“A handful of soldiers is always better than a mouthful of arguments.”– Georg C. Lichtenberg, eighteenth century German scientist and satirist.
September 11, 2001 changed the United States, and the world, in as many ways as one could fear. Our nation has been plagued by a war not of its choosing for ten years. Today, we see ourselves sickened by the images of maimed or dead American soldiers still returning home from foreign wastelands in the Middle East- as we question what will be gained from our continued presence there after our initial response to the horrific attacks of 9/11. Not since the fall of Saddam Hussein and the day of the first free elections in Iraq were Americans able rejoice as they did May 1st last year with the success of the mission to locate and kill Osama Bin Laden. And even with those feelings of jubilation, relief and even closure, the American political class cannot get out of its own way to politicize the issue- turning an American triumph into a divisive argument once again.
One could date this display of gross politicization back to last May when the news of the mission’s success broke. Democrats immediately flocked to a party rallying cry, after brief platitudes celebrating the SEALs, of malice and vindictiveness toward President George W. Bush. After eight years of demonizing the former president, they wanted to take it a step further, making the claim (to paraphrase) “what Bush couldn’t do in eight years, Obama did in two.” Thankfully, the average American keeps him or herself well informed, and was able to see through this political parlor trick; it had been noted time after time that Mr. Obama has kept intact most of President Bush’s anti-terrorism measures. These measures played a vital role in the gathering of intelligence on Bin Laden’s location.
Unfortunately though, after their own brief platitudes celebrating the SEALs, Republicans chose to lower themselves to the Democrats’ level- immediately crediting President Bush for a job well done while simultaneously dismissing President Obama as a man who simply was in the right place at the right time. Neither of these approaches to this matter bestows the proper, and necessary, credit due to the men and women who have served in the War on Terror: the soldiers that have strategically placed us in the position to carry out the mission, the intelligence operatives who gained the information through years of interrogation and the dangerous pursuit of one of the most vicious terrorist network in the world, and of course the SEALs who assassinated Bin Laden and completed the mission successfully.
President Obama’s National Security Team watches in suspense as SEAL Team Six Carries out its mission in Abbottabad, Pakistan. A resounding achievement for our armed forces and the President at the time, now turned into a divisive campaign argument for both sides of the political divide. (www.ABCnews.com)
Although I paint both parties here with a broad brush, and there are those who did not choose to try to capitalize on this event as shamelessly as I depict, the display we have seen this week is much worse than anything from last year. Now, instead of Democrats choosing to taunt President Bush, party attack dogs and even the President have gone after Governor Romney. A new Obama re-election ad was released last week, with President Bill Clinton narrating over shots of President Obama and his tough decision to give the go ahead on the mission to get Bin Laden. Though the President insisted last year he would not “spike the football” by releasing photos of the dead Bin Laden, it seems his end zone dance is much worse, with the ad going as far to imply the accusation that his Republican rival would not have made the same decision.
Unfortunately, again, Republicans have lowered themselves to this petty party bickering, where Governor Romney chose to meet President Obama head on, and make this statement in response to the ad: “Even Jimmy Carter would make that decision.” Does that childish chide seem Presidential Mr. Romney? And with all due respect Governor, who gives a damn what President Jimmy Carter would have done? The man has been out of office for thirty years. If Republicans are to cry foul over needless attacks on President Bush, then let’s please leave Mr. Carter (1977-1981) out of the conversation all together. I understand this is an election year, and there is the natural need to meet every argument and every attack with full force to make sure one does not look cowardly or inept. But let us for once elevate the conversation. We have already seen President Obama fail to bring “Hope and Change” to Washington- Mr. Romney should do his best to pick up where Mr. Obama failed.
Granted, any political strategist will make the claim this not a perfect world, and conceding that much ground in a debate is a sure fire way to hand over a big win to the administration. That conclusion may have been correct, at least until Monday. Monday, former and current Navy Seals criticized the administration for the ad released last week, and with the reaction shared by this writer, considered it beneath the President to “spike the football” over the success of the Bin Laden mission. As stated in the article:
Ryan Zinke, a former Commander in the US Navy who spent 23 years as a SEAL and led a SEAL Team 6 assault unit, said: ‘The decision was a no brainer. I applaud him for making it but I would not overly pat myself on the back for making the right call.
‘I think every president would have done the same. He is justified in saying it was his decision but the preparation, the sacrifice – it was a broader team effort.’
This sentiment seems to reflect the feeling of the American citizenry, whose approval of the mission gave the President a six point bump in approval rating last Spring after the mission, but these numbers quickly came back down to earth as the initial jubilation had worn off. At this point in time Americans still saw themselves in a stagnant economy, fighting to make ends meet as the unemployment rate in the United States sat above 9%. Governor Romney should have taken the high road, and instead of invoking irrelevant memories of President Carter’s ineptitude, he could have put together a statement akin to this:
“If the President chooses to pat himself on the back over the Bin Laden raid as he campaigns across the country in place of governing it, good for him. I’ll be sure to be the Commander-in Chief who celebrates our service men and women who risk their lives to get the job done, as well as propose a responsible Defense budget that will keep our soldiers safe and well-equipped to carry out such a mission again if needed.”
These simple words would congratulate SEAL team six while simultaneously admonishing the president for his weak fiscal policies which currently plague the nation. If he is to win in November, Mr. Romney needs to remember to bring the discussion back to the issues the American people face on a daily basis, instead of getting into a mudslinging match a challenger going up against the White House will surely lose.
The hypocrisy Americans see in their politicians is often disregarded, noted as a cost of doing business in a peaceful Democratic-Republic. Today we see that hypocrisy shamelessly displayed on both sides of the aisle regarding the Bin Laden raid- both parties too eager to credit itself on managing a job well done, and as a result minimalizing the roles of the brave men and women who did the real work in the first place.
– John P. Burns
tammanyhalldotcom 