon of democracy and rule of law, will be restored.
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