YETMO

”The State of the Union” (Week of January 22 - 26, 2007)

This week President Bush delivered his State of the Union message to a Democratic Congress. That was a first. He delivered it to an increasing number of defecting Republican lawmakers. That was a first. He delivered it to a confused, frustrated, and unbelieving nation. That may or may not have been a first.

Lest you think this is a Bush-bashing exercise, it’s not. My goal is always to stimulate thought, debate, and introspection. I get annoyed with personal attacks, so I try to avoid making them. Mere criticism is simple. We all are less than perfect creatures and it’s not hard, especially if a bright spotlight is shown on our every thought, word, and deed, to expose any number of our flaws, some of even major proportions.

Yet, the President’s speech, and all the reaction thereunto appertaining, is significant as it directly affects who we are as Americans, what we think, want, and believe as a nation, and precisely which programs and policies our Executive Branch compatriots will be tasked to provide effectively and efficiently.

One thing that’s clear to me is that most Americans and lawmakers are not pleased with what is happening in Iraq, are perplexed that our vast and powerful military – at least in terms of our convenient and conventional cultural interpretation of it – seems unable to “fix” things and complete the job, and simply want this to go away right away. Of course, for that to happen, our troops would have to leave Iraq.

For certain, the day will come when American military involvement and activity will cease in Iraq in the manner that it exists today. The issue is how and when such redeployment and redescription of our role will take place. That is the tough nut to crack, as it is froth with political perils: cut and run; no stomach for the fight; paper tiger; no patience and gumption when things get challenging; turning tail; etc.

All the political pandering and pronouncements matter, as hundreds of thousands of Executive Branch employees (in uniform, Defense Department, or Intelligence community) are affected by this dynamic daily and must work through these distractions. However, if the public has grown weary or lost confidence in its leaders’ abilities to achieve some measure of victory or success – however defined – then it is nearly impossible for these mere mortals to awake and go to work everyday with the expectation of an acceptable end. That, my friends, is where our country is today and where our government workers are, those who are charged with running of our democracy and delivering policies, programs, and presentiments to the world.

We need to keep our eyes on the psyches of these people and gauge how resolutely they can function under these trying circumstances. Their jobs are not enviable, yet they are absolutely critical to our continued prominence as a world power and a nation able to defend itself from all enemies foreign and domestic.

For those of you with more time on your hands than you know what to do with, you’re invited to read my take on the President’s speech this past Tuesday.